Phillips Watches Achieves Most Successful Year in Auction History for the Second Consecutive Year

Phillips Watches Achieves Most Successful Year in Auction History for the Second Consecutive Year

 

Auction Sales Up Nearly 10% Compared to 2021
 

Aurel Bacs, Senior Consultant of Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo, said, “2022 has been another exceptional year for the Watch department at Phillips, and the overall sale results throughout the year demonstrated the watch market is very resilient. In 2022, we achieved a new milestone and set the benchmark yet again for watch auctions across the globe, with an annual total of over US$227 million, marking the highest annual result reached by any auction house’s Watch department, up nearly 10% compared to the previous year. The enthusiasm we saw in our sales was reflected in the results achieved – an unprecedented two-year streak of selling 100% of all watches offered. Besides auction sales, we had many successes in collaborations with distinguished brands and watchmakers such as Laurent Ferrier, Zenith & Kari Voutilainen, Piaget, and Bulgari to release limited-edition versions of fine watches, and our retail destination Perpetual also saw growth in sales from the previous year. Last but not least, new collectors continue to enter the market, with nearly half of all buyers across our watch auctions in 2022 being new to Phillips. We now look forward to many more exciting sales throughout 2023.”

 

KEY STATS FROM 2022 – AUCTIONS

 

• Phillips Watches achieved its most successful year yet again, with an annual auction total of over US$227 million for both live and online sales, marking the highest annual auction sales total achieved by any auction house’s Watch department.
   
• Phillips Watches continued its two-year-long streak of selling 100% of lots offered at auction across Geneva, Hong Kong, and New York – a total of 3,033 watches.
   
• In 2022, Phillips Watches sold 1,737 lots at auction with 22 timepieces selling above US$ 1 million.
   
• 48% of all buyers at auction in 2022 are new to Phillips Watches and 34% of buyers at auction are millennials.
   
• 47% of lots sold in 2022 auctions soaring above their high estimates, an unprecedented industry performance.
   
• Phillips’ Watch sales recorded unprecedented participation from across the world in 2022, with participants from 94 countries.
   
• The team set numerous world auction records across its global salerooms in 2022, notably world records for any A. Lange & Söhne, George Daniels and Roger Smith wristwatch worldwide. Multiple records for references and models by some of the greatest watchmakers also established, remarkably the Patek Philippe Nautilus in gold, Rolex Rainbow Daytona and reference 6264, and F.P. Journe Chronometre Souverain to name just a few.
   
• 95% of lots offered in Phillips’ watch auctions in 2022 received online bids, and 58% of lots sold to online bidders. The total value of watches sold to online bidders was close to US$78 million.
   
• Of the 13 watch auctions held by Phillips in 2022, six were online-only auctions – the most held by Phillips since its Watch department launched in 2015. These online sales attracted around 2,500 participants from around the world.
   
• Across Phillips’ collecting categories, watches saw the most significant participation online. In 2022, there were more than 13,500 online registrations across global sales, a 35% increase year-over-year.
   
• A growing number of new and younger collectors is evidenced by the increase of social media engagement, Phillips Watches saw a 21% year-on-year growth on the number of Instagram followers and a 20% growth in subscribers for its YouTube channel.
   

KEY STATS FROM 2022 – PHILLIPS PERPETUAL

• Perpetual, Phillips’ retail destination for the purchase and sale of fine and important watches that is available both online and through a dedicated boutique, saw an 11% growth in absolute sales volume from the previous year, along with a record highest sales quarter ever which represented an increase of 14% over the previous record set in 2021.
   
• Clients introduced to Phillips through Perpetual purchased a record number of top lots at auction in 2022, including the George Daniels Spring Case Tourbillon which was the most expensive watch sold by Phillips in 2022.
   
• A world record price was set for a Charles Frodsham & Co. Double Impulse Chronometer wristwatch, an independent British watch maker who autonomously designed, manufactured, and constructed the timepieces in the brand’s workshops in England. Perpetual remains the only retail destination to have sold a pre-owned Charles Frodsham wristwatch publicly, selling for £195,000.

