A Beginners Guide to Collecting Watches

Photo: Taste The Dream

Are you interested in collecting watches? Well, there is a tremendous variation between collecting timepieces because you think they’re nice or stylish and anyone who buys them for specific personal purposes.

A person with a large collection of watches might not fully understand why their possessions are valuable. Comparatively, a collector purchase watches for purposes other than the simple satisfaction of thinking they are attractive to display. In most cases, it aspires to get a deeper understanding of the histories of the devices they desire to have.

Despite the diversity of watches and motivations to acquire them, it is impossible to offer comprehensive guidance to everyone who aspires to become a wristwatch collector. Here are, thus, some guidelines to consider if you are someone who has the watch collection desire.

• Only purchase what you want

In the end, don’t forget that you’ll have to appreciate and enjoy everything in your collection. The perfect scenario is for you to wear each watch you own sometimes. This may seem apparent, yet many individuals feel pressured to buy watches they may not find fascinating to wear yet believe are “valuable.”

Photo: Hodinkee

Never purchase a device that is uncomfortable to wear or doesn’t generally look decent on the wrist. Keep in mind that timepieces are quite individual items. Therefore, you can’t have a special connection with a watch if you don’t want to wear them. Considering this, adding it to your collection is hardly worthwhile.

• Never think of timepieces as an investment that will appreciate

Although it is technically feasible to generate income by buying and selling timepieces, this is more of an exception, not a rule. Earning money by speculatively buying a wristwatch that you believe will appreciate would be a lesson in psychological theories rather than a quest for the greatest watches, as is the case with all investment industries.

Therefore, watch lovers can make money by foreseeing current market trends and liquidity instead of just buying high-quality timepieces. Most collectors acquire watches without considering their long-term value for “life.” On the contrary, others might sell their devices when presented with a great deal or pay for more purchases.

Photo: Diamond Bank

Basically, people who acquire items with the intention of reselling them for profit often have significantly less enjoyable and, eventually, more frustrating encounters as watch enthusiasts. These collectors sell watches for the “proper motives.” More particularly, they often suffer huge financial losses.

• Avoid being swayed by collector influences

Beginner watch enthusiasts typically start by looking at what many veteran collectors have had in their collections. The secret to developing a watch’s knowledge is exposure to a wide range of timepieces, companies, and stories. Therefore, watch lovers must refrain from copying or imitating the collection style of another person.

In other words, never purchase a watch just because somebody encourages you to or because someone you look up to owns one. Just get a watch if you are aware of the value of the transaction and are confident in the appropriateness of the listed price. You should also clearly understand why you, as a collector, need the item in your portfolio.

Photo: Wikipedia

Additionally, collectors must make sure their collections are unique because being swayed as a collector occurs more frequently than people would want to admit. Remember that it’s just to share a common appreciation for watches with others, but resist the urge to conform out of obligation to others.

• Keep a record of your collection history

Only a small percentage of watch enthusiasts actively document their expeditions. However, as a beginner timepiece collector, it’s advisable to have a notebook and add new notes after each watch acquisition. The history of a wristwatch is one of its greatest sources of value. The watch itself, as well as who purchased it and why, could be the subject of that tale.

By keeping track of the dates and reasons behind their watch purchases, collectors increase the worth of their collections, including their capacity to recall past events. This could be as easy as keeping a written record of your initial motivation for a watch, the time you spent shopping for one, where you acquired it, and the price.

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Generally, it is essential to add a transferrable record with every wristwatch in your inventory if you sell it or pass it along as a piece of your legacy. You can examine how your preferences, purchasing patterns, and financial constraints evolve with time by charting your experience as a watch collector. Also, it may be a very significant and revealing aspect of your heritage, which you might pass on to someone else.

• Never undervalue the exciting nature of the hunt

The watch collection is just like hunting, and certain meals are simpler to procure compared to others. The trophies that take the most time, commitment, and hard work are usually the most satisfying.

Other watch enthusiasts are more interested in finding a timepiece than the actual piece itself. Once they own a watch, these collectors’ fascination with it almost instantly wanes. For many, the pursuit of the watch, as well as the urge to obtain it (plus the motives associated with it), are more alluring than the piece itself.

Photo: Fratello

It’s thus crucial to note this since many watch collectors lost their interest in a wristwatch shortly after discovering it. They ought to be aware that this is very normal. Moreover, knowing this aspect of collector conduct might help you avoid making poor purchasing selections and enjoy the excitement of a quest.

Most importantly, a watch should be purchased at the proper time, for a reasonable price, and without haste if you want to fulfill your objectives.

Bottom Line

The watch collection is like one of the odd little fancies that make us travel, fly out of a helicopter, or purchase a costly audio system to play jazz vinyl. Such pastimes definitely make us happy due to how perfectly voluptuous it is.

Photo: Rizzolo Watches

Compared to some of them, however, investing one’s resources in the pursuit of gathering watches can be done safely and with care, keeping both one’s interests and budget in mind. The only thing that matters is that you do it with your heart and mind working together and, most importantly, in complete harmony.