Second Hand Investments
There’s a time and place for your shiny retro Casio, but unfortunately it’s not in a guide to grown-up style. Buy with maturity, however, and you might just be rewarded in the future
The prevailing wisdom in the watch world is that there are no surefire investments. Buy with your heart rather than your head, say the canny old hands, and at least you’ll own something you love. However, according to pioneering dealer David Duggan, there are exceptions to every rule.
“I’ve been thinking of all the types of watches I’ve sold, dating from the early ’ 90s,” he tells MH, standing in his boutique on Mayfair’s chichi Burlington Arcade, “and the key is to look for high-quality, vintage understatement. Think Patek Philippe, Rolex, or maybe a couple of the other big Swiss brands. Buy then wait 20 years. They will nearly always yield profit.”
Duggan should know. Having started his business in 1983 and specialising in Patek – still regarded as the greatest of the Swiss maisons – he is now a member of the British Horological Institute.
“I used to think I was a Patek man through and through,” he confides, “but now I’m all about Rolex. The standards are so high – the eye for detail, the obsession with perfection. You don’t quite see that anywhere else.”
It’s precisely these qualities that engender both Rolex collectors’ fanaticism and the watches’ continuing performance at auction. So Duggan is somewhat biased when it comes to advice on how to build a gainful ‘watch wardrobe’, covering off every sartorial eventuality.
“If you’re buying new, a steel Rolex Submariner (04) is a must,” he says without hesitation. “It’s a banker. You can dive with it, but it looks great with a suit, too. Then there’s the steel Cosmograph.” Duggan is referring to Rolex’s iconic Daytona chronograph, the waiting time for which can be close to a year for a steel example. “It’s the perfect sporty watch if you want a more versatile look.”
Should these watches’ respective £5450 and £8250 pricetags feel a little spiteful at this austere time of year, the vintage gems in Duggan’s own showroom have been supplemented by Rolex’s rising sibling star Tudor.
“The new Tudor Heritage Black Bay Dark (01) is a gorgeous revival of the way the Submariner looked in the ’ 50s. It is fitted with Tudor’s in-house movement, too, starting at a modest £2300.”
At the dressier end of the spectrum, Duggan believes in Jaeger-lecoultre’s Reverso (02). Its slender, art deco rectangular case flips over to protect the dial – a function famously requested by the polo players of colonial India. But it’s specifically the Tribute Duoface (£8150) that Duggan admires.
“It’s great value for such an esteemed brand; a dress watch you can wear every day, with a lighter or darker dial depending on your outfit.”
But Duggan specialises in pre-owned timepieces, so it’s unsurprising that he’s also in favour of investing in something with history. “I recommend a Patek Philippe Nautilus (03) (£18,030),” he says. “Forty years ago it made a splash because it was the brand’s first and only sports watch. And the ‘porthole’ design that established such an immediate personality remains as strong.”
Certainly none of these come cheap. But then neither would laying down your hardearned cash be a waste. If you bought a car for a similar price, for example, you couldn’t reasonably expect it to be alive and kicking in two decades, let alone bringing in a return. In this case, it pays to have time on your hands.