More people are interested in luxury watches than ever before, and there’s no sign of it slowing down yet. Watchmakers such as Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet have more demand for their watches than they can supply, meaning the secondary market is thriving as enthusiasts seek out hard to find models for their own collections. In BH Market Watch we take a look at the Australian secondary market, using data from the pre-owned watch market aggregator Wristies, to see the watches that are in demand and where you can find them.
For the month of January, the total value of the Australian pre-owned watch market has grown by double digits when compared to December, with it jumping 11% to over $17.7 million. Of that total, the vast majority of watches listed for sale are done so by individuals selling their own watches, with just over a quarter of the market represented by commercial dealers. This is perhaps a result of dealers closing their doors during the holiday period, while in contrast enthusiasts may have had more time to reevaluate the watches they own and trade pieces in or out.
As you’d expect, the majority of listings are within the larger population centres of New South Wales and Victoria, respectively accounting for 41% and 35% of the total number of watches for sale. Broken down, watch enthusiasts in NSW looked to sell 431 timepieces with a total value of $7.3 million, while Victoria listed 321 watches worth $6.1 million. Interestingly, the highest average value of watches listed for sale in Australia was actually located internationally, with a dozen watches put on the market with an average price of around $34,500.
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When compared to December, the brands that grew in sales listings were the usual suspects, including Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and A. Lange & Söhne. Enthusiasts looking to part with their Omega watches dropped significantly by 36%, with just 133 watches listed for sale compared to 341 from Rolex.
It was both Rolex and Omega that remained the most heavily traded timepieces in January, with classic models such as the Submariner, DateJust, Speedmaster and Seamaster as the most actively listed watches. To some degree, this supply mirrored market demands, with the Submariner, Speedmaster and Seamaster the most searched models all month, respectively accounting for 23%, 12% and 10% of what people were looking for.
Finally, if you’re interested in the higher end of the market, specifically from Patek Philippe, there were more than a couple of genuinely rare watches listed for sale in January. The jewel in the crown was the Patek Philippe ref. 5270p, which is a perpetual calendar chronograph cased in platinum. While it was certainly one of the most expensive watches listed for sale, its price was relatively affordable when compared to others from around the world, and not significantly over the retail price either.
