Selling your prestige watch online has become quite a challenge. I have always loved watches and been a collector for years, which is why I set up my website four years ago. I aimed to acquire some nice pieces for my collection while also helping sellers sell their watches easily, face-to-face, with hassle-free transactions.
Since Brexit, the watch market has changed significantly. Rolex, one of the most sought-after brands, especially in the sports category, used to be available at significantly discounted prices from EU dealers. However, over the last two years, Rolex has managed to shut down many of the large sellers in the EU who were selling at lower prices to UK non-Rolex dealers, commonly known as the grey market. This action has resulted in increased prices for both used and new pieces.
When Rolex addressed this issue, Brexit occurred, leading to a substantial decline in the value of the pound against various currencies worldwide. As a result, the UK has become the cheapest place to buy watches, but the desired models are now nearly impossible to find at authorized dealers across the country.
Popular Rolex sports models, such as the Submariner 114060, Submariner 116610LN, Submariner 116610LV, GMT Master II BLNR, and Submariner 116613LB, were readily available a year ago but are now mostly on waiting lists, with some models having a wait time of up to two years! Moreover, demand has increased as these watches become less available for purchase. The Rolex Daytona 116500LN, in particular, has always had a long waiting list, which continues to grow, as it has become a highly coveted item that many people want.
Now things have changed so much: watch prices from "dealers" trade price for a Rolex and "private price" folk are wanting the private price off a dealer. Due to some of the factors mentioned, watches that are new, pre-owned, unworn, and from private sellers are wanted over list RRP from a dealer. So where does this all end? The big players online are pushing the market with prices that are eye-watering and pushing collectors and other smaller dealers out of the game online; also, they have the monopoly online.
The other point to note is folk trying to sell on platforms like eBay find it too hard to sell to genuine purchasers, as apart from scammers and shill bidding, there is no confidence in selling or buying on eBay. Shill bidding is where you bid on an item, and the seller has friend family member bid the item up to achieve more money!! So it is very difficult to gauge auction end prices, as most listings get re-listed due to the shill bidding. Buy it now prices can vary so much on a watch, from up to as much £10.000 difference in prices from one seller to seller. eBay has always been the platform to gauge a price of any item, watches included, so how do you come to figure on this platform with such a vast price range that nothing sells!
The big Players online only tend to make offers on watches they only want to purchase; half the time won't even offer or reply to your inquiry, as I found speaking to sellers, then want the seller to post a watch down South to await an inspection to come back with an offer that may or may not match the initial offer.
Sometimes companies will send a pre-addressed special delivery pack so free postage. But most of the time seller have to post the watch on their own back covered with Royal Mail Special Delivery service covered up to £2500, but if watch is valued at more than £2500 Royal Mail policies state "null void" if value is over stated amount £2500. Which means you get nothing if the parcel gets stolen or lost. Crazy but true with Royal Mail unfortunately.
So to sum up, overall the watch market at the moment is just crazy; how to sell a watch is crazy too, so be careful when selling your watch. I am always happy to help with advice on selling and buying! The Watch-Collector Leeds