Prices for pre-owned Omega watches have experienced a decline over the past month, despite the brand’s prominent role as the official timekeeper of the Paris Olympics. According to data from the Bloomberg Subdial Watch Index, market prices for Omega watches, a subsidiary of Swatch Group AG, fell by nearly 1% in the last 30 days.
In contrast, indexes for pre-owned watches from other luxury brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Cartier, and Tudor have seen price increases during the same period. Breitling watch prices remained relatively stable, according to the data.
Swatch Group officials have not provided a comment on the price drop.
The decline in Omega’s watch prices is notable given the extensive exposure the brand received as the official timekeeper of the Paris Olympic Games. Omega’s branding was prominently displayed at event venues and on television throughout the competition. The brand’s visibility was heightened by key moments, including Noah Lyles’ gold medal win in the men’s 100-meter sprint, where he wore an Omega Speedmaster Apollo 8 Dark Side of the Moon watch, and Armand Duplantis’ pole vaulting gold and world record, achieved while wearing an Omega Aqua Terra watch. Former James Bond actor Daniel Craig also generated buzz by sporting a new, unreleased Omega Seamaster model during the Games.
Despite these high-profile endorsements, the Bloomberg Subdial Watch Index, which tracks the 50 most traded watch models, showed a modest overall increase in used watch prices of less than 1% last month. This follows a period of stagnation after a significant downturn that began in April 2022. Over the past six months, the index has dropped approximately 1.3%, and around 5.5% over the past year, according to Subdial, a UK-based watch trading platform.
The used luxury watch market had seen a surge in prices during the post-pandemic period, driven by low interest rates, cryptocurrency gains, and increased spending as consumers emerged from lockdowns. However, demand has waned as higher lending costs, inflation, and a shift in discretionary spending towards travel and dining have affected the market.
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