Well, Summer is behind us and we have the wonderful month of September to look forward to. before we look forward, let's look back at the last two months:
As many remember, June was the last auction month before Summer vacation and both P & Co. and AQ had good turnouts. On 47th street July began slowly for most dealers still reeling from the downturn in the economy. Many were happy to be able to pay their bills. While we began July like all the rest, by mid month it began to pick up, with lots of nice collector pieces coming in daily. One of the highlights was a perfect brown dial red 1680 w/full boat. Needless to say it did not last the afternoon, scooped up by a NYC collector in minutes. There was also an abundance of 1655 over the last 6 weeks, 5 to be exact. Most were standard watches but there was a really nice straight hand in early August. The gilt Subbie and GMT also were popping. I personally traded 2 of each with the nicest being a 5513 4 liner bought at the late July NYC Antique Show for the price of a standard 5513. Nice!
I have also handled a bunch of 1803 Presidents, papered and not, which was unusual as they were trading for strong money.
Normal big gold pieces are way down, with single and double quick Presidents of the "80's-90's variety slipping down to under $6-8k, respectively dealer to dealer. Steel Daytonas are still in play between $7500-$8k, with mint examples higher if papered.
The feeling on 47th street is "regular" dealers are willing to touch vintage as many are holding pieces they thought were good deals at the top of the market but did not sell in time. Thus, they are buried in them waiting for a market upturn...YIKES!
Well, the market is holding, but "sketchy". There are few real collectors looking and when they are, they want top shelf pieces and are willing to pay a premium, for the most part. Standard GMT, 5513 are floundering around $3k dealer to dealer with not many real players for much more. Smaller plastic Datejust/Date models are very soft, in the $1k range. I remember when a $1k date head was a no brainer, but these days the dress parts are not bringing much in the secondary market and the mighty EBay. Let's talk about EBay for a minute. It has become the place to steal stuff but as history has told veteran EBayers, the Summer is not the time to sell there. Lots of parts deals are there to be found but you have to sit on it and many would rather pay more to have it when you need it rather than "snipe" or sit in front of a computer.
One section of the market which is booming is the fake/counterfeit Rolex Sport. I cannot tell you how many fakes are floating around from dealer to dealer. Many are bought by wise ass dealers who think they are getting a steal, only to find they bought a fake w/papers...HEY, that happened to me in early August!!! Yeah, I got my money back but it was a real eye opener. I am a very conservative buyer and was really spooked when this occurred. Real papers w/fake case back and middle, w/dial, hands, bezel all real. Numbers are engraved from a legit set of period papers and VIOLA... dangerous fake floating about.
Enough of this, let's get to the two auctions coming up here in NYC. While there are not a lot of sport Rolex in P& Co. for October, the watches are really clean and above average auction quality. OP has been really selective in choosing mint pieces and rejecting over 50% of the watches/junk that has been submitted. I agree, as many feel they can dump a crap piece on an auction house and buyers will think it to be more than what it really is...crap. Not at P&Co. Things are going well for the new (haha, new?) upstart. They are getting loads of watches and are readying for a strong season. The "no hammer" commission is a wonderful thing and I am happy to see it working. Each watch is being examined by a Rolex certified master watchmaker and given a "once over" to ensure it is running and looking great. This is HUGE for an auction house. One of the real problems with auction houses is when buying one must go by the condition report which will state whether a service is needed or not. Bidding on a watch which has been looked at for big problems is a definite plus and should elevate their game.
Having examined at all the Rolex in the upcoming October auction I can say there are no fakes and each piece looks it's very best.
I also had the privilege of examining all the watches for the AQ September 17th auction. Again, not many Rolex but the ones they have are very nice. One piece that stood out was lot 353 16550 Cream w/full boat. What a beauty!
There were other nice Rolex but my personal favorite watch of the auction was lot 104, the black 6238. OMG, what a killer piece. The other watch I was really digging was not a Rolex but lot 119 Patek Nautalis w/factory baguette bezel. Yeah, I know but what a great watch to wear in the pool!!!
On another note, I have begun filming some of the nicer watches at AQ in order to produce a show highlighting the auction houses and special watches. I am arranging to have some of the biggest collectors/dealers in NYC and abroad as guests which will be a real treat for all.
We have been given clearance by both AQ and P& Co. and will approach the other big NYC houses soon, if they do not approach us first.
All in all, I will say the vintage/high end watch market is still holding on. Many here and abroad want hard items to sink money into and these watches have a proven track history of retaining their value. I am very pleased at how the market held this summer and have very high hopes for the Autumn/Winter auctions.
Stay tuned for some preliminary video which will be coming soon. If there are any dealers/collectors who would like to appear in 2010 episodes please call or email me:
tuscanyrose.com
All the best...
JB
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