Are Luxury Watches a Waste of Money? Are Luxury Watches Worth it?

Are Luxury Watches a Waste of Money? Are Luxury Watches Worth it?

Luxury watches can cost a lot of money. They range from a few thousand dollars but their prices can reach the range in the hundreds of thousands, even millions in some cases. Most luxury watches, however, cost around 3000 dollars to 50.000 dollars. That is undeniably a lot of money for a watch. In particular, because you can buy watches for as little as 5 dollars.

This naturally begs the question: are luxury watches a waste of money? Is it worth spending thousands of dollars when you can get a watch for just a few bucks?

There are a lot of different ways to answer this question. One angle would be to compare it to cars. Why would you buy a nicer car when you can buy the cheapest there is that does exactly the same thing – take you from point A to point B? The answer is that it is not that you do something, it’s also about how you do it.

Humans are emotional creatures and a lot of the things we do are driven by emotions. A cheap car could easily do the job of transporting us wherever need to go. Yet still, a lot of people buy a nice car that is more modern and nicer looking than the cheapest alternative. 

Yes, you could buy the cheapest car possible but what’s the fun in that? A nice car brings a smile to our faces every time we look at it and it brings us joy. Simply put, it enhances our life. The same thing can be said about a luxury watch. Yes, you can buy a cheap watch for just a few bucks but it’s much more fun to wear a luxury watch that brings a sense of occasion and a smile to your face every time you put it on. 

In other words, in many ways, it’s about how something makes us feel which is the most important part.

With that in mind, the answer to whether or not a luxury watch is a waste of money and if they are worth it gets a new perspective. But if you’re only looking at something from the perspective of what it does, you’re missing an important factor: emotion. You also need to look at it from the perspective of how it makes it feel. Yes, a cheap watch will tell the time just as well as a watch for tens of thousands of dollars. But that is not what it’s about.

Are luxury watches a waste of money?

To answer the question if luxury watches are worth it, the answer is that it depends on you. For some people, it is worth it, for others, it is not.

Most people would be shocked to hear that someone has spent tens of thousands on a wristwatch. And they would say that it is a total waste of money to buy a luxury watch. At the same time, a lot of people decide to buy a luxury watch every year and some people even have large collections of multiple luxury watches.

To answer the question if luxury watches are a waste of money, we would argue that they are not.

People wouldn’t buy luxury watches unless they thought that it was worth it. So what do these people see that other people don’t?

Well, they see luxury watches as so much more than just a way to tell the time. And if you can look at a luxury watch for what it is and what has gone into it, you’ll understand the high price tags they have and why they are so expensive – and even be convinced that they are reasonably priced.

The value of luxury watches lies in the craftsmanship, the many years of research and development, the expertise that is required to develop and manufacture them, and the great complexity of making them. If you can see all of these things, you’ll be able to appreciate luxury watches so much more. And this all begins with educating yourself and understanding what luxury watches really are and what they are about.

Let’s take a look at some of the key features and aspects of luxury watches that make them so immensely popular and sought-after.

Are luxury watches worth it?

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Luxury watches require great craftsmanship

One of the key differences between a cheap watch and a luxury watch is the great level of craftsmanship and expertise that is required to make them. Whilst cheap watches can be mass-produced within a matter of minutes, luxury watches required hours and hours. From finishing the case and bracelet, to assembling the movement and all the components to create a complete watch. And this doesn’t take into account the immense complexity of developing them. 

Luxury watches consist of hundreds of tiny components that are assembled to create a perfectly functioning machine. Moreover, the most exclusive watches are finished entirely by hand. It may take hundreds of hours for a single watchmaker to finish and decorate every single intricate movement component of a luxury watch.

With all of this said, luxury watches are true pieces of art. They are hand-crafted to perfection by extremely skilled watchmakers, largely by hand. If you are able to see the work that goes into making a luxury watch, you’ll better be able to appreciate it for what it is.

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Luxury watches can last for generations

Luxury watches put the utmost focus on quality. Whilst cheap watches are thrown away when they stop working, luxury watches take a different approach and focus on everlasting quality. Quality doesn’t come cheap and there’s a great quote that you have probably heard before:

“Quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten”

And this is a quote that couldn’t be more true when it comes to luxury watches.

A lot of people are willing to spend more money on quality products than cheap, low-quality products that will break after just a few months or years. 

When maintained well, luxury watches can last for generations and be passed on as heirlooms. This makes the watch even more important as it develops a sentimental value over time that is far greater than any price tag.

This is why Patek Philippe has the motto “begin your own tradition”.

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Luxury watches require complex engineering

This ties together with what we discussed about craftsmanship earlier. But in order to fully appreciate luxury watches, we need to understand the complexity of making a mechanical movement. Luxury watch movements are like car engines but in a miniature size where every single component plays a crucial role in the performance and functionality of a watch. As you can imagine, making a mechanical movement from scratch is no easy feat.

The most complex movements can take many years to complete and this doesn’t include all the hard work and time that is required to assemble and finish them once they are put into production.

