I often say Italians invented watch collecting obsession (although this is just a personal view), Italian collectors have to me unique eyes and tastes for watches whatever they are, whatever the period they come from.
Italy might be one of the most dynamic vintage watch market in Europe, one can see some of the ultimate vintage timepieces to collect there.
An important factor is that many collectors in Italy are also great sellers or even "flippers" for some of them, please point out this is written respectfully, there is no judgement behind this, this is just a fact that I observe for many years.
Let's face the reality, you want to make real money with liquid vintage watches ? 2 brands pop up : Patek and Rolex
Patek is a specific market for specific players with deep wallets, Rolex is more accessible and scalable, the demand is infinite, the equation is just obvious as Rolex itself is obvious.
Let's also keep in mind Italy was one of the first European country to pay interest (and recognition) to vintage Heuer. Some of the greatest ambassadors of the brand have been Italians, some of them are still around, I have a huge respect for what they did and what some of them are still doing.
My feeling is it's much more complicated to manage Heuer sales than Rolex ones (just compare the VRF marketplace section with any other).
I lived the experience you shared with us many times and I must say I still do from time to time with dealers and also with some respectable collectors.
I don't pay attention for a while.
Now vintage Heuer are established as real collectible watches, this is just a fact.
Heuer brings many values that are really important to me (elegance, consistent and proven history, amazing communities, uniqueness are some of them) and the end this is what really counts to me.
Best,
Laurent