don't believe the hype it's a sequel

: The day that we have been waiting for has come and gone, and I
: wanted to share a few additional thoughts before signing off. It
: has been a memorable day for our community, a day that we are
: likely to discuss and analyze for the next several weeks and
: months. We are probably too close to the auction to put it into
: proper perspective, but let me give it a try, with the
: acknowledgement that this is especially difficult, not having
: been in the auction room today.

: A Triumph of Promotion (and Perfection). I believe that the
: strong prices achieved today were the result of a fantastic
: promotional campaign by Arno, Bonhams and TAG-Heuer. We can ask
: ourselves how two bidders went to the $70,000 mark for the PVD
: Monaco, or near the $47,000 mark for the Chronomatic Autavia
: ("Siffert"), but these bidders didn't just wander into
: the auction room by chance. Arno and Paul introduced our beloved
: Heuers to a new audience, using multiple channels (magazines,
: blogs, events, etc.), and some fantastic imagery from the glory
: years of motorsports. Of course, this auction was much more than
: a promotional triumph; these watches are the best of the best, a
: collection of near-perfect watches that Arno meticulously
: assembled and documented over the years. We have all seen Panda
: Carreras, 2446C Skippers and the colorful Camaros . . . what we
: saw today are the values of the very best samples of these
: watches. We saw the premium that promotion achieves for
: perfection.

: The Value of Motorsports. A quick review of the auction results
: tells me that the tie-in to motorsports paid a real premium. The
: two Monzas fetched huge premiums over any prices that we have
: seen previously, while the Calculators may have been laggards .
: . . indeed, there is much more excitement about the racetracks
: than the scientific laboratories. People would rather time laps
: that chemical reactions, and the Monzas and Carreras seem to
: have earned the premium from the motorsports connection.

: The Watches that Got the "Ink" Drew the Cash. A quick
: review of the results also tells me that the watches that were
: featured during the promotion of the auction achieved the top
: prices. We saw the Carrera 1158 CHN as the poster child for the
: auction (cover of catalog and brochure); as we walked into the
: Bonhams previews we saw banners with the Chronomatic Autavia
: ("Siffert"); the Hodinkee picks all did very well.
: These pieces became the icons of the auction, and the bidders
: wanted them . . . it's that simple.

: Steve McQueen Is Cooler Than "Polished Steel Hands with
: Squared Ends" or a "Brushed Metallic Finish" . As
: Rich pointed out in an earlier message, people paid up for
: "the watch that Steve McQueen wore in Le Mans", but
: were relatively unimpressed by the scarcity of a
: "Transitional" watch that has polished steel hands
: with squared ends. Imagine the winner telling his friends about
: his triumph at the auction; would he brag that he had won
: "McQueen's Monaco" or a "Transitional
: Monaco"? Several lots demonstrated clearly that scarcity
: itself will not be valued above "curb appeal". Perhaps
: scarcity is more valued by the enthusiast who owns 50 Heuers,
: and is adding numbers 51 and 52; people buying their first few
: Heuers are not so enthusiastic about having the super scarce
: ones.

: Is This a Good Thing? People are already asking whether the very
: strong results of the Haslinger auction will be good or bad for
: our community, but this seems like an easy question to answer.
: Members of our community have a lot of knowledge; we also have a
: lot of watches; we do not need to bemoan the fact that we may
: not have as much disposable income as some of today's bidders.
: The fact that today's bidders have marked up today's prices of
: the very best vintage Heuers does not seem like a bad
: development. Yes, we may see some new sellers asking for some
: very high prices, but I won't blame the Bonhams bidders for
: that. Someone may list a Carrera Ref 1158 CHN for $30,000, or
: the Easy Rider for $7,000, but I expect that these watches will
: continue to change hands at some fraction of these prices.

: These are just a few quick thoughts, looking at the results of the
: auction. I am confident that members of our community who were
: in the auction room will be better able to explain the results.
: I look forward to seeing their views.

: Thanks to everyone who contributed to what I believe will be
: remembered as a great day for our brand and for our community.

: Jeff