The watches come from China, well known for it's market in counterfeit goods. They are usually inexpensive shells made by Timex or some other brand with illegally made faces and bands, often with stolen parts from the original manufacturers.
You can buy the same watches in China town in NYC for between US$6 and US$13 that sell on the beach in the DR for double that, and in China town, they have thousands of them on display every day along Canal street. I took an expensive china town rolex to a jeweler, and lo and behold, the shell was an authentic rolex complete with serial number (according to the jeweler) and the innards were timex, complete with sweeping hand (I paid US$45 a few years ago).
In NYC, even designer perfume can be bought on the streets at a sharp discount. It is not stolen, it is usually conterfient, the real thing but expired, or somehow otherwise flawed. According to a TV program I saw, perfume is forumalated differently for different markets and climates so what smells good in one market might be too weak or smell differently in another, which is why is not always such a good idea to buy perfume at a duty-free in the Caribbean when you plan to wear it in the great white north.
The vendors in the DR are licensed to sell on the beach and that has nothing to do with whether or not it is legal to sell knock-off items. Watches are not the only knock-off item. Name brand T-shirts, sun-glasses, caps, etc. are also sold. The stuff is probably brought in from NYC where so many Dominicans have family. This stuff is sold in the streets of every major city in the USA and Europe. Don't buy too many or you could be arrested on return for traficking in counerfeit goods by US Customs but they will not confiscate a handful or so.
I've been known to buy the watches in NYC for as little as US$4 each when buying 20 or more at a time. Ironically, it costs me US$5 to change the battery at the mall after a year or so, or US$10 at the mall to buy a replacement watch band. Buyer beware. Some of these watches might have a problem such as a sticky hand, a date that won't advance, or cosmetic flaws and there is an as-is no-return policy on the street (including most beach stores that also carry this stuff).
Jim Hinsch JimHinsch@CSI.COM