Luxury watches for sale at Reuven Watches

At most Swiss brands a new example from the official dealer means months or years of waiting, and on the popular sports models a new customer often does not get a look in at all. On the pre-owned market the watch is there at once. Against that, you have to assess the condition yourself or have it assessed, and the price of a sought-after model can sit above the retail price.

For the models that are not scarce the reverse applies: a watch a few years old is often considerably cheaper than new, while being technically the same watch.

Every model has a reference: a combination of digits that fixes the exact version. Case material, bezel, dial and bracelet type are all encoded in it. Two watches that look identical in a photo can carry different references and differ by thousands of euros in value.

We put the reference on every product page and check that the watch matches what that reference should be. If something deviates, for instance a dial replaced later, it is in the description.

On a sought-after model a complete set with the original box and warranty document can account for ten to twenty per cent of the price. On a classic watch of thirty years old it is often barely to be found any more and counts for less.

Papers are not proof of authenticity: they belong to the watch, but they do not travel with it automatically and can be bought separately. So we assess the watch itself, and use the papers only to confirm what we have already established.

A mechanical watch needs a service every five to ten years: cleaning, fresh lubrication, regulation. At most brands that costs a few hundred to well over a thousand euros, depending on the movement.

From a recently serviced watch you may expect years of use ahead. If the last service was long ago or is unknown, reckon with that cost coming. We put in the description what we know and invent nothing where the history is missing.

The same reference can sit thousands of euros apart at two sellers. That is rarely down to the watch and usually to everything else: the state of the case, what is included, whether the seller has checked the watch, and what guarantee and right of return you get.

A price strikingly below the market is almost always a price without those assurances. So compare not only the amount but also what you get back if something turns out to be wrong.

You can order here online and have it delivered insured, with fourteen days to change your mind. For a watch of any value we would still advise coming by if you can. How a watch sits on the wrist, how heavy it is and how the case diameter works out on your wrist size cannot be seen in a photo.

We are at Amsterdamsestraatweg 251 in Utrecht. On Wednesday and Thursday from 12:00 to 17:00 you can walk in without an appointment; on the other days we arrange a time.

Because we buy ourselves, you can trade a watch against another from stock. We value what you have and offset it against the purchase. That saves you the time and bother of selling it yourself, and the watch stays within the same shop.

If you only want to sell and buy nothing back, that is fine too. We buy every brand, with or without box and papers.

A watch is not an investment and we do not present it as one. What is true: at the well-known Swiss brands, a well-maintained example in a current version holds its value better than at brands with a thin pre-owned market.

What helps is predictable: a common model, a case that has not been buffed away, original parts and a known service history. Exactly the points we look at when buying.