Europe is where most luxury watches come from, but not where most luxury watches are sold. That isn’t new, as European timepieces have been imported to parts of the world such as the Far East, going back to the 17th century. Nevertheless, Europe remains an important if not complicated market for luxury timepieces. That includes sales to tourists, and more interesting for me, sales to local collectors and enthusiasts. Europe (which I know is not just one region but a dynamic assortment of different ones – that in theory create one large market) probably has the largest concentration of truly knowledgeable watch collectors, something I’ve found in all parts of the continent I’ve traveled to. I’ve been seriously impressed at the depth and quality of what many Europeans (which for the purpose of this conversation I will include UK and Swiss folks) timepiece enthusiasts find interesting, as well as the prolific nature of their collecting habits. While I travel to Europe often, I mainly interact with professionals who work for brands, as opposed to the people who buy or sell watches. Recently however I was fortunate enough to spend an evening with both watch dealers and timepiece enthusiasts at a dinner held by eBay in Munich, Germany. Here’s what I learned about the current state of the watch industry in Europe (and especially Germany) toward the end of 2024.

The picture in Europe for watches is oddly two-sided. On the one hand (as in many parts of the world) watches continue to be a popular subject for consumers looking to reward themselves or display signs of culture and good taste. While local flavors vary from country to country, Europe generally seems to have a very robust market for timepiece interest and collecting. Young people growing up in an era of persistent social media learn how watches allow the powerful and wealthy to show off their success. The appeal for watches extends far beyond that of passionate hobbyists who read about timepieces on places like aBlogtoWatch daily into the casual luxury-consumption zeitgeist.

When I first began meeting timepiece enthusiasts in Europe more than 15 years ago, the hobby was decidedly nerdy and niche. Given that so many new and used timepieces are available in consolidated areas in Europe, the hobby has experienced a democratic surge in popularity. One way we see this manifesting is in the large number of entrepreneurs who begin their own “microbrands” in Europe. Previously this activity would have been relegated only to watchmakers and wealthy business people. In a challenging market for entrepreneurs given the tendency of many EU states to push people into more traditional jobs, it is interesting to see so much activity of this nature in the wristwatch space. Attention to watches in Europe is generally high, and at least as important to the watch industry (in my opinion) as similar levels of attention by consumers in the United States and parts of Asia.

The downside in Europe is that economic and political uncertainty has halted enthusiasm for many purchases, and consuming behavior has become more careful and considered. This is predictable behavior for luxury goods consumption because it has been well established that people who are in a good mood about the future buy far more luxury goods than those who are cautious or worried about the future. In this way, politics is intrinsically connected to the fortunes of the luxury sector, even if the luxury sector loathes aligning itself with anything political out of fear of alienating consumers or inadvertently sending tone-deaf messages. Specifically, economic wobbling and leadership drama in England, France, and now Germany are primarily responsible for the deep sense of worry many people in Europe feel. How does all that manifest itself into watch buying and collecting behavior?

An interesting tendency I’ve noticed after studying the market for many years is that enthusiasm for watches and buying behavior are not directly linked. A person can be a voracious consumer of information about watches without spending much money on new ones. Of course, consumers prefer to spend money on their hobby but are held back by the uncertainty sentiments I shared above. When consumers are less optimistic it might appear as though the watch hobby has fewer active members, but in reality, what happens is that demand remains strong but dormant.

Dormant demand is an interesting phenomenon not often discussed in the economic reporting I’ve seen, probably because it is difficult to measure. After the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the media often talked about “revenge buying,” where consumers who were prevented from spending on hobbies and recreation did so in large volumes the moment they could. This was, in effect, dormant demand for luxury consumption being ventilated. In the watch space, it means that marketing and advertising may be creating the precise type of demand that brands want, but they don’t experience subsequent sales because consumers want their goods, but aren’t currently spending on them.

Dormant demand for watches also stimulates alternative buying behavior. For example, in strong economic times, a consumer might buy a brand-new watch from time to time, and in less stable climates, that consumer might opt for pre-owned watches, and may sell or trade some of their existing collection to help fund it. This stipulates that luxury watch buying behavior is not strictly black and white as to whether or not consumers are buying. Rather, consumers make careful decisions based on their current economic situation but generally don’t stop watch-purchasing behavior. Among other things, this is another sign of how “sticky” the watch hobby is and how loyal many collectors are to their hobby, even when faced with shifting economic sentiments.

