Luxury brands and auction houses develop closer bond to promote heritage and timeless value

Luxury maisons and auction houses don’t always see eye to eye. However, for the past few years, the ties between heritage brands and auctioneers have become closer than ever because of their collaboration on promoting history, savoir faire and timeless value.

While luxury brands and auction houses – which represent predominantly secondary market sales – often butt heads over turf wars, prospects are bright for both parties to collaborate. “More brands, especially niche labels, [have started] to embrace auction houses in the past few years,” says Frederic Watrelot, who heads Christie’s Hong Kong’s watches department. “Even more [established houses] are seeing the benefits [of auctions].”

One such example is the much buzzed-about Naissance d’une Montre School Watch, the star lot for Christie’s upcoming Hong Kong sale. The prototype took watchmaker Michel Boulanger five years to finish, and is entirely handmade, handpolished and crafted from sketch. The project, initiated by Greubel Forsey and Philippe Dufour, is particularly noteworthy because instead of distributing the important piece through regular retail channels – though an additional series of 10 watches will retail for 450,000 Swiss francs (HK$3.62 million) after the auction – Greubel Forsey will partner with Christie’s to maximise exposure to the media and clients.

“Auction is an interesting dynamic,” Stephen Forsey says. “We wish to generate as much fund and noise as possible for the project.” Watrelot says: “It’s all about leveraging [on our resources] and promoting each other. We also provide exposure to the watchmakers and promote the savoir faire of traditional watchmaking.”

The collaboration aims to preserve the technique and know-how of traditional watchmaking. The proceeds and Christie’s premium will be used to support the project.

This preservation of savoir-faire is key, because for today’s consumers, the spotlight is no longer only on the latest collections but also heritage pieces. Michael Friedman, Audemars Piguet’s historian, says that collectors of modern and vintage pieces are overlapping. “We are definitely seeing an increase in vintage-oriented collectors acquiring more modern watches and modern watch collectors acquiring more vintage [pieces],” he says. “I think it’s an increase of appreciation. Owners of a contemporary piece also look for its vintage counterpart which inspired the new style.”