Prices for vintage luxury timepieces have experienced a meteoric rise in recent years, fuelled by record-breaking auction results, leading to an explosion of the pre-owned watches market. A sector once considered niche has emerged as a multi-billion dollar industry worldwide, reflecting a burgeoning demand for such timepieces. Alexandre Bigler, head of watches for Asia-Pacific for Christie’s, says, “The vintage market is super exciting, and has been growing in Asia since 2010 … [Buying a watch is] not only about how much money you have; it’s about your knowledge, your expertise, your patience to wait, your hunt, looking around, going to preview around the world meeting collectors. So there’s a whole community out there.”
One of the biggest records for a
