Hype, money and lies | What I hate about the watch industry

The watch industry isn’t what it used to be. Hype-driven markets, overpolished vintage pieces, and an obsession with flipping for profit have taken over-pushing real collectors and true enthusiasts to the sidelines.
I’ve been in this space for years, and I’ve seen it all. Today, I’m breaking down what’s wrong with the watch industry, why modern collecting feels more like a stock market than a passion, and how the uniformity of it all is killing originality.
This isn’t about bashing anyone-it’s about calling out the reality of a market that’s lost sight of what actually matters. If you’re in it just for the money, you’re missing the whole point.
Let’s talk about it.
📩 Drop your thoughts in the comments-agree, disagree, or somewhere in between.
#watchcollecting #luxurywatches #vintagewatches #watchmarket #watchcommunity #horology #wristwatch
WATCHES FEATURED
02:12 Wittnauer Professional 242T Valjoux 72 with Strong Case
03:38 Rolex Air King Date Two Tone Xerox
04:20 Rolex Tuxedo Precision Dustproof Dennison 30.2mm
05:32 Piaget Automatic Cal 12P1 Ref. 12343 Onyx Dial
06:20 Omega Seamaster 300 166.024 Ref. 166.024
07:26 Omega Geneve 166.041 1969 Red Accents 34mm
08:37 Longines Conquest Sunray Blue Dial
09:36 Omega Ladies Seamaster Professional 300m
10:38 Rolex Oysterdate 6294 Basket Weave Black-Green Dial 1953
11:42 Cartier Vendome 8100 1990's 18k Yellow Gold 30mm
12:53 Omega Speedmaster 3210.51 Reverse Panda
13:54 Vacheron Constantin Teardrop Lugs 35.6mm 1950 Cal P454/5B
14:55 Oris Aquis Date Relief
15:52 Tudor Heritage Black Bay 79220N
16:53 Tudor Pelagos M25600TB-0001
17:52 Cartier Ceinture PM
18:49 Breitling Navitimer 806 Gold Plated Box Papers 1970
19:50 Carl F. Bucherer Manero 10919.08 Flyback Chronograph
21:47 Rolex Submariner 5513
22:48 Rolex GMT Master Rootbeer 1675 1973 Two Tone
V I D E O S T O W A T C H N E X T :
Best Luxury Watches in the World • • STOP Wasting Your Hard...
All the watches I buy on a weekly basis • I Bought a Rolex Bart Simpson 5513 - ...
What to know when buying and selling vintage watches
• Vintage vs New Watches: Which is Better?
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⌚ Buy Vintage Luxury Watches - www.timemercha...
📷 Follow Us on Instagram - / timemerchants
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[@neil4701]

Your channel is a breath of fresh air amongst all of the repetitive hype on KZbin - thank you!

[@kevinh5349]

My beefs about the online markets: 1. charging thousands for watches that have run-of-the-mill ETA or Sellita movements in them. 2. Listing watches as having an automatic movement, and nothing else said about it. 3. Listing a watch as having a, for example, Selllita movement, but not mentioning which grade it is. 4. Never listing the max wrist size it can fit (I have 8+ inch wrists). 5. Expecting me to shell out thousands for a watch of which they have three pictures, one of which if the frigging box it comes in. I can find lots of watches with the SW200-1 for 500 bucks. Why does Bell & Ross think I should pay somewhere near 4,000 for their models? Look at counterfeits. They look identical to the real thing for a few hundreds. So obviously the external piece parts are fairly inexpensive. Does that mean the unnamed "automatic" movement is what costs the extra 8,000? Of course there are expenses, marketing, inventory, profit, etc. but you get the point. I could go on - these things have really soured me on the industry.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@kevinh5349 100%. A lot of the industry expects people to buy without asking questions. The worst is drug dealers buys buss down watches and expecting a profitable return when the watch dealer made 2x on the watch. Same with B&R, Hublot and everyone else using "in-house" custom rotor sellita movements. I call these scams. If you pay low enough 2nd hand, enjoy it for a while and sell it for a small loss it becomes bearable. But paying 10k and losing 70-75% is not fun for anyone.

[@estatesla]

Go where your money is appreciated.

