More and more watch lovers are choosing to purchase their new timepiece online. What’s the explanation behind this movement towards the digitalization of watchmaking?

10 years ago, it was impossible for a watch lover to contemplate buying their dream watch on the Internet: limited choice, concerns about payment, delivery and the guarantee… But nowadays, the range of options available has blossomed, and buying online has become part of everyday life, especially with regards to clothing and accessories, spurred on by e-commerce sites like Zalando and Zappos.

In terms of watches, a recent study by the Deloitte agency shows that online retail is now the second priority of senior executives in the watchmaking industry, just behind the development of new products (The Deloitte Swiss Watch Industry Study 2017: It’s all about digital).

So what are the reasons for this change in consumer behavior, from buying almost exclusively in-store to higher and higher rates of online purchases, even in a sector as traditional as watchmaking?

Many people wonder how there can be such a big difference in price between watches fitted with the same movement. Understanding the price of a watch requires analyzing the production costs of each component as well as the mark-ups applied. In this article, we will explain how to assess the quality-price ratio of your dream watch.