05/16/2025
Found a Watch at Goodwill… and Then It Got Crushed
Feedback Wanted
I picked up an old quartz moon phase watch at Goodwill recently. I couldn’t find much about it online, but I really liked the look and feel of it—definitely had some vintage charm.
I brought it to Dakota Watch (one of those mall kiosk spots) just to get the battery replaced, and unfortunately… they absolutely crushed the watch. Literally.
The supervisor claims that replacing the glass will fix it, but I’m genuinely concerned that the internal movement may have been damaged from the pressure that caused the break. I don’t know what the watch is actually worth or if it’s even reparable at this point.
The only silver lining is that Dakota Watch said they’ll fix it for free. Still, I’m doubtful about the quality of parts and workmanship they’ll put into the repair.
Lesson learned: I definitely messed up by going to them in the first place.
Anyone have experience with similar situations—or tips on what I should do next?
For some context: when I dropped the watch off for the battery replacement, the lady at the Dakota Watch stand told me to come back in about half an hour. When I returned, she straight-up admitted that they broke it because they “didn’t know what they were doing.”