Watches as an investment

Many people take great pleasure in purchasing stylish, functional watches from renowned watch brands. These special timepieces are collected, cherished and cared for - a really lovely hobby. However, watches are increasingly being purchased not just for pleasure, but as an investment. Collectors are increasingly seeing watches as an investment and are closely monitoring price developments. This article deals with the topic of watches as an investment, explains what to look out for if you want to make sensible investments in luxury watches, and presents some high-quality wristwatches that increase in value.

Are watches suitable as an investment?

Due to the high volatility of the stock market and the historically low interest rates paid by banks, the demand for alternative investments is increasing. This means that the luxury watch is becoming the focus of investors with purchasing power. In fact, a watch can be a worthwhile investment. Various models that have attracted attention due to their rapid increase in value have impressively demonstrated this in the past. However, one should be aware that there is no guarantee that a watch will experience an increase in value. As with so many investments, the same applies to watches: investors must be able to live with a certain amount of risk. If that is the case, buying a watch is an excellent way to combine personal passion and love of (vintage) watches with a promising investment.

Watches as an investment - what should you pay attention to?

Investors want one thing above all: a healthy return. But of course nobody can predict with absolute certainty how prices will develop on the market. Nevertheless, there are some criteria that can increase the probability of coming out of the investment as a "winner". Below we will look at these criteria and what to look out for when you want to buy a watch as an investment.

factory

In the watch market, a lot revolves around the manufacturer and its reputation. While buying models from relatively unknown and new watch brands involves a fairly high risk, you are on the safe side with a model from a well-known brand. Collector's items from renowned brands such as Patek Philippe, Rolex, Vacheron Constantin or Audemars Piguet are considered relatively safe investments with which you can generally do little wrong.

edition

Watches that are produced in very limited editions usually have more potential to increase in value than those that are thrown onto the market in large quantities. The fewer watches there are of a popular model, the more demand exceeds supply, which in turn means that the watch increases in value and can be sold for a higher price.

material

The extent to which the increase in value of a watch is based on its material is worth taking a closer look at. The material can be decisive, but as an individual factor it is only of limited significance. Of course it is advantageous if a watch is made of high-quality materials, such as gold or platinum. But the mere fact that a model is made of gold does not guarantee the buyer an increase in value.

Condition

Collectibles can be sold for a high price, especially if they are in excellent condition. This applies to watches as well as to most other material assets. So if you buy an expensive watch from Patek Philippe, Rolex, Vacheron Constantin or Audemars Piguet, you should treat it with the utmost care and wear it as little as possible. This is the only way to ensure that the watch does not lose value because it accumulates signs of wear.

authentication

The watch market is notoriously not free of fraudsters who want to sell fake luxury watches. This is why authentication - i.e. proof of the authenticity of a watch - plays an important role. In practice, watches without a manufacturer's certificate usually only fetch up to 50% of the actual price. When buying a watch, it therefore makes a lot of sense to immediately rule out models without a manufacturer's certificate and guarantee declaration. After all, these are not really suitable as an investment.

resale value

In order to make a worthwhile investment, it is essential to take a look at the price development of the models in question over the last few months and years. In combination with a comparison of the price development of similar luxury watches, this results in a well-founded assessment of the resale value.

Top watches with increased value

As announced, we are now devoting ourselves to watch brands and models that are sought after as investments. Due to the difficulty of reliably predicting potential for value appreciation, we obviously do not want to make any specific recommendations for an investment. However, we do want to draw attention to companies and models that are in high demand and have a great reputation in the world of watches.

Rolex

Whether it's a Rolex Daytona , Rolex Submariner or another Rolex collector's item, the watches from this well-known manufacturer attract attention on the market with their sometimes extremely high prices. If you take the luxury watches Rolex Daytona and Rolex Submariner mentioned above as an example, you'll see that they're being traded for well above the list price and are therefore ideal for anyone who wants to buy a watch as an investment. Demand is particularly high for Rolex watches made of steel, which still promise huge returns.

Audemars Piguet

An Audemars Piguet watch is pure luxury! The Swiss manufacturer only produces around 26,000 watches a year, meaning supply is significantly lower than demand - good conditions for an investment. The watches from the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore collection in particular regularly achieve top prices at auctions, which suggests that you can invest your money profitably here.

Patek Philippe

When it comes to watches as an investment, the Patek Philippe brand is a must. The best-seller is the legendary Patek Philippe Nautilus , whose value is literally through the roof. But the Patek Philippe Nautilus is not the only model from the company that is suitable as an investment. In fact, many of Patek Philippe's wristwatches and pocket watches can be classified as attractive investments.

omega

Investing in an Omega Speedmaster or a similarly popular Omega model is in all probability a good idea. Especially with the Omega Speedmaster, as an observer of the market you sometimes get the feeling that the price is rising immeasurably. Even if - as mentioned several times - there is no guarantee that prices will rise, there is much to suggest that luxury watches from Omega not only generally maintain their value but also become more valuable over time.

A. Lange & Söhne

A. Lange & Söhne is a relatively small German watch manufacturer that supplies the market with around 5,500 watches per year. Since demand for these exclusive watches is high, they often increase in value as soon as they are purchased directly from the manufacturer at the list price. In other words, a watch from A. Lange & Söhne in good condition can often be sold for far more than the price set by the manufacturer.

Tag Heuer

Anyone who owns vintage watches from Tag Heuer has probably hit the jackpot. Well-preserved vintage models from the Swiss watch manufacturer are rare and fetch prices that every investor dreams of. Tag Heuer is therefore another good example of a luxury watch manufacturer that offers numerous models that are suitable as investments.

IWC

IWC watches impress with their classic designs and high functionality. It is therefore no surprise that investors can expect an attractive return here too. The chances of making money by buying and later reselling an IWC watch are excellent, given the prices that the watches fetch on the secondary market.

Used watches as an investment

The fact is: A watch does not necessarily have to be brand new for it to be a good investment. Even used watches from renowned brands - for example Rolex, Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin or Audemars Piguet - can function as profitable assets that increase in value over the years. The most important thing is the condition of the used watch. A used watch that is in excellent condition is of course worth much more than a watch with clear signs of wear and tear that may be less old. So if you want to use used watches as an investment, you should definitely have the condition of the watch assessed by an expert with specialist knowledge. This is the only way to draw well-founded conclusions about how the watch's value might develop.

Conclusion Watches as an investment

Whether from Patek Philippe, Rolex, Vacheron Constantin, IWC or Audemars Piguet: watch models from brands that are celebrated all over the world represent attractive investment options. If you follow a few tips, pay attention to certain criteria when buying a timepiece and do not invest without any specialist knowledge, you have a good chance of increasing prices on a wristwatch from a "big" brand and thus a worthwhile investment.