The Cuttings Blog

Whether you’re investing in a luxury watch as a one-off or you want to start a collection, it’s vital to know exactly what you are buying before you buy it. The market is inundated with counterfeit versions of luxury models, and although we all love to save a bit of money where we can, it’s easy to end up with a fake if you’re not familiar with the characteristics of the real thing.

If you’ve seen a deal on a watch, here are a few things to help you decide whether it’s real or fake.

The Appearance

Before you buy a luxury watch you should take a good look at the way it’s made, as this will usually indicate whether it’s counterfeit. For this reason, you should research the make and model of the watch in great detail before you consider buying it, to find out exactly how a real one should look. When inspecting the watch, check for a hallmark if it is a gold watch and look for anything that doesn’t quite match up to the watch’s specifications. Be cautious if the watch feels lighter than it should, as this could indicate that the watch is made with cheaper materials.

Once you’ve inspected the watch’s material and weight, you should then be looking at the more intricate details such as the movement, the engravings and type-faces, and the sound of the watch. If any of these things appear to be “clunky”, be hesitant to buy. The movement, for example, should be a smooth motion, meaning that the watch will not tick loudly like cheaper watches do.

The Paperwork

You should be wary of a luxury watch without any of its original paperwork, as it’s difficult to know the history without it. It may be the case with a vintage watch that it has simply been separated from its paperwork over the years, but you must be able to trust the person selling the watch to you. There are many genuine watches without papers, but they should only be bought from a trusted source with the appropriate experience to check the watch over and verify its authenticity. This can sometimes be a good way to buy a watch as usually they are a little cheaper.

The Seller

As well as researching the watch itself, you should also research the seller before you agree to buy from them. If they are an established seller with good reviews and honest prices then you are on the right track, but if you are still not sure, just ask lots of questions about the watch you have your eye on. A trusted seller will be able to answer them all where they can.

The Price

Luxury watch collecting is an expensive hobby, and if the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. It is much better to buy a slightly more expensive watch than go for the seller with the low prices, only to find that you have purchased a fake.

If you would like to find out more about luxury watches, you can trust the experts at Cuttings. Just give us a call or pop in to one of our branches.