One of the most notable recent trends in the watch business is the explosive proliferation of the pre-owned watch business. Watch enthusiasts are on the hunt not just for timepieces with a lower price tag, but also the appeal of being able to buy into brands previously out of reach. Multi-label pre-owned retailers like Crown & Caliber and TrueFacet have caused enough disruption to the marketplace that both industry trade publications like Hodinkee and Revolution have even joined the business. Big name watch brands wisely took notice and in recent years, manufacturers like Vacheron Constantin, F.P. Journe, and Audemars Piguet have started selling their own pre-owned timepieces. Rumors abound that watch conglomerates may soon follow.
Now MB&F is getting in on the game.
MB&F timepieces run well into six figures (and some of their pre-owned watches do as well). But more than that they can be hard to get—the watchmaker manufactures fewer than 300 watches a year. That said, don’t expect their pre-owned watches to be any easier to acquire. Two out of the five timepieces for sale on mbandf.com are already sold. The watchmaker launched its pre-owned vertical on its website with just five “machines,” as founder Max Büsser prefers to call them, including a HM4 Razzle Dazzle (185,000 CHF), a LM1 XIA Hang (82,000 CHF), a HM7 TI Blue (78,000 CHF), a HMX Black (26,000 CHF), and a Moonmachine TI (62,000 CHF). The latter two have already sold. All of the machines are part of a limited edition run with the HM4 Razzle Dazzle existing as just 1 of 8. They cannot yet be purchased online, but rather the inquiring client is redirected to an email to initiate the sale.
The beauty of being able to buy pre-owned from the company itself is, of course, that the timepieces can be refurbished, oftentimes by the very hands that made it in the first place. For MB&F’s pre-owned clientele, the brand provides a thorough cleaning and polishing of the timepiece as well as a check up on its water resistance, movement functions, and time regulation. They will even restore the watch using original parts and will ship the piece anywhere in the world for free. Naturally, buying from the brand itself also certifies its authenticity and assures buyers that it’s not stolen property. In the case of MB&F’s pre-owned watches, the watchmaker certifies the timepieces’ legitimacy and working condition with a 2-year unconditional warranty.
Get your hands on them while you can. Unlike other watch brands, MB&F’s inventory will be limited.
