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What are the most popular luxury watch and jewelry auctions in the world?

Image: What are the most popular luxury watch and jewelry auctions in the world?
You can find various different auctions all over the world. Many resellers that handle luxury watches and jewelry use a variety of auctions as purchasing or selling platforms.
Here we introduce some of the world's leading auctions and B2B online auctions, which are popular for purchasing luxury watches and jewelry for resale.

You can find a variety of different auctions all over the world.

Auctions can take various forms, including consumer-to-consumer (C2C) auctions, business-to-business (B2B) auctions, and business-to-consumer (B2C) auctions. The categories and tastes of the items handled vary from auction to auction.

For auctions handling jewelry and luxury watches such as Rolex, many people around the world are very familiar with the dealings of long-established auctions such as Sotheby's and Christie's (more below). These auctions are suitable if you are seeking items with a high rarity value or that come with a story from a past owner or maker.

While Japan has long had a deep-rooted culture of reuse, its B2B auctions have become active in recent years as the Internet has become more widespread. B2B auctions handle luxury watches and jewelry for secondhand resellers. While models with high scarcity value are also available, compared to the long-established auctions listed above, these auctions are mainly for the mass market. They are perfect for the bulk purchase of jewelry and Rolexes or other luxury watches for resale.

On a global level, used luxury watches and jewelry for resale have generally been  purchased mainly from wholesalers. However, as B2B auctions in Japan have shifted more online and made it possible to participate across borders, more and more buyers from all over the world are using B2B auctions in Japan for purchasing.

Auctions from the seller’s perspective

When using auctions as a seller, it is important to select an auction that is appropriate for your product. This makes it easier to attract more buyers who understand the value of the product, increasing the likelihood of getting an appropriate price. Also, with auctions that seek out high-scarcity products, if your items do not meet the listing standards, they can often be listed in B2B auctions as resale items for the mass market.
To choose the best auction for your items, try to understand the tastes of different auctions and compare records on what items have been listed in the past, what the successful bids were, and what estimates (expected bid prices) are calculated by each auction.

What are the leading luxury watch and jewelry auctions around the world? 

Let's take a look at some of the leading auctions from around the world.
Sotheby’s
https://www.sothebys.com/
Established in 1744 in London, England. Sotheby’s is the oldest auction house in the world, and it originated with auctions for antiquarian books. It currently handles more than 50 categories of items, including art, watches, jewelry, bags, and furniture.
It offers online auctions in addition to live auctions in nine locations around the world, including Hong Kong, New York, and London.
Christie’s
https://www.christies.com/
Along with Sotheby's, Christie's is known as one of the two oldest auction houses. It was established in 1766 in London, England. It has a longer history as an art auction house than anywhere else in the world.
Christie’s has sales rooms in 10 locations around the world, including Hong Kong, New York, and London, and it holds about 350 auctions a year. It handles more than 80 categories of items, including art, watches, jewelry, bags, and furniture.
Heritage Auctions
https://www.ha.com/
Established in 1976 in Dallas, Texas, USA. Heritage Auctions is known for collectible auctions of rare antique coins. Beyond currency, it handles not only art, watches, and jewelry but also unique categories like comic books, sports memorabilia, videogames, movie posters, high-end real estate, and more.
Phillips Auctioneers
https://www.phillips.com/
Established in 1796 in Westminster, London, England. Phillips is known as the only auction house to have made sales on the premises of Buckingham Palace. It handles mainly art, furniture, and real estate, but recently it is also focused on vintage watches and has gained renown for exhibiting master works.
While its auctions do require screening, the general public can participate in bidding and listing. Phillips has recently enhanced its online services, and you can now participate in live auctions not only locally but also by phone or online.

B2B online auctions, supported by the purchase of resale items

So what kind of B2B auctions target resellers and allow the bulk purchase of jewelry and luxury watches like Rolex?

One example is Star Buyers Auction, a leading online auction company in Japan.
As of May 2021, Star Buyers Auction boasted 1,300 member companies worldwide, including 350 from outside Japan. 

Star Buyers Auction holds regular auctions of various genres twice a month separately for watches, bags, designer jewelry, regular jewelry, and apparel, among other items. With more than 25,000 products available each time, Star Buyers Auction is perfect for the bulk purchasing of luxury watches and jewelry for resale.
Click here to complete your online application for an account. We hope that you include online auctions as one of your purchasing routes for realizing more reliable purchasing.

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