Watches

planteria

is anyone here investing in Watches?
i know a couple of guys that collect high value watches, and are tuned into which ones are most likely to appreciate in value, sometimes ordering them in advance of their launch.
some watches are made of Gold or Platinum, of course, and so have an intrinsic value, but there are others which are limited edition which are sought after.

justjohn

mmm yes and no. I have invested in a couple of rolex's.
one gold, when gold was low and one bi-metal.
Both were not new. They tend to hold there value.
I would not do it to make money.
I also have a few tudor's, again they hold there value.


I don't think they are a fast buck, but a solid investment. However the precious metal ones are more likely to reduce in value.


There are a lot of the old gold watches being melted down, so that may a good investement, if they get to the stage that makes them rare.

Ifts

Reminds me of an article about Watches I saw recently on thisismoney.co.uk -

'I paid £500 for Rolex now worth £20,000': Why watches are a timely investment 100 years after First World War

Using the TIM.co.uk Inflation Calculator: £500 in 1975 would now be about £3663 taking inflation into account.

planteria

Tudors, justjohn?

i only own one watch, which i wear every day. i bought it new, but 'right', and i could now sell it to a shop for more than i paid. but i just want to keep it.

westy22

Tudor was an alternative trading name of Rolex and they are often the same mechanism and case as Rolex but not usually made of precious metal.

bowlhead99

Tudors are basically a proper Rolex movement on a budget. They're a quality product, though I'm not really a fan, stylistically; but would say the same about a lot of the Rolexes I could actually afford - it's very much a matter of personal taste.

Even in the top bracket, the Patek Phillipe, Audemars, Vacheron etc, the style might not be something I really want to wear, even though they are acknowledged masterpieces of engineering and art and I do like many of them.

I think a watch collection is very much like an art collection or a lightly-used classic car collection. You should buy something you love, and if you buy well, it may not depreciate too heavily and give decades of enjoyment. If you're lucky it might be worth the same or more in real terms at the end (probably more likely to able to do this if you didn't buy new). Like a car or art, the prices are up for negotiation.

You can use one off examples of anything to prove why an "alternative asset class" is able to beat the FTSE or housing market or RPI. There are spammers here from time to time pimping their fine wine investment schemes etc and talking about the wine price index etc.

I would say, if you spend £4k to £40k on something you like *for itself* rather than for an intended capital gain, you can never be disappointed. If buying new, with a goal to preserve value rather than have a thing of beauty -you will be better off getting a hugely popular (almost mass market, really) low end Rolex, instead of a more "fashion" brand that uses an off-the-shelf standard automatic movement inside and still wants to charge £3-5k.

Personally I would never buy a Rolex that had that stupid magnifying-glass bubble over the date that only works when looking at it perfectly straight on, and makes you feel like an old man who needs reading glasses. But you can spend £4-5k on one and know that in 5 years time, the hundreds of millions of Chinese new aspirational middle classes will still want to take it off your hands because it represents Western prestige, indulgence, history and they heard James Bond wore Rolex when he wasn't wearing an Omega.

planteria

thank you both..

yes, agree re. Rolex being the obvious brand. and now i know about Tudor, i would still say 'buy Rolex'.

a jeweller i know is adamant that a Gold Rolex is the watch to own. but the well-chosen stainless steel ones are a good choice too. the one i have was hard to get hold of...but currently they have them in the window of two shops local to me.

justjohn

I used to work for a second hand dealer. We used to get loads of gold cocktail watches in. Most were scraped for the gold. Allways felt it was a bit of a waste.


Rolex tudor's as it has been pointed out are supposedly a cheaper version of rolex branded watches. However there are some I have seen that look like there is next to no difference to the fully branded rolex.


I also like longines and omega vintage watches.(however I do not own any). if I did they would be vintage gold.


Those are about the only ones I like.