The luxury re-sale market has grown substantially in the past few years. It’s not just the recession at the end of the 2000s that has sparked this trend, although it did help a great deal in making customers more risk-averse, as well as more conscious of the value-uncertainty ratio that each investment holds for them, but also something experts call “secondary behaviour”. Whether in the form of recycling, re-using, re-selling, or just gifting, secondary behaviour has now taken over the luxury pre-owned watch market to the point where consignment, a concept that was largely absent from the luxury goods markets in the past century, has now become a noteworthy industry on its own.
The growth of consignment
Consignment refers to legally empowering a third party to care for something you own until the item is sold. It’s not hard to see why this business has grown, especially in the past decade, since consumers are less likely to spend premium prices, yet they want the same luxury brands as they did before. The peer-to-peer alternative, which is still an option, exposes both the buyer and the seller to additional risks. Conversely, businesses such as Watches of Wales owe their growth to removing the risk and uncertainty commonly associated with peer-to-peer selling. Instead of an individual, the buyer is dealing with a company that is specialized in the commerce of re-selling luxury timepieces. From assessing the aesthetic condition to maintaining their mechanic one, all the while promoting the products online, this business model has made it possible for people to safely engage in secondary buying behaviour with respect to luxury watches.
Choosing your pre-owned watch
Once you’ve narrowed your options down to several established retailers, it’s high time to compare pre-owned watches online. You can do this safely now that you know you’ll be getting a guarantee of authenticity, quality of mechanical condition, as well as after sale warranty for your product. Each of these features are mandatory and essential on their own, but the last is a particularly necessary addition, since it basically secures you against defects that are not of your own making or possible inauthenticity. If any of the consignment brands you’re considering does not offer one or more of these protection elements, you shouldn’t be looking at them.
The next step is to decide whether you want a vintage or a pre-owned watch. The latter usually looks and performs just as intended when first delivered, and, more recently, there’s a consensus that documentation, factory packaging, or accessories that came with the initial purchase are also included in the secondary one. On the other hand, a vintage option is more of a collectible, which means that increased attention should be paid to the seller. These products are usually older and sometimes discontinued models, which might contribute to their value.
Unlike newer, pre-owned models, vintage ones can be more complicated, so the likelihood of you making a profit on a re-sale is doubled by an exponential increase in risk. The older the watch is, the more fragile it will be, which is why it is indispensable to purchase it from an authorized retailer that offers post-purchase warranty. No matter how your pre-owned watch comparison turns out, your purchase will be a greater value proposition than a new one, and, given adequate care on your part, it’s very likely that your timepiece will grow in value as time passes!
