Page 88 - Esquire (November 2019)

3

Try Pre-owned

DEDICATED VENDORS ARE
MAKING THE SECOND-
HAND MARKET SAFER

n many ways, old watches are
I
like used cars: Their value
varies greatly depending on
their life experiences, and it’s
nigh impossible, as a layman, to
know what’s happened under the Wa t c h e s o f t h e Ye a r
hood. And as with cars, pre-owned
watches “have historically been a M O N T B L A N C
very fragmented and shady indus- H E R I TA G E
try,” says Hamilton Powell of At- M O N O P U S H E R
lanta’s Crown & Caliber. But while C H R O N O G R A P H
carmakers long ago got into the
When Montblanc took over
“certified pre-owned” game, watch the Minerva factory, it
manufacturers have yet to officially hardwired into 150 years
of fine watchmaking. The
stamp any factory-refurbished
Heritage Monopusher released
wares—which is where a pre- this year echoes the elegant
owned vendor like Crown & Cali- chronographs made by
Minerva in the 1940s and
ber (crownandcaliber.com) comes ’50s, with a single button
in, offering a streamlined pro- inside the crown to start and
cess for both sellers and buyers. stop the timing functions.
A slinky Milanese mesh
A seller ships the watch in a pre- bracelet, a favorite of those
paid box, then it’s sold to you, decades, just adds to
the retro feel.
freshly serviced and with a war-
$5,160; montblanc.com
ranty. Most important, a reputa-
ble vendor introduces an innova-
tive new element to buying used:
consistency. “The heartbeat of
our business is data,” says Powell.
“Where watches used to be priced
by a dealer’s gut, our historical da-
tabase ensures you’re getting a fair
Bright Now
price.” The result is a wide selec-
tion of modern watches, but with- Golden Hour Ti m ex
out needing a wing and a prayer to YO U D O N ’ T N E E D M arl in
find a steal, as you would on, say, TO B E A B A L L E R TO Autom ati c,
R O C K S O M E
eBay. Want a solid deal on your W R I ST C A N DY. $259
first Rolex or Panerai? This could H E R E A R E O U R An easy way to get
TO P P I C K S
be the way. —D.T. U N D E R $ 5 0 0 . into a mesh band.

82 November 2019_Esquire