Easy Alternative to Auction House

British dealers in antique gold and valuable watches are travelling through Europe buying all vintage watches, antique jewellery and diamonds.  Their holy grail is a stainless steel Patek Philippe from the 1920s.

AT THE WEEKEND they sell their antique jewellery on Portobello Road, the world famous antique market in Notting Hill, London.  The rest of the week Morne Botes, his wife Shani Petzer, brother Ewil Botes and wife Carmen and his colleague, Christopher Walsh, scour Europe with a suitcase full of crisp euros looking for gold and rare watches.

Amsterdam is one of the last stops in the Netherlands for Roadshow EU (www.roadshowEU.com), as Botes calls his travelling watch company.  The name comes from the Antiques Roadshow, he explains, that’s the British equivalent of the television programme “Kunst en kitsch”.

The Dutch tour began four months ago.  Since then Botes and his colleagues have seen every corner of the country.  A high point was Eindhoven where, to their surprise, the dealers were offered dozens of gold Omegas within a few days.  Without exception the suppliers were former employees of Phillips wanting to sell the gold watch with which the bulb manufacturer used to thank its pensioners for their commitment and loyalty. This is because watch parts are not available for most watches before 1970, and to repair them are very costly. Botes has a watch maker with 50 years of experience in London who services and repairs all the watches they buy. “We buy all vintage watches, even broken, and then use them as parts to restore other”.

Botes’ customers are mainly middle-aged or older.  They still have a watch in the cupboard and are curious about the value.  A watch is often handed over with a full history of its origin.

Roadshow EU is an easy alternative to Auction Houses. Auction Houses charge high commission and you still have to pay charges even if your items are unsold. The Roadshow value your items immediately and pay cash.

Roadshow EU gets information from the police about particular stolen watches.  “This is why we choose good quality Hotels,” explains Botes.  “There are cameras everywhere and security is important to us.  We have good contact with the local police.”

At the end of the Dutch tour Botes claims to be satisfied with business.  “I’ve noticed that the Dutch are very friendly.  They’re satisfied with a good price”. 

The Mecca of the watch market is Austria where the ladies queue up in fur coats and masses of gold jewellery.  “There’s a lot of money there,” says Botes enthusiastically, “But Liechtenstein, one of the richest countries in the world, is very disappointing.”

What does the watch dealer dream of buying one day.  Botes reaches for the catalogue on the table in front of him and shows the picture of a stainless steel Patek Philippe watch made in the 1920s.  

“Only a few dozen of them were made.  Then the manufacturer switched to gold.”   The catalogue value of the watch is 1.4 million euros.

“And, you know, most owners probably have no idea that they own this watch.  The thought that one of them is lying in a kitchen drawer somewhere is enough to drive you mad.”