A new study has revealed that there are more than 23 million counterfeit watches circulating in the US market alone, and nearly one in 10 Americans (9 percent) have purchased one.
These are the main findings of a survey by Watchfinder & Company, which specializes in the resale of vintage watches. At least half of all luxury watches sent to Watchfinder last year were counterfeit or contained counterfeit parts and were Rolexes.
The survey also found that nearly half of the counterfeit items purchased cost $500 dollars or more, yet a majority of Americans (58 percent) said they would still prefer to pay more for an authentic item. Meanwhile, 15 percent of counterfeit watches broke after just a short amount of use.
New York tops the list of US cities with the most counterfeit watches in circulation today, accounting for about 20 percent of the total number, followed by Los Angeles (15 percent) and Chicago (11 percent).
Watchfinder says it is on a mission to campaign against counterfeit watches, urging “pre-owned merchants, retailers and marketplaces to clarify and publicly declare their authentication policies, procedures and credentials Is.”
Its survey found that 59 percent of respondents said they found it challenging to purchase legitimate designer items beyond dedicated brand retailers.
“Due to advances in technology and access to technology, including 3D printers and CNC machines, scammers are now able to create more convincing replicas than ever before,” the company said.
“This, combined with the wealth of knowledge accumulated over the years by counterfeit manufacturers, means that ‘super-fakes’ are being produced with increasing aesthetic accuracy.”
WatchFinder’s own authenticators were able to easily identify about 80 percent of counterfeits at first glance only five years ago, whereas now the situation is reversed, with 80 percent requiring closer inspection.
Game launched to help consumers
To help customers identify fake watches, WatchFinder has launched an interactive online game, designed to help them identify fake luxury watches by teaching them the difference between real and fake watches. Asks to do.
There are three types of counterfeit watches to be wary of – completely fake watches, legitimate watches that are partly made up of fake parts – mainly bracelets or links, dials and clasps – and finally ‘Frankenwatches’, where All parts are made of genuine different watches of the same type.
The Frankenwatch is one of five counterfeit watches purchased in the US, and recently made headlines when a Franken-Omega sold for $3.1 million at auction, and is believed to belong to Maroon 5 lead singer Adam Levine. That they were fooled by a fake Rolex. Daytona.
Arjen Van de Waal, chief executive of WatchFinder, said: “Sadly, it is no surprise to see how many people are being tricked into buying counterfeit goods, especially because they are not as easy to spot as you might think. Let’s think.”
“Equally worrying is how the rise of counterfeit goods is impacting the pre-owned sector. Our research shows that 54 percent of Americans who have been convicted of counterfeiting now say they will never purchase a pre-owned vehicle again.