Luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet (AP) from Le Brassus has launched its own platform for trading pre-owned watches. Under the name "The Watch Keepers" owners can now offer their watches for sale directly through the manufacture. AP handles the inspection, certification and processing of the transactions.

AP produces around 53,000 watches annually and has a company history spanning more than 150 years. Accordingly, the stock of older models that are now traded on the collector market is large.

Commissions of up to 20 percent

The business model differs from that of other luxury watchmakers. Audemars Piguet generally does not buy the watches itself, but brokers them on its own platform. Sellers remain the owners of their pieces until the transaction is completed and can choose between a fixed price and an auction process.

The service comes at a price. According to a report by NZZ, AP charges a commission of 20 percent on the first 25,000 francs of the sale price. For the next 25,000 francs, the fee is 15 percent, and for amounts above that, 10 percent. For a watch sold for 52,000 francs, this results in a commission of 8,950 francs, or 17.2 percent of the sale price.

To be accepted, the watch must have been sold for the first time at least two years ago. The serial number and proof of ownership must be verified. The piece is then sent to AP by insured courier, where watchmakers use the company’s own archives to verify authenticity and assess the condition.

Buyers receive a certificate of authenticity as well as a two-year functional warranty. At launch, around 100 watches from different collections and years are to be available at any given time. The offering starts in Switzerland and Europe and is to be expanded to additional markets later.

Valuable customer relationships instead of own inventory

The real economic benefit for Audemars Piguet is likely to extend beyond commission revenue. The manufacture gains access to a customer base that may previously have been active solely in the secondary market. As AP chief Ilaria Resta explained to NZZ, purchases made through the new platform are recorded in the same customer history as transactions in the brand’s own boutiques. "We do not distinguish between customers of our boutiques and customers of the CPO platform," Resta said.

For buyers, this can be an additional incentive. Especially for highly sought-after models such as the Royal Oak, prior customer relationships often play a role in the allocation of new watches.

Rolex follows a different model

With this move, Audemars Piguet is following other well-known manufacturers. Rolex launched its own Certified Pre-Owned program at the end of 2022, but leaves the trade to authorized retailers. These include, in addition to Bucherer, which has belonged to the Geneva watch group since 2023, Beyer in Zurich, for example. Richard Mille has been active in the certified pre-owned watch business since 2015 and operates its own points of sale. AP is taking a middle path: the manufacture controls the platform and the sales process, but generally does not assume the financial risk of its own inventory.

The timing is favorable. According to the Secondary Market Report 2026 published in October by LuxeConsult, the pre-owned watch market grew by around seven percent on a comparable basis in 2025. For the coming years, the study authors expect annual growth of between eight and eleven percent in the base scenario.

Sotheby's auctions Patek Philippe for up to three million francs

How much money collectors are willing to spend on exceptional watches could soon be demonstrated again in Geneva. The auction house Sotheby's will auction numerous rare timepieces on November 8 and 9 at the Mandarin Oriental. Among the top lots is the first numbered Patek Philippe reference 3970 from 1986. The chronograph with perpetual calendar comes from an early series of only around 100 pieces. Sotheby's estimates its value at between one and three million francs. Also on offer is an extraordinary pocket watch by A. Lange & Söhne from 1914 with Grande and Petite Sonnerie as well as a perpetual calendar. The estimate is between 700,000 and 1.4 million francs.

A rare Rolex reference 6032 in rose gold, which has been in the possession of the same family since it was purchased in 1959, is expected to fetch between 200,000 and 400,000 francs. A George Daniels Millennium from 2001 is estimated at 300,000 to 600,000 francs.

Beyer says goodbye with its own collection

Particular attention is likely to be paid to the collection from the inventory of Zurich-based Uhren & Juwelen. The traditional watch retailer is closing its business on Bahnhofstrasse after 266 years. An exclusive Patek Philippe salon will be created in the historic building from 2027. 

The Beyer collection going under the hammer comprises 21 watches, predominantly Patek Philippe models from the former pre-owned watch inventory.