I know a few people that are looking to sell watches they bought in recent years. The market’s probably been through a peak of popularity, and it’s not surprising that there some who regretted something they bought, or perhaps need the cash more than they did. 

The issue is, selling a watch isn’t that straightforward. There’s a range of options, from dealers to shops to auction houses, and which is right depends on a balance of priorities, including price, speed and convenience.

So I thought I’d speak to a few people in the industry to get their advice. It’s something I might even put into practice myself in the next few months, having never quite got round to selling my IWC (above). As ever, do let me know your experiences too - I know from previous articles that there’s a lot of watch overlap with PS.

“This is a question I get a lot, from colleagues, from friends,” says Pierre Hardouin, the Rolex and Certified Pre-Owned manager at Bucherer (above). “I think it’s a little like the market for high-end cars, which has been around for decades. If you’re dealing with something collectible, you need to talk to a specialist, who knows the product and knows the buyers. Then it becomes a one-to-one conversation. 

“The certified dealers, like us, are dealing more in the hits. More recent models, better-known names, a larger market. And the people that come here value physical retail, the relationship with someone in the shop, and the certification element - the fact our watches all go back to Rolex, for example, and get a new warrantee, a new box, manuals. It depends on your priorities.”

Summarising the views of all the people interviewed, the options break down roughly as:

Marketplace

• Selling yourself, privately
• eBay, Chrono24 
• Advantages: Maximum price, maximum control
• Disadvantages: Greatest work (listing and asking questions) and greatest risk (payments with eBay, fakes or quality)

Specialist dealer

• Using a dealer, often through a personal connection or Instagram
• Sites like A Collected Man, individuals like Alex Stevens, Mann About Time etc. Lots and varied
• Advantages: Good for specialist watches, often good for value (commission taken)
• Disadvantages: Not usually good for more common watches, not easy to find/contact, and not certified. (Though some are with smaller makers - eg Collected Man is with Roger Smith, Philippe Dufour and others.)

Online dealer

• As above but online and less specialist, dealing with a much larger number of models 
• WatchBox, WatchFinder, SubDial and others
• Advantages: Certainty, convenience, probably the most popular option for someone not wanting to sell themselves
• Disadvantages: No physical store or relationship, not so specialised

Shops

• Dealers but with a physical shop
• The various shops in the Burlington Arcade, regional jewellery stores
• Advantages: Often a broader range of watches than dealers, a physical location to deal with, and a broader audience
• Disadvantages: Often a higher commission given their overheads; sometimes limited or inflexible in watches they will take or trade

Certified shops

• Shops but with official certification from the likes of Rolex
• Bucherer, Watches of Switzerland and Lunn’s and Prestons in the UK
• Advantages: Assurance, relationship, convenience of physical space
• Disadvantages: Commission higher than some dealers and selling privately

Auction houses

• Selling by auction, usually as part of a group of sales at the same time
• Phillips, Sotheby’s, Bonhams, Fellows, Watches of Knightsbridge, Loupe This
• Advantages: Likely to be sold, high price for collectibles 
• Disadvantages: High commission, less control on price

“I’m a big fan of auction houses,” says Mark Cho, who has considerable experience selling both his own watches and giving advice to others. “They are more accessible than most people think - most things over £2k - and you have the advantage that it’s out of your hands. It’s likely to be sold and you don’t have to think about it again.”

“If you’re not selling something higher end - in which case I’d obviously recommend coming to us - I’d say sell yourself, online,” says Silas Walton of A Collected Man. “Or if you don’t like the hassle or risk of eBay or Chrono24, go to something like WatchFinder. 

“I did have issues selling myself on eBay years ago: because I had no track history of selling high-value items they blocked the sale, then I had to provide lots of paperwork, and even then PayPal blocked the money.”

There are many other tips people have, but a few that came up repeatedly from people were:

• Remember prices on Chrono24 etc are not what watches actually sell for, only what the seller is asking. Sale prices will be lower
• Auction houses can take a while to pay. It may be up to three months before a sale, one month for them to be paid, and then one month for them to pay you
• With selling yourself, you may get several ‘tyre kickers’ asking for more photos, more information, which takes time and where you might not know the answers
• If it matters to you, divide up the options in terms of whether pieces are taken on consignment or paid outright. Often paying outright means a lower price
• Consider whether you’re open to trading, if there’s another watch you want. If a dealer is open to it, it will always be more attractive to them

“Often, how much you put into the process determines how much you will get out of it,” says Pierre. “Consider that first - some people love it, others are cash rich and time poor. A lot of offerings today are built on the fact that people value convenience.”

Last question perhaps: given the state of the watch market right now, should you even sell?

“The market turned somewhere in the middle of 2022,” says Silas. “It’s been flat or falling since then, and is particularly bad for the most popular watches, in the £2-10k bracket. So it may not be the best time.”

“I agree,” says Mark. “Don’t sell unless you have to. Obviously some people do, but the market’s been so inflated that you’re unlikely to be making a profit. Maybe even consider gifting it - to a friend, to family, rather than take that drop in value.”

I have to say, these last points made me reconsider selling my watch, even though I’ve had it so long I’d certainly make a profit. Perhaps it will just make me more picky when it comes to the price I can get, and look around more. 

Which is why of course articles like this - and all your thoughts and experiences, please let us all know - are useful.

For more information on watches, including mine shown, see the Watches section of the website