This behavior has also ushered in a new era of watch trading behavior in Europe – an activity which in large ways was mainly happening in the United States and parts of Asia until just a few years ago. Now Europe is firmly fixated on the trading of pre-owned watches being just as important as the manufacture and distribution of brand new ones. The most incredible manifestation of this behavior (in my opinion) is how luxury watch brands large and small have started to trade in pre-owned watches themselves. “Certifed Pre-Owned” (CPO) products are increasingly common and are available from many top-tier brands, including Rolex. Just recently, fellow Geneva-based watchmaker Vacheron Constantin launched its own CPO program. All of this indicates an unprecedented shift from major luxury firms to cater to new buying behavior and an expanded notion of the types of people and habits that brands ought to cater to. I didn’t feel that many brands understood the need for this just a few years ago, but once such buying behavior became popular in Europe itself, they quickly shifted tack. One reason Europe as a watch market is so important is that it has the greatest chance to actually stimulate policy and business change at many of the larger incumbent players.

Just as in the United States, eBay has been actively courting the watch industry at tradeshows and gatherings in Europe where important decision-makers and consumers go. That includes attending events such as Watches & Wonders, as well as generously supporting smaller tradeshows and events. In Munich, eBay is a sponsor of the important and longstanding event series somewhat ambiguously known as the Watch Trader Association (WTA). At these regular events, which happen a few times a year, dealers mix to trade pre-owned and vintage watches amongst themselves, which are later made available to consumers. Similar events occur in other parts of the world, but in Europe, the WTA attracts a truly prolific set of extremely experienced dealers, many of whom have been trading in watches for decades. These are amongst the savviest and most veteran traders of luxury watches anywhere in the world. I was fortunate to speak with many of them at both the WTA event and at a private dinner held by eBay for elite members of the group.

Many people have asked me why I so readily support eBay as a tool for trading watches online. My answer is just that: eBay is a tool rather than a vested interest that wants people to purchase one brand over another, or at one price point over another. In an industry fuelled by agendas and loyalties, it is entirely refreshing that someone who helps facilitate the sale of watches is entirely neutral when it comes to what is purchased. Accordingly, eBay  is set up to meet consumer needs and preferences in a highly competitive environment, rather than feel compelled to promote popular names or high price points.

That makes eBay distinguishable from most of the other online trading platforms that I know, and why I celebrate it. As a tool, eBay can be used however people like, and the market dictates pricing and popularity — not the platform itself. What’s more interesting (and I’ve remarked on this before) is how fascinated eBay is with the watch market at a managerial level. Watches might not be nearly as profitable for eBay as trading automotive parts (for example) but are an area in which lots of dedicated staff (around the world) continue to improve the product and offer new tools to make trading watches with strangers safe and convenient. Dealers who sell watches on eBay also typically have dedicated account reps they can personally reach out to for help, a privilege you will simply not get with most tech companies.

To be honest, part of me thinks that eBay is intellectually interested in the watch-trading space because of its interesting challenges and quirks. I believe that engineers and business leaders at the big California-based publicly-traded company feel that if they can “get watches right,” they can get any category right. A great example of the hidden challenges that exist for a watch trading platform is how in Europe, despite seemingly being a single market, watches do not always cross borders easily. There are tax, safety, and regulatory hurdles to jump over, and eBay’s mission is part of a larger trend to make goods more fluidly transportable around the world. It has been a goal for eBay to fully roll out its impressive Authenticity Guarantee (called Authenticity Check in Germany) program in all of Europe as it has in the United States. eBay set up a highly capable center in Berlin designed to authenticate watches for mainland Europe. Currently, that center mostly checks watches coming in to, or already within Germany. Regulatory challenges with the EU have slowed down the rollout – but eBay is not a company to give up (as I presume smaller players surely would have at this point). Instead, eBay’s might and dedication are allowing it to push into new frontiers and will likely end up further improving the watch-trading market in Europe for everyone.

European watch traders are also increasingly discovering what their colleagues in America have known for a while: eBay is a comparatively inexpensive way of reaching consumers and engaging in safe transactions. Just a few years ago, this issue was far more serious for eBay. Unlike America, where eBay has enjoyed nearly three decades of goodwill with consumers, Europe has been a relatively late bloomer when it comes to helping consumers and smaller dealers sell goods directly to other consumers. eBay thus has a much less glorified reputation in Europe and was not seen by many as a venue where people might want to buy or sell a luxury good. That said, European watch collectors have been gleefully relying on eBay since the 1990s to score many of their best finds. This is nowhere truer than with vintage watch enthusiasts and dealers who shared with me countless stories about getting incredible deals and rare treats on eBay in years past when more people were wise to the value and desirability of many older timepieces. As such, eBay was the secret tool of many collectors and dealers when it came to finding treasure.

