@jaeger-lecoultre
eBay sold more than 200,000 luxury watches in 2020.
Rolex sales increased by 4% compared to 2019.
There were over 1.2 million daily live listings on average for watches in 2020.
With nearly 8 million luxury watch listings created in 2020, eBay delivers additional payment features for watch
transactions over $10,000.
eBay, one of the largest luxury watch marketplaces in the world, is adding escrow to marketplace payment offerings
for luxury watches. This additional payment option allows buyers and sellers an added convenience via trusted third party Escrow.com, holding funds securely until the transaction is complete. Benefiting both parties in the transaction process, escrow is now available to those buying and selling luxury watches over $10,000, expanding the payment options for luxury watch enthusiasts in order to foster an even more seamless experience.
“We are changing the way people buy and sell luxury items on eBay,” said Tirath Kamdar, General Manager of Luxury at eBay. “When it comes to high value watches and other significant purchases, consumers expect additional assurances. eBay is committed to providing the best experience, from start to finish, and our new offerings will continue to deliver on that promise.”
There’s been a tremendous surge in enthusiasm for high value collectibles as consumers expand their investment
opportunities. eBay is constantly introducing platform and product enhancements to improve the buying and selling
experience, creating a seamless process for transactions on premiere brands like Patek Philippe, Richard Mille,
Audemars Piguet, and Hublot, which were some of the most coveted luxury watches in 2020. Since launching its
Authenticity Guarantee last year, more than 7,000 luxury watches priced at $10K+ were sold on eBay. Now, with the
introduction of escrow, eBay continues to make shopping and selling high value items like collectible timepieces
convenient and simplified.
“As a long-time leader in the luxury watch space with more than 1.2 million daily live listings, eBay offers an unmatched selection of timepieces — from rare, vintage watches to new styles from coveted brands like Rolex, Omega, Tag Heuer and more,” said Charis Márquez, Vice President of Fashion, eBay. “We’ve seen a tremendous uptick in interest for luxury watches this past year, with more than 22 million site searches for Cartier, and more than 15 million for Tag Heuer. Escrow joins Authenticity Guarantee as eBay’s response to that growing appetite.”
@eBay.com/luxurywatches
How It Works
Enhancing the secure payment suite by partnering with Escrow.com, the most licensed online escrow company, this
multi-step enhancement offers the eBay community of buyers and sellers another way to securely transact on watches $10,000 or more, with no processing fees. The streamlined service requires minimal steps to ensure a swift transaction process:
Getting started: At checkout, if a shopper decides to purchase a qualifying luxury watch using escrow, they will be directed from eBay to Escrow.com’s website where they will receive step-by-step instructions for creating an account.
Both buyers and sellers must have an account in order to send and receive payments; it is a one-time process and all data is privately shared between Escrow and the buyer or seller.
Transaction process: The buyer funds an account via wire transfer or ACH electronic check, which is managed by Escrow.com as an intermediary. Funds are released by the third party to the seller once the item is received by the buyer in the condition described in the listing and terms of the transaction agreement are met to the satisfaction of both parties. They are protected against fraudulent customers through verification checks and payment being held by a third party in case of a return allowing sellers 5 days to inspect the merchandise and release funds to customers if the merchandise matches the original condition.
Item inspection and returns: After receiving their watch from the authenticator, the buyer will have up to seven days to inspect and examine the watch before accepting the item. Once accepted, or if the seven-day inspection period has passed, returns will not be available. In the event of a return, the watch is shipped back to the third party for verification and funds are then released to the customer if the merchandise matches the original condition.
Nearly 80,000 new, pre-owned and vintage watches are marked with the Authenticity Guarantee badge on eBay.com, comprising an inventory of fine watches from brands like Rolex, Patek Philippe, Omega, Audemars Piguet and more.
Each watch sold for $2,000 or more, marked with the Authenticity Guarantee badge on the listing, undergoes a
rigorous third-party inspection by Stoll & Co., the leading provider of watch repair services, ensuring the timepieces are authentic and as described. Escrow joins Authenticity Guarantee as another way eBay is evolving the buying and selling experience for eBay’s community of luxury watch enthusiasts.
