"Keith G" wrote

No, I'm not buying that - in the UK people will buy stuff at any price and
will put up with 'because we can' price hikes without a murmur.

Do they? not in my experience they don't!

Volvo and
BMW are just two car makers that told their dealer network 'don't discount
your cars, you don't need to in the UK'.

I don't beleive you, can you provide evidence for that claim?

As to watches, I have bought 8 (eight) Rolexes in my time; the only one
remaining is my son's Submariner, I wear Timex these days. Context is
everything - back then they were not 'expensive' for me....

It's only a watch. There are plenty of excellent watches that cost a
fraction of the price of a Rolex, so why buy one (unless it's to show off
your wealth).

Yes, where there is no choice you have no choice; where the gullibility
comes in is where there is choice and the punter gets 'sold'

And you know all about that do you?

or the items
are so trivial they could be ignored.

"Trivial" is in the mind of the buyer.

David.