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wbfondren
·It think that it is also important to note that with the exception of high-end vintage watches, auction results, while interesting, are not necessarily a very accurate gauge of the overall market. Most people who bid in auctions are already prepared to pay over market values, as premiums are typically 20-30% of the hammer price. Also, if one is going to use such data, then unsold watches should also be factored in. After all, if a watch fails to reach its reserve, then by definition the low valuation was too high.
Historical eBay data would be a more accurate guide to values of the vast majority of watches sold, in my view.
Also, while auctions are taken with a grain of salt for cases of watches grossly selling over market value. Auctions have served as the gauge for the vintage market and many collectors and publications will tell you the same. But I do agree, like I said, that some should be taken with a grain of salt. If you look at articles that discuss what _____ auction results mean for the market, they’ll explain the same thing with one watch being “way over market” and it being “too soon to tell if this is a true shift” and then there are some fairly confident cases where prices that have “climbed” have signified a true shift in the market.
