Are watch price jumps pushing buyers out

It’s stopped me from buying altogether…unless it was for a gift or to support a good cause.

It'd be ironic if eventually these price jumps made some micros into mainstream brands lol and moved some lesser expensive brands into more of a luxury market...

That is understandable and truly I hope that the market recurrects the manufacturers. I don't believe there are many people willing to spend 12000 on a steel Reverso.

Yes. Reverso used to be a watch I thought I would like. Only a few years ago, I could have got a new small second mono faced one for <£5k. Now it’s getting priced beyond where I think I would ever see me feeling it was a good buy. I’m afraid the Speedmaster I’ve hankered after for years is going the same way.

At one time I had been considering a Reverso, but everytime I looked on the JLC site the price had gone up. I came to the conclusion that I didn't need/want a Reverso after all.

Demand for some of these watches have probably remained steady for a long time, so a brand figures it can raise prices to either earn about the same by selling/making less product or just earning more if demand remains about the same.

Or it could be the inflation seen in nearly every economy of which watch brands are not immune to.

Or both.

I try not to let it affect me cuz I have next to zero control over it.

Price matters to 99 % of people including me :)

I find myself buying cheaper icons and enjoying those rather than paying grey market prices for high end brands with waitlists.

I'm a value-conscious consumer so I never had any interest in luxury brands.

Unfortunately, the post-covid price hike hit the entire industry, including affordable brands like Seiko. Not so much on their old catalogue but new models and reissues just keep going up and up in price for similar movements and quality at a much faster rate than global inflation. Every brand is getting greedy and we're being taken advantage of.

Although the MSRP on the mechanical mono faces is in the $8 to 11K range, they are currently being discounted 10-20%.

That doesn’t mean the price hikes aren’t disconcerting.

I would much rather pay a fair fixed price than awkwardly partake in the haggling game with the AD or buy on the grey market.

If something goes beyond my price range, then I just move onto something I can afford. There are already too many watches for me to choose from.

There’s always someone willing to take the space vacated by a brand moving up a price bracket. Personally, I’m already spoilt by being lucky enough to buy watches, so when one becomes no longer unattainable then it just doesn’t become an option anymore. I harbour no ill feelings to the these manufacturer’s - they have to do what they do to survive. It could be classified as ‘greed’ but I really wouldn’t know because I don’t know what their actual costs and markups are.

Yes, specifically JLC.

It was two years ago, I was looking at the perpetual calendar. I looked at it sometime at year end and looked to treat myself at the new year when bonuses kicked in. I went back to the store sometime in Feb and the price jumped significantly - I thought I imagined the original price. Passed on it as it was way too much to justify the increase.

I ultimately decided on a Reverso, which also jumped up in pricing at the time.

The master ultra thin, which I ultimately picked up, jumped in price from when I first looked at it till when I purchased it. Had to be a year difference.

I’m a fan of JLC but not at the current prices.

I think it’s a bit of everything you mentioned.

In NYC, they’re not giving any discounts. At least not that I’m aware of.

I’m just basing this on online ADs on the internet.

Sadly I don’t actually think luxury watch manufacturers care about watch collectors who have a valid perception of value. Their bread and butter is selling to folks to whom price is no object.

So many watches have been removed from the “maybe list” in the past year due to crazy prices. The Reverso is one of them.

I’ve been on the hunt for an Aqua Terra day/date in good condition at a reasonable price for almost a year. They are so crazy expensive right now I’m thinking I might just skip it and get on a list for the Explorer 40mm or a used E2 Polar. The price jump isn’t that big and the Rolex is “a better value” so to speak.

JLC have taken it too far. I’d still be keen on one some time but not at retail..

I was very lucky to buy a reverso 10+ years ago. It’s an amazing timepiece, a work of art but I will never buy one with today’s price. It is just too much.

I had the same experience you did. I had a price in mind for the classic duo face having looked at it a year ago only to go to the boutique a month ago, try it on, ask how much it was, choke involuntarily, thank the salesperson and leave the boutique.

Funny thing is that if I didn't price it a year ago, I don't know if I would have had the same reaction (you know, it being a duo face and JLC (watchmaker's watchmaker). Makes you wonder at how crazy pricing has gotten for stainless steel watches that we're not surprised by the high prices for big brands anymore.

Yep. Had my eye on an Aquaterra. They are now AUD10k plus. Lots of better value options out there - Longines, Tudor, Breitling even.

That’s a good point. Only because I priced it before did I know the increase was nuts!

I just took a look at the Reverso duoface I purchased last year, the price went up significantly. I love my Reverso, but I wouldn’t get it at the price it’s now listed at.

Lucky pickup congratulations

Right now at least where I am at, it seems like the secondary market for many brands (jlc, breitling,iwc for example) is going down while the MSRP is going way up. So for those brands I will 100% go with 2nd hand for the moment. On the other hand, the secondary market does seem to catch up with the price increases with Omega and Cartier, so maybe (probably) it’s a matter of time for the other brands as well.

Large Duo face was on the cards for me…. Not at todays price though. The price won’t come down, the brand will have calculated what it can get away with pre recession & will have an idea on what it’s sales will be like thanks to 2009 info. I doubt they will go up again, not for a couple of years at least.

I also expect anyone on the Rolex list will be getting a call sooner than they expected…

They are almost making Rolex look like the good guy and the 1908 like a deal 🙄...

Same on the Speedy. It’s the goal. My wife is on board. But as my career advances, so does the price tag. We’re at +$700 this year alone. Honestly makes me wonder if this isn’t the world I should be playing in.

The reverso and master ultra thin Moon phase are two watches that that I have been ogling but I can’t justify current prices for a dress watch I won’t wear often that is “splash resistant.” Now I’m leaning more towards the GS hand wounds.

This is one of the reasons I jumped on a preowned mint condition Speedy last year. As Paul Simon says “I can read read the writing on the wall.” $$$

My take is that watch companies have to take the opportunity to raise prices because it's usually hard to do so. It's a new line in the sand that can't be erased easily. But, I think discounting is soon going to come back even with higher end manufacturers.

After recent price increases at the Trinity, a few boutiques said their local business dried up, but travelling customers keep buying. Even they are worried about the price increases! That's when you know things are getting shaky.

Be assertive guys and proudly ask for discounts! Probably will get rebuffed but at some point they'll break!