The Importance Of Your Watch Box And Papers: All You Need To Know

I seriously questioned the sanity of an appraiser at Antiques Roadshow when he incremented the valuation of a 1971 Rolex Oyster Cosmograph by a sum of ₹2.5 crore, just because it came with a dainty cardboard box and a few papers. The owner, a United States Air Force veteran, was just floored to learn that his ₹29,000 purchase could fetch him close to a million US dollars. The man just hit the lottery!

Although undeniable the fact that the said watch, a Ref. 6263, multiplied in value by a factor of 2000, here I won’t even bother to reinforce the incredible investment potential of a watch. The ₹2.5 crore number still baffles me and that’s just for some documentation and a box. Such a “full set” purchase comes with undeniable qualitative benefits. It feels more secure and more complete. When you spend obscene amounts of money on a timepiece, it could be driven by an array of motivations. What you are going to do after spending a certain age with it, well, that too could be driven by a number of motivations. In both circumstances, the matter of the watch’s box and papers maintains an imperative stance.

It's easier to find modern collectible watches with boxes and papers than it is for vintage watches. The main reason for this is that watches are now considered part of the collectibles market, so people know that they’re supposed to keep these accessories in their possession. Back when watches were simply everyday tools, that part wasn't so important. So, people threw them out or lost them along the way. It's the same reason why I didn’t keep the box and receipt for the blender I purchased.

Losing Boxes and Papers.
Losing boxes and papers, both on the buying side and the selling side is a blunder of epic proportions. Trust me, you don't want to do this and here we’ll learn when it's going to make the biggest impact on your investment. In a whole swath of errors watch collectors make, this one is probably the most avoidable. I think all of us get this innately. It’s the importance of “full set” watches that are maintained with boxes, warranty documents, manuals, packing stickers, accessories and even dealer-level documentation such as bills of sale and subsequent service receipts. Plus, there are things like the extra bracelet links, alternate straps and clasps. All of these add value.

Here are a few cases where boxes, papers and accessories really make a difference. First, modern watches. When the watch is a recent model, you've got to have everything. With vintage watches, condition is king and dictates, nine times out of ten, what a watch is going to be worth. However, it's not enough by itself to auction a modern watch for top dollar. In the modern era, people know you're supposed to keep the boxed sets so when you don't, it seems outrageous and it will seriously devalue the watch.

The conventions for collecting modern watches, buying and auctioning them, are very different from the vintage realm. Also important, the more collectible the watch, let’s say a Submariner, the more important it is to have perks like original bill of sale, service receipts from subsequent services and original receipt from the vendor, simply to say, all of the boxes, papers and accessories. Why so? Because there are too many Submariners floating around. If you have everything that could conceivably come with that watch from Rolex and its authorized dealer, you've got a little bit of a leg-up or at the very least, you’ve something to prove the watch’s authenticity. With the markets flooded with fakes, the bottom line is that the best examples are going to be the ones with the full set.

Secondly, the more valuable the watch, this becomes a bigger and bigger deal. If a watch priced at ₹3,00,000 is missing its box and papers, you could take off 10%, that’s ₹30,000. It's not a big deal and surely not the end of anything. Such a timepiece would still be an attractive and a fun acquisition whose primary selling point is that it represents good value. When you get into elite timepieces and elite pricing, all of a sudden, it's a different world. Consider something like a Patek Philippe split seconds chronograph, the 5370P. If you lack only the certificate of origin, I’m not talking boxes, papers or the accessories, just the one piece of paper, something that Patek Philippe will not reissue that easily , that watch could easily be worth 30% less. Remember, we’re talking well into six figures here easily. It might even be impossible to auction that watch if you don't have the certificate. That's the kind of difference we're talking about when we get into the realm of elite brands and lost accessories.

Let's talk about when it's smart to buy a watch that does not have a full set. There are really only two occasions. First, a watch you're never going to auction! If you want to buy a Patek Philippe 5370P without the papers, sure, you might get it for very little money relative to what it would auction for with the papers. But if you plan to wear it forever or make it an heirloom, you never have to think about what it would auction for. You're just going to buy and hold. The watch is distinctive and sophisticated enough, so counterfeiting is not really a problem. It's just going to be something you never have the opportunity to auction for decent money.

Second, when the deal is absolutely so sweet, you can't deny it. When you get a ₹1 crore watch for somewhere in the range of ₹50 lakh, please don’t complain. You are getting good value for the money and you’d possibly be able to auction it for exactly what you paid for it. So, if the deal is just too good to be true, counterfeiting is not a problem and there's no questions about the provenance or the condition, then that would be a case where saving ₹5,000,000 is a good argument for buying that watch without the boxes and the papers.

A timepiece you acquire primarily for the sake of wearing must excel in condition, quality and provenance. However, the addition of box and papers is not only a welcome extra, but also a token to present as a proof of the piece’s authenticity. It’s in every way, a credible source of information about the watch. And as something that cannot be simply replaced or replicated, such information once lost, becomes either impossible, expensive or time-consuming to recover.
It however doesn’t make sense to compromise on condition or configuration to acquire a full-set, for it’s only the watch you’re going to wear.