Big name, small price: How Omega MoonsWatch & Co. are shaking up the watch market
Six to seven figures for a luxury watch? Most watch fans simply do not have the necessary capital to buy top-class examples from Rolex, Patek Philippe or Lange & Söhne. Let alone invest in an entire collection right away. Since the current high inflation is also forcing many consumers to save money, luxury watches at the price of a small or medium-sized car could experience a decline in demand in the coming years. However, this does not affect the long-term investment quality of expensive watches, which will always represent a “timeless” investment due to their collector value, prestige factor and low market correlation. Nevertheless, manufacturers such as Omega are also discovering a market niche: affordable model variants of coveted collector's watches.
Omega, Dior, Tudor: luxury brands with cheap entry-level models
The pioneer in the low-cost segment is MoonsWatch - a Swatch version of the famous Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch, whose launch at the beginning of 2022 caused worldwide hype. Fans and speculators lined up in front of the Swatch stores for hours to get hold of one of the eleven coveted variants. But the number of MoonsWatches available in shops is by no means enough to meet demand. The watches themselves are not limited to around 250 euros - but due to their great popularity, no items are available online to date and stocks in Swatch stores remain low.
Given the success of the MoonsWatch, you could of course think that the cheap model reduces the success of the original - the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch. But that is not the case — quite the opposite: The original Omega, which costs around 7000 euros, has increased sales in Omega stores by more than 50 percent since the introduction of the 250 euro MoonsWatch in March 2022, said Nick Hayek, CEO of the Swatch Group. In addition, the expensive original achieved one of the highest value gains on the watch market in 2021, at +56 percent. It remains to be seen whether this trend will continue in the current year due to the popular MoonsWatch.
The brand is following a similar strategy Tudor with the new “Ranger” models. The Rolex subsidiary focuses on high quality at a relatively low price: The classic is available from just 2550 euros. The term “Ranger” has a long tradition at Tudor. In 1929, Rolex founder Hans Wilsdorf had it legally protected. Back then, however, the name was not used for a specific model, but served to give some models in the Tudor collection an adventurous aspect. The typical expedition aesthetic of the “Ranger” did not appear until the 1960s.
Among the “cheap” models is the Gem Dior by far the most expensive. Nevertheless, at 4100 euros, the basic model in steel is significantly cheaper than the luxury Gem Dior models offered in yellow gold for prices starting at 34,000 euros.
A lot of watch for little money - this is obviously the credo of some well-known luxury watch manufacturers who are thus meeting the “spirit of the times”. This is also shown by the latest export data from the Swiss watch industry.
Swiss watch exports are booming — thanks to cheaper entry-level models
Die Swiss watch exports accelerated sharply in September. With a volume of 2.2 billion euros and an increase of 19.1% compared to September 2021, they achieved one of the highest figures in their history. The increased volume was mainly driven by watches above 3,000 euros (export price), which showed an increase of 23.8% compared to the previous year. But watches with a price of 500 to 3,000 euros were also able to grow significantly by 18.3% and made a significant contribution to the very good performance of the sector. In terms of export volume, most watches were shipped back to the USA. The region has been recording strong growth for months, which stood at +33.2% in September. But the Chinese market also appears to be continuing to recover from the strict Corona measures. Exports here rose by +15%.
Everyday luxury vs. investment property
Swiss export data show that watches are very popular as a collector's item despite — or perhaps because of — inflation. However, as an investment object, luxury watches in the upper price category are clearly preferable to cheap models. MoonsWatch & Co. are ideal as beautiful watches suitable for everyday use, which can also offer an introduction to the exciting world of luxury and collector watches. But for luxury watches in particular, there was Performance in recent years has only ever been one predominant direction: steeply upwards. In addition to the front-runners Rolex and Patek Philippe, brands such as Omega, Panerai and Jaeger-LeCoultre also gained enormous value following the corona crisis in 2020/2021. Due to persistently low interest rates and steadily increasing demand for luxury watches, the secondary market has virtually doubled since 2020. Here are the Three-year price increases from Patek Phillip (+125%), Audemars Piguet (+103%) and Rolex (+45%) particularly remarkable and far exceed the performance of major stock indices such as DAX or Dow Jones.
However, it is not possible to make a general statement that a relatively expensive luxury watch is also automatically suitable as an investment. High demand compared to limited supply plays the decisive role here. Investors should therefore consider Watches as a “timeless” addition to our portfolio Find out more and seek advice from knowledgeable experts from specialized platforms when buying a luxury watch investment.
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