WatchBox broadens its horizons

On the eve of the weekend when watch collectors converge on Geneva's swanky hotels for the spring season of auctions, WatchBox moved into the Beau-Rivage Palace with an exhibition of 80 exceptional timepieces While others were looking for the highest bidder, the leading e-commerce platform for certified pre-owned luxury watches had other intentions, as Patrik Hoffmann, Executive Vice President of WatchBox Switzerland, explained "We want to show them we are an alternative to auctions for buying and selling luxury pre-owned watches, thanks to our powerful platform and our experts' advice" "The way we sell is also different.

Click and buy doesn't generally work well in the watch industry Our watches sell in the region of CHF 15,000 on average At that price, and knowing that a watch is also an emotional investment, you can rest assured that customers need to speak with someone who can talk with them about the watch and explain it to them.

This is why, at our showroom, we emphasise expertise and personal contact to build trust." Employing 175 people worldwide, and having sold 45,000 watches in the past two years and generated revenue of USD 200 million in 2018, WatchBox is growing at an eyewatering 30% to 40% a year, and aims to increase revenue to USD 500 million within the next two to three years "Imagine you want to buy a car A lot of the time, the dealer will offer to trade in your old car against a new one.

In the watch sector, plenty of retailers find themselves in the same situation, selling a new watch and buying back a second-hand one The question being, how to set prices and, more to the point, how to keep inventory moving? WatchBox has the expertise and the tools to support them." Ultimately, WatchBox's technology could make it the first choice online for anyone looking to buy a pre-owned luxury watch. . Source