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Watch Value Barometer #5

Vandervenus

One day it is business as usual, and then you suddenly wake up in a world of a killer virus, rising unemployment, bankruptcies left and right and football matches with only a handful of fans, risking huge fines if they open their mouths and accidentally cheer for their team. Welcome to the Summer of 2020. It’s time for another Enicar Watch Value Barometer. Because there is more in life than covid-19.

Since my last blog about Enicar price tags (or estimates), a few interruptions happened. The cosmos reared its ugly head. What are the consequences for us vintage watch collectors? Let’s take a closer look at the current Enicar market and use the good ol’ SWOT-tool to break it down.

STRENGTHS: Vintage Enicar watches are high quality timekeepers. By now, it seems like the vintage watch community has widely accepted this. The in-house made movements are reliable and easy to service (according to the watchmakers I consulted), the EPSA made cases are both stylish and solid and the designs of the chrono’s, GMT’s and divers are distinctive and timeless. The Sherpa models have proven to be quite steady in terms of market prices. Sure, they go up and come down, but they never have hit rock bottom, nor have they reached ridiculous bubble-like heights.

WEAKNESSES: Certain movement types, or vital parts, are getting very, very hard to find. This goes for all 3 GMT movements (AR1126, AR1146, AR166). NOS dials and hands for a number of Sherpa models have been popping up on eBay, but these sources and sellers don’t offer any continuity. This is not a weakness of the watch, but of the brand in general. The current brand name owners don’t supply any after sales service for the watches created before 1987. I doubt if they would even bother (I am choosing my words carefully, don’t want to wake up any lawyers).

Vintage watch expert Eric Wind reaches a large audience with his love for alternative brands (Eric is in the photo that is taking away the view of that marvelous Jet Graph).

OPPORTUNITIES: I have seen an upward shift in prices for collectable Enicars since ‘Time for a change’ has been published. Could it be ‘the book effect’? The book release has had great coverage by a number of websites, magazines, forums and socials and the reprint is now available. Also, vintage watch experts like Eric Wind reach a huge audience with their love for the brand. As a result, the Enicar collectors community is growing. At the same time, Enicar is still somewhat affordable compared to other brands and therefor an interesting diamond in the rough with serious potential investment wise. If you are into investing, that is. If you’re a collector on a budget (like me), it’s getting hard to buy a nice piece without having to loot your kids’ college savings.

THREATS: Covid-19 and other disastrous happenings that shake up the globe and stop people from spending money on their hobbies, or getting out of their houses for that matter. I think it is safe to say that the (vintage) watch market has never before been so disrupted. Key watch events were cancelled for at least a year and some are gone forever. World leading watch groups have seen sales drop with tens of percents. For the Enicar niche market, it is hard to predict what the long term consequences will be. Another kind of threat is the rise of the fakes and frankenwatches. Don’t burn your fingers on a faulty Enicar and always consult a forum or Enicar blog first before you spend your well earned cash.

Back to my barometer: as always, I defined five categories. These represent the most popular Enicar models and the ones I get asked about frequently. Condition is graded in three categories: Very good – mint, average – good and poor – fair. I use Euro in my estimates and I also use a bandwidth.

The Sherpa Graphs

Sherpa Graph Mk I

Sherpa Graph Mk II

Sherpa Graph Mk III

Sherpa Graph Mk IV

Aqua Graph / Jet Graph (MkI versions add 20%)

The other Graphs

 

Valjoux 72 chronograph, Ocean Pearl Interlagos 

Valjoux 72 chronograph, cushion case (Gerhard Mitter)

Valjoux 23 chronograph (for instance Big Eye, not the yacht dial version)

Grapho-Matic

Mantagraph

The Supercompressors 40+ mm

 

Sherpa Ultradive and OPS

Sherpa Super-Dive MkI and II 

Super-Jet Mk I and II

Sherpa Super-Dive MkIII, Super-Jet Mk III (cushion case)

Sherpa Dive (red pointer ring, not sufficient data to evaluate pre-1958 version)

Sherpa Guide (42 mm, long lugs case and cushion case)

The Supercompressors 36 mm

Sherpa Super-Divette and Jet (Jet is approx. 20% more expensive) 

Sherpa Divette

Sherpa GMT and World Time

 

The other Sherpas and collector’s pieces

Sherpa Star Diver

Sherpa Star (37 mm)

Sherpa Memostar: no changes

Sherpa Seapearl 600 (turtle lugs), Healthways

‘Regular’ Sherpa (Date, Day-Date)

Sherpa Electric

 

DISCLAIMER: All photos used are from my personal archive. I don’t want to valuate a specific watch that is not mine. Also, my estimates are not official watch dealer prices, no guaranteed sale gainings and no official asking prices. This Watch Value Barometer is nothing more than my own personal opinion of the current (September 2020) market value of the Enicar watches mentioned. 

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