How To Look After Your Watch

You’ve just bought a beautiful investment piece - a Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin or even a Richard Mille. This individual piece is made to articulate and express your own style, taste, personality, power and even, status in society

When you can’t take your Ferrari into the restaurant you wear your luxury timepiece.

Here are a few tips on how you can maintain your watch’s condition (your watch and wallet will thank you):

1. Keep it in a protected watch case to limit the amount of dust.

2. Know your water resistance.

3. Beware of magnets – don’t leave your watch close to anything that contains a magnet such as speakers, fridge magnets, magnetic clasps on bags and your phone.

4. Ditch the dirt – avoid wearing it at the beach.

5. Keep it out of direct sunlight – prolonged exposure can fade the colours.

6. Protect your watch from shocks.

7. Use a soft damp cloth to give a superficial clean.

8. Leave the soap alone - Unless your watch is very dirty, just use a little water on the cloth and a microfiber cloth to dry it. If it is really bad, take it to a jeweller for ultrasonic cleaning.

9. Avoid getting leather straps wet, as water hastens cracking.

10. Buying a watch is like buying a Car – aim to get it serviced every 5 years by an accredited service or the brand itself. Many luxury brands will re-polish the watch and replace the crystal (if scratched), which can cause controversy on older watches.

Note that collectors pay far more for an unpolished watch that has all its original features. A few scratches are all part of a watch’s story.