If you want to better be able to appreciate luxury watches, take a look at the behind-the-scenes of creating and assembling a luxury watch movement. That way, you’ll understand that it’s a very tough challenge. With this said, they simply cannot be compared to cheap quartz watches that are essentially made entirely by machine. The bottom line is, a mechanical watch movement is a beautiful piece of engineering.

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You can buy something truly unique

Cheap and affordable watches are mass-produced in large numbers. Sometimes in the tens of millions. Luxury watches, on the other hand, are produced in much lower quantities. Some luxury watch models are made in limited editions where only a few hundred, maybe even less, will ever be produced. Other luxury watch brands pride themselves in manufacturing highly limited numbers, making each timepiece truly unique.

The result? When you buy a luxury watch, in particular those produced in very limited numbers, you are unlikely to see anyone else wearing them. This gives a greater sense of occasion and makes you feel more special when wearing one. Chances are that you are unlike to see anyone else wearing one.

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 Luxury watches only use the finest materials

The material choices that luxury watch brands make are different from the materials that cheap watch brands use. Whilst steel tends to be the go-to material for most watch brands, the cheapest brands sometimes opt for aluminum and other more affordable alternatives like plastic. Moreover, the finishing and decoration differ greatly.

One reason that explains why luxury watches are so expensive is that the materials they use are much more expensive. For example, a luxury watch brand will never use a gold-colored case. Instead, they will use real solid gold. As you know, gold is not a cheap material. platinum or other materials that may be used.

This ties into another thing which is that luxury watch brands do things a lot differently from cheap watch brands. It’s not the cheapest way to do it, but it is, in their view, the right way to do it.

For example, the case of a luxury watch may be hand-polished to ensure perfection and feature intricate finishing that combines brushed and polished surfaces.

Cheap watches, on the other hand, will never come near the same level of finishing and are almost always done by machine.

The material choices apply to essentially every aspect of the watch and how it is done. For example, whilst cheap watches will often use aluminum bezels, most luxury watch brands opt for ceramic due to its superior properties. It’s more scratch-resistant and it doesn’t fade.

It’s more expensive but it is better.

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Luxury watches carry a rich history

Luxury watches tend to carry far more history and much more interesting backgrounds than other types of watches. An apple watch, for example, is mass-produced in the millions in a factory in china with no appreciation or passion by the person who assembles it.

Luxury watches, on the other hand, are a completely different thing. Luxury watches are made by passionate watchmakers who love their craft. Most luxury watches are manufactured in Switzerland, often in factories that carry a long, rich, and interesting history, and by companies that have worked with watchmaking for many years, sometimes even several centuries.

In addition to this, the specific model may also have an interesting story to tell. For example, the Rolex GMT-Master was first launched in 1954 when PanAm approached Rolex and asked the company to develop a watch that allowed their pilots to keep track of multiple timezones simultaneously as planes started to fly across the Atlantic and across different timezones. If you study and learn about the story of a specific watch, you’ll be able to appreciate it so much more for what it is. And you’ll be able to better understand the historic and important significance that the watch has.

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Luxury watches can be great investments

When we talk about whether or not watches are worth it, we look at the cost of an object and compare it to how much we think it is worth. But in doing so, we also need to factor in the fact that luxury watches never lose their full value. In other words, it shouldn’t be regarded as a pure cost. In fact, some watches can hold their value very well and even appreciate in value over time, making them great investments.

In recent years, a lot of people have started to regard luxury watches as assets and a way to diversify. For example, instead of buying gold, you may buy a luxury watch instead. The great thing is that whilst certain watches hold their value well, you can use them and get enjoyment out of them at the same time. The same thing can not be said about, for example, gold, that you can just look at.

And if you need cash, you can just liquidate your asset.

How well a watch holds its value depends on numerous factors like total production, demand, the specific model, and its popularity.

But brands like Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and Patek Philippe have proven to be the strongest brands in terms of value retention. This has to do with relatively low production and at the same time, a high demand. Historically, the watches from these brands have increased in value over time, making them suitable for someone who wants to invest and diversify their money – all the while they are getting enjoyment by wearing them.

Even if you buy a watch that doesn’t hold its value very well, you’ll still likely be able to sell it for 50 to 70% of its value. In other words, the true cost of buying a luxury watch won’t be its full retail price. Instead, it will be the difference between what you bought it for and what you sold it for. But as mentioned, you may even be luxury and find yourself selling it for the same that you bought it for, or even for more.

Conclusion

So are luxury watches worth it or are they a waste of money? The true answer is that it is up to you to decide. A luxury watch is, as the name suggests, a luxury object. This means that it is over the top and from a practical standpoint not necessary. You’ll be just fine without a luxury watch. But whether a luxury watch is worth the money, to that we would say yes.

They cannot be compared side-by-side next to a cheap watch based on the premises in telling the time. That would be an unfair comparison. Instead, you need to understand what a luxury watch truly is to fully appreciate it. You need to understand the great level of expertise and craftsmanship that goes into making them. And if you can do that, then chances are that you’ll say that a luxury watch is definitely worth it.

If a luxury watch brings you joy and appreciation (which it most likely would, as most people appreciate nice things), then yes, a luxury watch is definitely worth it.