WatchChoice.com Sees Interest in Pre Owned Luxury Watches Heat Up as Economy Cools Down
WatchChoice.com has seen a dramatic increase in recent months in the interest being shown towards luxury watches that have previously been owned by someone else. While some people call them second hand watches, others say “used” while others prefer “pre owned” or even “pre loved” but whatever your preferred terminology, the market for quality used luxury watches is increasing in popularity.
As the Global Economic Crisis deepens and the luxury watch market softens, more luxury watch enthusiasts visiting WatchChoice.com are shifting their attention from new luxury watches to pre owned watches. Glenn Palmer, WatchChoice.com’s Founder and Owner, says feedback from Watch Choice members indicates there are a range of reasons for the rise in interest in the second hand market. The slow economy and the concern about whether the economy will slow further or when it will bounce back has lead to low degrees of confidence in buyer’s prospective financial circumstances. Therefore, buyers intending to acquire a luxury watch have found it harder to justify the outlay and have turned to the second hand watch market as a cost effective way to get a luxury watch on their wrist.
Other feedback from luxury watch enthusiasts shows the current economic environment has also affected their buying habits. A number of collectors have reported they are more inclined to sell one or more luxury watches from their collection to fund the purchase of their next watch where previously they may have simply just added watches to their collection. Collectors who become sellers before buying have therefore added to the number of used watches on the market.
Luxury watch buyers in countries that have in recent times experienced substantial currency rate drops, such as Australia, against stronger currencies such as the US dollar, English pound and the Euro have seen significantly increased watch prices. Buyers in these countries have found that the quality pre owned watch market is a way of fulfilling their demand for an affordable luxury watch.
Glenn Palmer says that the new levels of interest in second hand watches is likely to continue for at least as long as the economic climate remains depressed and possibly longer. He says “we could see increased levels of interest in pre owned watches maintained in the long term as the current economic conditions have introduced buyers who would not have traditionally considered buying a second hand watch to the value and variety of the pre owned watch market”. It will be interesting to see whether used watch sales return to their usual levels when the economy recovers.