[@AndreNavas-m6u]

One of the best and most important watch channels that I follow. I always learn something from Cris.

[@gavinwhite9743]

People buying watches to wear, or as a collector hunting a rare piece for his collection is a great return to normality. Perhaps the crazy spike of 3 years ago helped inject some interest to the watch category away from the smart watch to a wider audience. Great video.

[@Roy-vh9rp]

Interesting thoughts and insights! What are your thoughts on two of my favorite watches - the Bathyscaphe with the 1315 movement and the SeaQ with the 36-13 movement?

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@Roy-vh9rp both are very well designed and quality is there. Blancpain has raised its prices beyond the market treshold of spending habits on the brand but that's my 2 cents. Is the GO a good brand? Absolutely. Most of people just don't know either of the brands and I find them a bit too big for everyone to wear. If those brands would concentrate more on 37-40mm dive watches it would be much better. I cannot wear any of their thick/large case designs and over 50% of the WW population is small/smaller er than me. Blancpain has proven many times that they can design slim cases in the past with quality movements..... They should go back at the drawing board.

[@tachibanaukyo]

appreciate the honesty, i like that about you and your channel

[@DonnaIsabella]

Very interesting and honest conversation Cris! Keep them coming 👍🏻😍

[@Tourtiere34]

I certainly agree that craftmanship and expertise should be paid for. I just don't think most people can afford it.

[@wicked-witch-of-the-west]

Watch market is dead

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@wicked-witch-of-the-west No it's not. I make a living out of it....

[@ronaldnixon8226]

Long live the watch market

[@Fred-rg5vw]

Would be interesting to hear more about what constitutes quality.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@Fred-rg5vw Ouf, lots of videos had negative comments about that in the past 6 months... please have a look at those on my channel. People think they are getting an horological marvel at under 1k... it is simply impossible to make. Human touch is expensive. When a home painter with all his licenses costs 50-80$ an hour++, how could a watchmaker that spends hundreds or thousands of expert hours making a watch charge sub minimal wage? It is a work of patience and of love, but you need to get paid for it. Simple.

[@Fred-rg5vw]

@timemerchantsmtl I will look further into your vids cheers. I and I'm sure many others appreciate you giving us your opinions / explanations.

[@kevinh5349]

I'll never do vintage. Too many "touched up' as you say, too many Frankenwatches out there. One has to pretty much an expert not to get taken to the cleaners.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@kevinh5349 There are a lot of good dealers out there. A lot of people are afraid like you but the frustrating part is laser welding nowadays. There are some dealers that have everything recut and call it a day. Those watches are vintage but buyers are happy to wear a watch that looks new without stressing for previous dings. That is so wrong. The point of buying vintage is to have those original dings and show authenticity.

[@Bu-22]

To me vintage doesn’t necessarily have to be completely untouched. There’s a level of touch up if done minimally and done well that for me is acceptable. IMO as long as the seller fully discloses what has been done to the watch, then that’s fine. In the end it’s the buyers’ preference whether he/she wants all the dings, wants a light polish, or refresh, or a complete overhaul and a brand new looking watch, as long as they know what they’re getting.

[@timemerchantsmtl]

@@Bu-22 polishing is bad. Very bad. Too many watches are touched up and change hands without further disclosure. They will end up in auctions listed as fresh to market, untouched, barely worn. I will not talk about what I know but everything is good for many to make a buck. Some make millions this way.

[@Bu-22]

@@timemerchantsmtlSo vintage watches that weren’t so well taken care of by the original owners with corrosion on the hands, banged up case, non working movement, missing crown, would you rather them just go to junk or restored and given a new life for someone else to enjoy? My point is as long as the true condition of the watch is disclosed and the price is reflective of that then that’s fine. I’m not necessarily talking about highly collectible vintage watches going for 5 or 6 or 7 digits at auction houses, with those, unpolished cases, all original parts matter a lot, and could be a difference of 10s to 100s of thousands of dollars. There are tons of vintage watches out there that maybe someone starting out can get into inexpensively, where for a few hundred bucks to a couple of thousands, I don’t think completely untouched condition is really crucial, but again with full disclosure.