Month: October 2022

Bicester Village is the UK’s premier luxury discount shopping destination.
Watchfinder is partnering with Value Retail, owner and operator of Bicester Village in Oxfordshire, to open its first store in November.
The goal is to open in time for Black Friday, November 25 of this year.
It will be the first major used luxury replica watch outlet in the outdoor shopping centre, which is home to more than 160 luxury fashion, lifestyle, beauty and homeware stores, including Gucci, Paul Smith and Alexander McQueen.
“It’s a completely new setup for us. In any of these concepts, pre-sales don’t operate at scale. It is new. Our goal is to grow by partnering with one of the strongest players in the market,” said Arjen van de Vall, CEO of Watchfinder.
“We have big ambitions and expectations, the demand is there, and we can create a very high-quality experience,” he adds.
Bicester Village is known as a retail destination, attracting busloads of affluent shoppers, often from overseas markets such as China.
These shoppers will see a rich selection of pre-owned watches.
“It’s going to be a mix. Some brands may have more volume, such as TAG Heuer, but fake Rolex and the entire steel movement selection will have very strong coverage. Our audience will tell us what they are interested in. The Village is new to us, so we need to learn quickly, and that’s what we plan to do.
Week-long Rolex Daytona auction shows demand for the iconic chronograph remains strong
A week-long online auction dedicated to the replica Rolex Daytona has concluded, with sales prices indicating that the secondary market for this iconic chronograph is stabilizing.
Since its launch in March 2021, the Watch Collecting auction platform has sold nearly 100 Rolex Daytona.
Prices across the secondary market peaked around March, with Subdial reporting sales averaging £33,450 for the Ref. 116500LN steel Daytona with ceramic bezel.
After Rolex raised the price from £11,600 on September 1, the watch retailed for £12,150.
The WATCHPRO graphic combines retail prices from authorized dealers with secondary market price data.
Watch Collecting’s sales price archive reflects this, with the highest price for the same model coming in May, when an unworn 2021 model with box and papers sold for £32,500 plus a 6% buyer’s premium.
Watch week-long Copy Rolex Daytonas specialist auction featured 12 different models, including a pale blue dial in platinum with diamond hour markers, which sold for £98,000.
A 2022 steel and ceramic 116500 Panda sold for £27,500, 15% less than its May counterpart.

This, coupled with the devaluation of the pound against the Swiss franc, has driven up import prices; the devaluation against the dollar has created a price differential between major markets, making it cheaper to buy in that country compared to the US or any other country whose currency is pegged to or tracks the dollar, including oil-rich Middle Eastern countries.
If the UK government reinstates the instant VAT rebates that non-EU shoppers used to get, we could have a flood of high-spending tourists snapping up bargains in the summer because of the weakening pound.
Conversely, I’ve been crunching some numbers on the narrowing gap between replica Rolex prices at authorized dealers and on the secondary market.
I’ve reported extensively on the sharp drop in prices on the secondary market for Rolex’s most popular steel cool replica watches as well as AP and Patek Philippe watches since the first quarter.
That trend continues, with data from used watch specialist Subdial showing that Rolex prices have dropped 2.8% in the last 30 days, meaning the difference between retail and market prices has been shrinking.
According to Subdial, secondary market prices are down to £10,743 today, compared to £8,450 at authorized dealers, a difference of just £2,293. This gap could disappear if Subdial’s prices are on the high side.
The same is true for Patek Philippe prices, whose spokesperson confirmed to us today that retail prices in the UK and EU were raised by about 5% on September 1.
These price drops are a sign that sanity is returning to the secondary market and that many speculators who have been bullying authorized dealer salespeople might as well find something better to do.
It’s great for watch enthusiasts if their clone Rolex or Patek Philippe purchases retain their value or rise slowly over time. Still, the recent shortage and speculation have created a more unpleasant atmosphere around these brands and their retailers.
A re-balancing is long overdue, and I hope the market can find a happy balance that rewards watch lovers, not speculators.