The first auction of special collector’s watches on luxury online marketplace Chrono24 saw almost 600 bids placed on 48 watches, it can be revealed.
Registered users from no fewer than 36 countries took part in the bidding, with Chrono24 planning more events in future in a bid to make rare watch models obtainable at the click of a button.
The first auction took place over 10 days and finished yesterday, with timepieces from renowned brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet among those up for grabs.
The watch with the highest sales price was a Rolex Submariner from 1955 (pictured below). Rolex only produced this model for one year, making it extremely rare and coveted among collectors.
From its starting price of around £10,700, this Submariner ended up almost doubling in price to £20,000.
Registered Chrono24 users are able to participate in these auctions for free. They simply click on the desired watch on the auction page and then choose a bid from a drop-down menu. Each bid must be higher than the last, and users are immediately informed whether or not they are the highest bidder.
Popcorn bidding makes the end of each auction particularly compelling: any time a bid is placed within the last 30 seconds of an auction, the remaining time increases by 30 seconds. This continues until the time eventually expires and the watch has found its new owner.
The mix of exclusivity and history makes the watches on offer all the more alluring, according to Chrono24. In addition to technical details like the brand, model, reference number, and year of construction, the rare timepiece’s unique history is also included in the guide notes.
Unlike other online auctions, bidders are welcome to contact the sellers while the auction is still running to ask any questions they might have regarding the watch they’re about to bid on.
Once the gavel falls and a winner is named, the payment process takes place via Chrono24’s ‘Trusted Checkout’ service.
The company said it will continue to host regular auctions, each with a different focus. This will give users even better access to collector’s watches from around the globe, it added.
