Selling my luxury watch - Private vs Secondhand dealer

Control your price and don’t let others control that for you is all I’ll say. Boutiques and dealers may not have your best interest in mind re buying your watch.

I have a watch guy that handles all my resales. He doesn’t do it full time it’s more less a hobby for him. Lot cheaper than paying all those fees.

I’ll let you know when I buy my first piece of that caliber ✌️😢

Aha! So he’s a non-business specialist! Thats super cool and rare. Nice one!

I’d have to add them up but I bet I’ve sold at least 30 watches over the years. Always private sale. It’s the only way I’m getting top dollar for the watch. I need to get as much as I can out of the sale so I can roll it into the next watch. You have to “buy” the buyer just as much as you have to “buy” the seller when buying a watch.

Thanks mate. Given you’ve sold over 30 luxury pieces over the years, I take it that you know what to look for in a private buyer? Is there a preference between f2f vs online?

never sold a watch but I'm considering navigating both scenarios. I may sell my Sub Date if a Yachtmaster Ti comes up. I know how much I can get from my AD but it will be more if I sell to a private buyer. Hoping to find a private buyet locally.

I think I’d generally prefer f2f as it’s harder to get scammed that way. Surprisingly after all these years I just did my first f2f sale a couple months ago. We met at the local police station, exchanged, and chatted watches for a bit. Online, I’ve almost exclusively used Reddit, specifically the watchexchange subreddit. They use a feedback system and while not perfect it allows you to vet the buyer/seller decently well. If I’m buying or selling a more expensive piece I’ll have a phone chat or FaceTime with the person to get a feel for them. You just have to be diligent and never let your guard down. If anything seems off, walk away immediately. There will always be another buyer/seller down the line. I’ve walked away from only a few deals over the years because something seemed off. Always trust your instincts online.

Same boat, kinda! The more I think, the additional advantage of going to an AD is the relationship for the next watch. Which may not be relevant if you’re not ‘into’ watches.

If you’re buying from ADs often, then it can certainly help your cause. If you’re buying used primarily, the AD relationship doesn’t matter nearly as much.

Not relevant for me. I'm in a good place with my AD fortunately.

I'll typically use Watchfinder, but you need to be aware that, to get the 30 % Gross Margin they need to keep buying more watches and still be roughly in line with the market, any grey dealer will buy your pre-owned watch for 40 % less than what they will sell it at.

The € 4000 € Breitling/Omega you see on their website has translated in € 2400 on the bank account of the previous owner.

Once you've done that a couple of times, you'll start thinking that €150 AliExpress watches are not such a bad idea after all😉