Back in 2019, it was not uncommon for 400-500 watches to be sold during a marathon session at one of the great seasonal auctions in Geneva, New York or Hong Kong.
Today, it is more likely there will be 150 lots in a sale lasting just a few hours.
The auction market was first transformed by covid, which pushed them into online sales, and by the surge of interest in investment-grade watches as the category became a gold mine for a new breed of crypto millionaires and fly-by-night flippers.
Hysterical price rises in 2021 and into the first half of 2022 made everybody a genius in the watch trading game, but the precipitous fall since has brought the industry back to earth with a bump, and auctioneers have seen prices and the volume of transactions plummet.
Christie’s has reacted with an increased focus on the most collectible watches. An upcoming sale in Geneva of 40 F.P. Journe pieces in a single auction is a good example.
Narrowing the focus is allowing the auctioneer to be more selective and to provide the best possible service to buyers and sellers.
Rémi Guillemin, Christie’s watch department’s European head, says there are many more collectors in the world today, but they are looking to leading auctioneers to bring them something special.
The 40 F.P. Journes come from a single collector, and none of the models are currently available to buy new from the brand, making the Christie’s sale a unique opportunity to acquire rarely-seen pieces.
Christie’s also worked directly with Francois Journe on the research for the auction, so the information in the catalog comes straight from the font of all knowledge.
“Christie’s has a special relationship with Mr Journe, which means we can bring a completely different level of expertise to this sale,” Mr Guillemin says.
All eyes will be on the major watch auctions this Spring for signs that the market is recovering after a difficult Fall season last year.
For Mr Guillemin, the aim is to bring energy to the sale room by concentrating on exceptional watches from the most coveted makers; not just hot pieces from the likes of Patek Philippe and Rolex, but rarer lots from artisanal independents like F.P. Journe.
“We have to make the sales more dynamic, more interesting, shorter,” he explains.
One way to bring energy is with attractive pre-sale estimates designed to start competing bidding, whether the market is hot or cold.
Mr Guillemin gives the example of a Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711, the discontinued watch that saw prices surge to five-times retail values in 2021.
Throughout that period, Christie’s was still starting the bidding at around $40,000.
“Then the market decides. One time the watch might sell for $250,000, another time it is $80,000. We are transparent and ultimately there is nothing we can do about the state of the market,” Mr Guillemin describes.