If you bought a $ 10,000 stake in Microsoft in the 1980s and still have it (or sold it at its peak in December 1999), you should be happy. The same is true if you buy one or two Rolex Daytona in the same amount in the 1980s, when no one wanted it. Personally, I sometimes dreamed of investing in Microsoft in the 1980s because today I would have the means to buy two vintage Daytona watches with manual windings.
But let’s put aside the “investment” aspect of collection watches. The real question we ask ourselves in this article is the value that will be guarded by a watch or better, from time to time. Few people can become the first owners of Rolex Daytona or Submariner in the 1970s with Plexiglass and complete original boxes. The majority of current owners have obtained their watches when these models return to fashion, that is, in the last 10-15 years.
The question that we often ask is the value that this watch will have or in the years after its purchase. If we consider modern watches, it is difficult to give an accurate answer because the largest producers in Geneva currently market more watches than in the past, and use more innovative materials such as ceramics, sapphires, silicon etc. So, besides the fact that the volume of brand production has increased, the appearance of this watch will remain the same for decades. Now, vintage Rolex is very popular nowadays, in part because they have weathered over time and have quick brown buttons, glasses with gray lenses and plastic lenses with a magnifying effect for example.
Therefore, the acquisition of stainless steel Rolex remains a wise choice because Swiss manufacturers increase the price every year, which always results in a direct increase in the prices of used watches. A few years after buying a new Rolex, you will find that the value remains the same, or even increases.
Vintage watch
Regarding vintage watches, you will not fail to see that prices are relatively high for everyone who meets certain requests. Chronographs with Valjoux 72, for example, reached a good number only because of the popularity of this movement among collectors, and not the watch brand itself. Remember that what is important, besides its authenticity, is the condition (technical) of the watch that you desire. It’s easy for anyone to check the price of an online watch, for example on eBay, or auction results and imagine the value of a watch found in the attic will be parallel to the price of luxury watches.
All vintage watches are not the same. Authenticity is also a very important feature in the eyes of collectors. If an incompetent watchmaker has replaced the dial, movement section, or hand clock in the past, the watch may lose a lot of its value. Investing in other watches to replace parts and make them feasible will be too expensive, and in many cases it is not possible to get genuine parts.
But let’s look on the bright side. Vintage watches are more trendy than before. The price of some watches, such as Breitling or Chopard watch vintage, can sometimes seem rather high, but make no mistake. If the watch is genuine, or even sold on paper and the original box, it might be appropriate to determine the price. If you consider current interest in used watches and vintage watches in particular, the price will definitely increase in the coming months or years. Thus, some people will advise you to buy a watch at a high price to make sure you have it, rather than realizing in two years that it has become inaccessible or not found.