eBay’s role for these enthusiasts has evolved. Rather than being a place where all but the most dedicated watch hunters go, eBay is now increasingly seen as a major consumer portal where eyeballs, not obscurity, are the currency. Even when faced with razor-thin margins, I kept hearing from dealers who suggested that eBay was their most cost-effective tool for reaching consumers. This is noteworthy because for whatever reason, dealers felt that doing business on eBay was more expensive than the alternatives, but in practice, they seem to find that isn’t true. It’s important to add that the clear financial incentive for eBay is to promote trading volume, as opposed to maximizing its earnings per sale. Thus, eBay wants people to repeatedly use its platform, as opposed to wanting to make sure it earns as much as possible from a single transaction. This makes eBay distinct from much of the traditional mentality around selling or trading timepieces in many parts of Europe.

I’ve also noticed how eBay’s huge size allows it to absorb risk in a way that smaller platforms cannot hope to compete with. In Germany especially, eBay’s rival when it comes to trading watches online is the incumbent player Chrono24. A lot of good things can be said about Chrono24 over the years, but more recently it appears to have been struggling to compete with eBay in core areas such as fees and promoting safety. It should not be a surprise to anyone that fraudsters (both on the buying and selling side) get into the watch space because of the value of the items in question. Fraudulent transactions can cost a platform a lot of money. Smaller players in the space do not have the money or insurance to seriously protect themselves so efforts have been put into place to stop transactions in the first place, as opposed to protecting the buyer or seller on the backend if something goes wrong. My understanding is that this practice has become so burdensome on platforms such as Chrono24 (once considered a very easy place to list watches), that it prevents many watches from being listed in the first place. This harms the integrity and robustness of the platform, due to security concerns and the cost of doing business.

eBay also needs to contend with fraud and abuse, but it doesn’t do so by primarily stopping watches from being listed in the first place. A host of protections and checks such as Authenticity Guarantee are designed to safeguard transactions and offer both buyers and sellers recourse. No system is perfect of course, but at the end of the day, eBay’s approach allows for maximal listings on its system, along with robust protections for buyers and sellers if they are faced with fraud. This might all sound theoretical, but the reality is that (especially in Europe) anyone who has been trading watches online for even a short period of time has probably been faced with some sticky situations. eBay’s willingness to provide a safe platform is thus really beneficial and something smaller, leaner, and less professional organizations can’t really compete with. As someone who wants people to buy and sell watches online with ease, promoting safe platforms for such behavior is clearly within the arena of my interests. That isn’t to suggest that eBay can ever be the only platform for this, but it is a strong message that anyone who runs a marketplace that competes with eBay must add some material benefit or service that the giant is not able to provide.

I’m delighted to see eBay investing in Europe’s watch trading market for the future. Many of its missions and goals will take multiple years to fully implement. No startup or novice organization I know of in this space can dedicate that type of time or resources to it. In that regard, my interest in promoting eBay is directly related to championing its market-building and refinement efforts that no one else is seriously investing in. Luxury groups may still scoff at eBay’s democratic marketplace. In their eyes, luxury should be sold in exclusive places, to exclusive people. That may be so, but they are misguided in distrusting pioneers. I believe that the European watch industry, especially, should be thanking the tech company for forging ahead into new territories, and effectively making it possible to move more luxury goods into more places.

Companies like eBay are thus forming a foundation for a luxury watch market that can rebound quickly in Europe. What is important is that such a rebound doesn’t rely on tourist sales or further opening up more mono-brand boutiques. Rather, when marketplaces like eBay become a fixture, they are the first places where sales and consumer behavior ramp up. There is very little in the way of reporting when it comes to watch-sales transactions online in Europe (or elsewhere for that matter), but if I wanted to learn about the health of the wristwatch marketplace in Europe, I’d check to see what is happening on eBay first, as a guide for any conclusions.

No one can know for certain when European consumer sentiment will return to a more positive state. Between wars and fragile governments, there are a number of reasons why people in Europe will still feel nervous about putting money into luxury goods for some time to come. The ultra-rich still buy with impunity, but they cannot sustain the volumes necessary for the diverse luxury watch market we enjoy covering here on aBlogtoWatch. With that said, I’m newly buoyed with optimism because of what I keep learning about the resilient and patient nature of watch lovers. They will wait to make larger purchases but still maintain the strong desire to do so. They will be resourceful and buy used watches versus news ones when faced with limited budgets. They will be clever with their resources and use platforms like eBay to sell existing watches to fund the purchase of new ones. I look forward to reexamining the European luxury watch market in the months to come to see how it continues to develop. Thanks to everyone who spent lots of time chatting with me about watches in Munich.