 Top 10 lots sold in 2022 (auctions):

Rank	Description	Estimate	Price Achieved	Auction
1	George Daniels, Spring Case Tourbillon. A unique, historically important double sided yellow gold wristwatch with power reserve, day and date.   World record for a wristwatch by a British watchmaker	In excess of CHF1,000,000	CHF4,083,500 US$4,092,075	THE GENEVA WATCH AUCTION: XVI 5-6 November, 2022
2	Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 “Pink on pink”. A pink gold chronograph wristwatch with perpetual calendar, moonphases and pink dial	CHF 1,200,000-2,400,000	CHF3,297,000 US$3,333,926	THE GENEVA WATCH AUCTION: XV 7-8 May, 2022
3	Patek Philippe Ref. 3974, yellow gold minute repeating perpetual calendar wristwatch with moon phases, leap year indication, glossy black lacquered dial, applied Breguet numerals, Calatrava cross logo. Circa 1990 World record for the reference	HK $3,200,000 - 6,500,000/ US$410,000 - 833,000	HK$19,610,000 US$2,498,314	THE HONG KONG WATCH AUCTION: XIV 27-28 May, 2022
4	George Daniels, Anniversary, an extremely rare, spectacular, and historically important platinum co-axial limited-edition wristwatch with date and power reserve indication, bearing serial number “00”, Circa 2019 World record for the model	$500,000 - 1,000,000	US$2,389,500	THE NEW YORK WATCH AUCTION: SIX 11-12 June, 2022
5	Rolex, Daytona Paul Newman Lemon, Ref. 6264. yellow gold chronograph wristwatch with ‘Paul Newman Lemon’ exotic dial, Circa 1969 World auction record for the reference	$600,000 - 1,200,000	US$2,087,000	THE NEW YORK WATCH AUCTION: SIX 11-12 June, 2022
6	Rolex, Ref. 6239. “The Crazy Doc” yellow gold chronograph wristwatch, formerly the property of Eric Clapton CBE   World record for a reference 6239 in yellow gold	Estimate on request	CHF1,724,000 US$1,743,308	THE GENEVA WATCH AUCTION: XV 7-8 May, 2022
7	F.P. Journe, Chronometre Souverain, A unique and historically important platinum wristwatch with power reserve indication, Presented to George Daniels, with signed F. P. Journe letter, Circa 2010 World auction record for the model	$250,000 - 500,000	US$1,482,000	THE NEW YORK WATCH AUCTION: SIX 11-12 June, 2022
8	Patek Philippe Ref. 5723/112R-001, pink gold wristwatch with baguette-cut ruby-set bezel and indexes, chocolate brown dial, retailed by Tiffany & Co. World record for a Nautilus in gold	HK $2,350,000 - 3,900,000/ US$301,000 - 500,000	HK$11,442,500 US$1,457,775	THE HONG KONG WATCH AUCTION: XIV 27-28 May, 2022
9	Patek Philippe Ref. 1503 “The Simon Wiesenthal” stainless-steel wristwatch with black gloss dial and Breguet numerals, originally owned by Simon Wiesenthal and one of two examples known in this configuration World record for the reference	CHF 250,000-500,000	CHF1,361,000 US$1,376,243	THE GENEVA WATCH AUCTION: XV 7-8 May, 2022
10	Patek Philippe, Ref. 2499, yellow gold perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch. Circa 1953	HK$7,800,000 - 15,600,000/ US$1,000,000-2,000,000	HK$10,656,000 US$1,363,968	THE HONG KONG WATCH AUCTION: XV 28-29 November, 2022

 
Images: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/fnyw59ehpyxfvpid0q9cn/h?dl=0&rlkey=yybdl1l1x0xjqxbn42tpsqls6
 

LONDON - Katie Carder, Head of Press, Europe              kcarder@phillips.com                      +44 20 7901 7938
NEW YORK - Jaime Israni, Public Relations Director, Americas  jisrani@phillips.com              +1 212 940 1398