In this story6 chapters
The luxury watch is the most personal thing a wealthy person buys. It is worn every day, chosen rather than gifted, and often kept for life. This is who buys them in 2026, where, and why.
The size of the market
Capgemini’s World Wealth Report 2026 counts 25.3 million millionaires worldwide, holding $98.3 trillion between them. Their number grew by almost two million in 2025 on the back of strong equity markets. Above them, Altrata counts 556,850 people worth $30m or more.
These are the buyers of Swiss watches above a few thousand pounds. The Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry recorded exports of CHF 25.6bn in 2025, down 1.7% for a second year, and CHF 17.24bn in the first eight months of 2026, up 1.7%. Morgan Stanley estimates that Rolex alone accounts for about a third of it.
A younger buyer
The most important change is age. Deloitte’s 2025 Swiss Watch Industry Study surveyed 6,500 consumers. About a third said they were likely to buy a pre-owned watch within a year, and the figure ran to 40% of millennials and Gen Z, against 20% of baby boomers.
Younger buyers research online, buy pre-owned without stigma and care about provenance. Rolex has followed them. Its certified pre-owned channel sold more than $530m in 2025, up from an estimated $319m the year before, by Morgan Stanley’s figures.
Where the buyers are
The United States
The US is the largest single market, taking 17% of Swiss exports in 2025. It has also been the most disrupted. A 39% tariff from August 2025 cut exports to the US by about 56% in September. The rate fell to a 15% ceiling in November 2025, to 10% in February 2026 and to 12.5% in July 2026.
Asia
China has weakened. Swiss exports there fell 12.1% in 2025, and to Hong Kong by 6.5%. Asia-Pacific still produced the fastest growth in millionaires, up 9.4% in 2025, which suggests buying has shifted to travel and to the pre-owned market rather than disappeared.
The Gulf
The UAE was one of the few major markets to grow in 2025, with Swiss exports up 3.5%. Dubai remains the Gulf’s watch capital, with deep authorised and pre-owned markets side by side.
Europe and the UK
Exports to the UK were flat in 2025, up 0.1%. Europe’s millionaire population grew 6.5%.
Interactive · The ledger
Boutique price against market price
What the references that hold value cost new, and what they sell for on the secondary market.
| Reference | Retail | Market | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patek Philippe Aquanaut 5167A WatchCharts, Oct 2026 | US$27,255 | US$69,700 | +156% |
| Patek Philippe Nautilus 5811/1G WatchCharts, Oct 2026 | US$82,021 | US$175,000 | +113% |
| Rolex Daytona 126500LN Loupe, Apr 2026 | US$16,900 | US$34,783 | +106% |
| Audemars Piguet Royal Oak 16202ST Loupe; retail as listed by dealers | US$40,100 | US$76,040 | +90% |
| Rolex Submariner Date 126610LN WatchCharts, Sep 2026 | US$11,350 | US$13,732 | +21% |
| Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional Dealer listings, Aug 2026; pre-owned $5,000–6,500 | US$6,800 | US$5,750 | −15% |
What they buy
Value concentrates in three brands. EveryWatch data shows Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet hold more than half of all secondary-market value, nearly $10bn. Patek watches traded at an average 15.4% above retail in June 2026, Rolex 9.8% and AP 3%. Most other brands trade below list.
The wealthy buyer is therefore choosing between two kinds of watch. One is a store of value that can be worn. The other is a pure expression of taste, from independent makers and smaller maisons, that will be kept rather than sold.
On the marketNeptune, Interiors by MouawadRiyadh, Saudi ArabiaFrom £609,000See the developmentWhy they buy
- Identity. A watch says what its owner values, quietly and every day.
- Heritage and craft. Many buyers collect movements and makers, not logos.
- Value retention. The leading references hold value, and some grow it.
- Portability and privacy. Few assets of this value fit on a wrist and cross borders without paperwork.
The buyer’s next purchase
The same buyers own homes in more than one country, and choose them the same way: scarcity, provenance and the confidence that value will hold. Our advisers work with them on property in Thailand, Malaysia, the UK, Spain and the Gulf.
