Finders keepers: Inside the booming market for rare pre-owned watches
Deloitte has estimated that by 2030 the global pre-owned watch market will be worth more than £30 billion. So, which independent watchmakers are proving most in demand?
More than a year has passed since Rolex announced its officially certified pre-owned watch programme – a game-changing moment that made securing that ultra-coveted steel Daytona or GMT Master-II Pepsi all the more a reality. Yet, while there are an increasing number of ways of sourcing mainstream models from the likes of Rolex, Audemars Piguet and Patek Philippe, what about rarer models from even more exclusive brands? Where do you go if, say, you are looking for a discontinued Richard Mille? Or a limited run MB&F? How about a gorgeous Élégante from F.P. Journe?
Fortuitously, for anyone looking to venture into proper unicorn territory, help is at hand. There are now a range of pre-owned outfitters doing what was once the preserve of auction houses. What’s more, independent brands are increasingly getting into the game themselves.
“Most independents have a very, very limited production run,” says Jonathan Darracott, global head of watches at Bonhams. “The predominance of people buying independents are well informed, and they buy to keep. So it’s quite rare for people to release an independent watch from their collection.”
Given that Rolex reportedly manufactures around 1.2 million watches a year, chances are you’ll always be able to find another Rolex. “With the independents, if you sell up, it’s very unlikely you’ll find another one,” says Darracott.
Darracott cites independent brands F.P. Journe, Greubel Forsey and British legend George Daniels as being especially popular among collectors right now. But auction sales are just one avenue for hunting down ‘grail’ pieces. “Tell us what you want and we’ll keep an eye out,” says Darracott. “We have lots of sources, with lots of different ways of coming across items.”
Increasingly, however, it seems your best bet might be to go to brands directly. Rolex’s CPO programme may have made waves, but, in fact, the company was playing catch up; for years, independent watchmakers have offered their own certified pre-owned watches, complete with full restorations and multi-year warranties.
Richard Mille, for instance, does this via a dedicated bricks-and-mortar boutique called Ninety. Since debuting on London’s Mount Street in 2021, another Ninety store opened in Geneva earlier this year. It features a discreet door directly connected to Richard Mille’s main boutique. Ninety is the go-to place for unique and discontinued Richard Milles, most of which were made in frustratingly limited quantities. A watchmaker is on-site, meaning that a collector can walk in with a once-loved RM, have it valued and walk out with either money in the bank or a new watch that’s been part-exchanged (complete with a two-year warranty).
H Moser & Cie Endeavour Centre Seconds x Seconde/Seconde/
Laurent Ferrier Square Micro Rotor Retro Steel
“Ultimately nobody can tell you more about a pre-owned watch than the brand itself,” says Ninety London’s general manager, Dean Harding. “Whatever any dealer says, they will never know the full history of a watch more than the brand that actually created it.”
Ninety’s head of watchmaking, Thomas Mason, will be inspecting a watch downstairs, while the full specs of the watch – its service history where and when it was sold, whether it’s been reported stolen – are being checked upstairs. “No dealer can get that information,” says Harding.
According to Harding, chronographs co-designed with Richard Mille ambassadors – like Felipe Massa’s RM-011 from 2007 and Rafael Nadal’s RM-35-02 from 2016 – are proving especially popular. Another in-demand piece is the RM-11-03, a flyback chronograph also from 2016, which was the last iteration in the 11 series.
Brands know the power of customer loyalty, and of keeping things in the family. MB&F also has a dedicated pre-owned programme, complete with a two-year unconditional warranty. Through the initiative, the brand has resold pieces like the punchy, two-engine-style HM4 Razzle Dazzle, of which only eight were produced. The watchmaker offers help on any pre-owned MB&F purchase, offering to share serial numbers of watches found on other websites, or help hunt down coveted models.
Elsewhere, Urwerk has a robust online consignment programme, with client watches undergoing an inspection at the watchmaker’s Geneva headquarters. The watches are given a 24-month warranty, as well as a new strap.
For anyone wanting to browse a wider variety of models, head to a specialist pre-owned watch company. Arjen van de Vall is chief executive officer of the pre-owned provider Watchfinder & Co., which is positioned to offer a gamut that stretches from Tag Heuer Aquaracers to Patek Philippe Aquanauts and Nautiluses. And, while the Rolex Daytona may be the emblematic Watchfinder watch, van de Vall observes a continued interest in independents, especially as price points for the big marques have been steadily increasing.
“It’s been an interesting dynamic,” he says, noting that buying into independents usually starts with research and a quest for something offbeat. “Collectors explore more and learn about the independent manufacture, which potentially has a little bit more of an extreme position on design, or certain values that are much closer to them. People then decide to make the jump.”
Right now, says van de Vall, Laurent Ferrier and F.P. Journe are trending. “They are virtually impossible to buy below £20,000, which is quite a steep entry point,” he concedes. Other independent brands finding favour among collectors are H. Moser & Cie and cult Belgian watchmaker, Ressence.
All Watchfinder pieces come with a two-year warranty, with each watch undergoing a rigorous 60-step process for authentication, testing and inspection. Watches with any tricky fixes, or needing special attention, get sent back to the brands directly for in-house servicing.
Also offering wide choice and a close connection to brands is the company formerly known as WatchBox, which is currently merging with other entities to become The 1916 Company. The company is known for its huge inventory – especially of F.P. Journe models – coupled with strong brand relationships. In 2021, the company took a bold majority stake in the independent watchmaker De Bethune. Once the market’s shock subsided, the move added credibility and legitimacy to The 1916 Company, and, arguably, to the pre-owned sector in general.
“Brands now see us not as an enemy, but somebody who helps them build value,” says Patrik Hoffmann, executive vice president of The 1916 Company. The firm has a vast library of online watch videos and articles – produced by Tim Mosso and Jack Forster, two of the industry’s most esteemed watch journalists. The 1916 Company has also invested in bricks and mortar, with more than 10 physical salons, in places ranging from Hong Kong to Florida.
“It’s easy to trade, sell and buy a Rolex, even a Patek Phillipe,” says Hoffmann, “because you can easily find out the value. But if somebody comes in with an exotic timepiece – an F.P. Journe, an MB&F or a Ulysse Nardin – people don’t know the value. We can make an offer because we have the know-how to trade those pieces. The key is knowledge and education.”
You know where to look.
