ROLEXES are regarded as a hallmark of luxury and wealth and set buyers back a small fortune. But if the latest research is anything to go by, the timepieces are apparently a better investment than housing and gold.

 

How so?

Rolex, the British-founded Swiss watch firm - which began in London in the early 1900s - is one of the most well-known brands in the world, synonymous with prestige and luxury. Now, new research from leading US-based vintage Rolex dealer, Bob's Watches, says the timeless timepieces have performed staggeringly well as investments.

 

The pre-owned market is a big deal?

Rolex makes around a million watches per year, each one by hand, and the brand’s popularity means demand outstrips supply. New Rolexes can also be hard to source as they can be dependent on established relationships between buyers and authorised distributors and as a result, secondhand watches of all leading brands are hugely popular. 

 

And are good investments?

So says Bob's Watches, which has been at the forefront of dealing in pre-owned Rolexes globally for more than a decade. The firm analysed sales data from the past 10 years that it says shows that when it comes to a percentage increase, Rolex watches significantly outperformed gold and property. Bob's Watches CEO Paul Altieri told Business Insider: “Rolexes have been a good investment over the years, but not like the last five.”

 

Meaning?

Sales numbers show a rise beginning in 2017, followed by a sharper rise in 2020. Now the average Rolex price is more than $13,000 – nearly three times the 2011 average of $5,000 and demand is so high, some coveted pre-owned watches sell for higher than the retail counter price - true for other coveted timepieces by luxury watchmakers such as Patek Phillipe as well. Mr Altieri added: “Before you leave the store it’s worth double or triple what you paid.”

 

It’s an iconic firm?

With some iconic watches, including the Submariner and the Daytona. In 2017, Hollywood icon Paul Newman's 1968 Rolex Daytona sold for a record-breaking $17.8m at auction - a record for a wristwatch. He had been given the watch by his wife and popularised it by wearing it while pursuing his racing career. This year alone, the first watch to break the million-dollar mark at auction was a Rolex 'Rainbow Khanjar Day-Date' which went for $1,330,000 at Sotheby’s.

 

Any caveats?

Rob Corder, of watch magazine Watchpro, said: “My advice is to buy watches because you love them. By all means trade those watches if you get bored of some pieces and fall in love with others, but using Rolex as part of your retirement plan would be foolish.”

 

However?

Mr Altieri told Insider that while the stock market likely continues to be the prudent choice for investing, a watch is tangible and more interesting, saying: “Most people have never even seen a share of stock, much less held one”.