ELRE
Luxury Watches & Jewellery — Time & Jewels
A selection of pre-owned timepieces and fine jewellery curated by Elite Luxury Real Estate for collectors who see objects of value as an extension of their way of life.
Luxury Watches & Jewellery — A Collector's Perspective
The luxury watches and jewellery section of Elite Luxury Real Estate is an editorial guide for those who see a timepiece or a fine jewel not as an accessory but as an object of intrinsic value: excellence of manufacture, the history of the house, limited production and the way it holds its value over time. A selection that speaks the same language as the villas we design and the destinations we write about.
The luxury watch market went through a phase of exceptional price increases in 2020–2022, when some Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet references traded far above their list prices. The correction of 2023–2024 brought the market back to more sustainable levels, and also created interesting buying opportunities for collectors with a long-term view.
Knight Frank’s Wealth Report follows watches among the collectible assets of its Luxury Investment Index, alongside art, wine and cars. Not every watch holds its value — selection is everything.
The Certified Pre-Owned Market — The Reference Channels
Chrono24 — The Global Marketplace
Chrono24 is the world’s reference platform for pre-owned luxury watches, with hundreds of thousands of watches listed by dealers around the world. Its main advantage is price transparency: on Chrono24 you can see in real time what a specific reference is worth, with price history and the geographical spread of demand.
Watchfinder & Co. (Richemont Group)
Watchfinder is the pre-owned platform of the Richemont group, owner of houses such as IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Vacheron Constantin and Cartier. Every watch sold by Watchfinder is checked by the group’s technicians and delivered with a 12-month warranty. Its position is premium within pre-owned: a narrower selection, but authentication at the highest level.
Farfetch — Fine Jewellery and Emerging Houses
Farfetch is a reference channel for fine jewellery from international houses, including pre-owned pieces by Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Bulgari and emerging luxury brands. Its selection draws on a large network of independent boutiques around the world, hard to match on any single channel.
The Reference Pieces for Collectors
Rolex — Submariner, Daytona, GMT-Master II
The Submariner, Daytona and GMT-Master II remain the references with the greatest liquidity on the secondary market. The steel Daytona with the Paul Newman dial is among the most sought-after by collectors without budget limits. The yellow-gold Day-Date is the symbol of success par excellence.
Patek Philippe — The Store of Value par Excellence
The steel Nautilus 5711 has become legendary for its scarcity. The Calatrava and annual-calendar complications such as Ref. 5205 are preferred by collectors who put manufacture ahead of pop appeal. Patek is considered the “safe haven” of watch collecting — it tends to hold its value in unstable markets.
Audemars Piguet — Royal Oak, the Design Icon
The steel Royal Oak, designed by Gerald Genta in 1972, is one of the most influential design objects of the 20th century. The Royal Oak Offshore is preferred by collectors with a sportier taste. AP manages its most requested models through its own client programme and boutiques, the AP Houses.
Richard Mille — Ultra-Luxury Engineering
The youngest house in the ultra-luxury segment, with list prices in six and seven figures. The materials it uses (Carbon TPT, Quartz TPT, graphene) and its skeletonised tourbillon movements make its watches objects of advanced engineering, often seen on the wrists of active collectors and top athletes.
A. Lange & Söhne — The Connoisseur's Choice
Less known to the general public but deeply respected among connoisseurs. Movements developed entirely in-house, Glashütte finishing and a small annual production make it a distinctive choice for those who want to stand apart.
Fine Jewellery — The Reference Houses
Cartier — Love Bracelet, Juste un Clou, High Jewellery
The iconic Love Bracelet and Juste un Clou are the house’s most recognisable pieces worldwide. But the true Cartier for collectors lies in the one-of-a-kind high jewellery pieces presented at the house’s private events — brooches, necklaces and bracelets with stones of exceptional quality and unique cuts.
Van Cleef & Arpels — Alhambra and Mystery Set
The Place Vendôme house is synonymous with poetry in jewellery. The four-leaf Alhambra is the most iconic piece, but the Secret Watches and the haute joaillerie creations made with the Mystery Set technique are what set Van Cleef apart.
Bulgari — The Roman DNA of Luxury
Bold colours, cabochon stones, generous proportions — Bulgari’s Roman DNA makes it unique in Italian jewellery. Serpenti is its most recognisable icon, but the necklaces with coral, turquoise and emeralds from the historic collections of the 1960s are among the pieces most sought after at auction today.
Buying, Authentication and Care
Buying luxury watches and jewellery on the secondary market requires specific expertise, or channels with rigorous authentication processes. The main risks are fakes (especially relevant for Rolex and Patek), pieces with unauthorised work (which significantly reduces their value) and mismatches between papers and watch.
The channels we point to (Chrono24, Watchfinder) handle authenticity checks with specialist technicians. For high-value purchases our advice is always to ask for an independent appraisal by an authorised watchmaker before going ahead.
Caring for luxury watches means: a stable temperature, away from direct light, in the original box or on a winder for automatic calibres, and regular servicing at the house’s official centres.
Part of the Elite Luxury Real Estate Lifestyle
Time & Jewels is not an isolated section of ELRE — it is part of a coherent ecosystem. The same client who buys a villa through our Real Estate team, furnishes it with the materials selected in The Villa Edit and travels to the destinations in our guides finds in Time & Jewels the objects that travel with them.
A watch is the one luxury object a collector always carries, whatever the destination. It is visible at every meeting, on every yacht, in every three-star restaurant. Choosing it with the same care as a villa is the coherence ELRE stands for.
Discover the other Luxury Living sections, or explore Style by Destination to match your watch to the wardrobe of the place.
Frequently Asked Questions — Luxury Watches & Jewellery
Are luxury watches a good investment in 2026?
The iconic references (Rolex Daytona, Patek Nautilus, steel AP Royal Oak) have historically held their value over the long term. The speculative phase of 2021–2022 is over and the market has returned to healthier levels. Watches are not a financial product: buy what you love, and treat any increase in value as a bonus, not a promise.
How do you verify the authenticity of a pre-owned watch?
Certified channels such as Chrono24 and Watchfinder carry out the check on the buyer’s behalf. For private purchases, it needs a specialist watchmaker to examine the movement, case, numbering and match with the papers. Never buy an important piece without complete papers and an independent appraisal.
What budget do you need to start collecting watches?
It depends on the house and the reference: entry references of the main houses on the secondary market cost far less than the most sought-after pieces or the great complications. Price ranges change with the market: check them on Chrono24 for the specific reference before setting a budget.
How do you insure a valuable collection of watches and jewellery?
Standard home policies do not adequately cover valuable collections. You need a specific valuables policy with a documented appraisal of each piece, arranged through a broker specialising in collectors’ insurance.
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