How to Turn Luxury Watches Into Wealth | Dan Pascone with Erich Wolters | Podcast #30

Posted on August 11, 2025 by Dan Pascone

Episode TL;DR

In this episode: Dan Pascone sits down with luxury watch expert and Timely Souls founder Erich Wolters to unpack how high-end timepieces can be far more than status symbols. They walk through how to buy smart on the secondary market, when certain models can rival traditional investments, and how ultra–high-net-worth individuals are using watches for asset security, cross-border wealth transfer, and tax efficiency.

Who this is for: Business owners, high earners, and watch-curious professionals who like the idea of owning something beautiful that can also be a disciplined store of value – and who want to avoid the costly mistakes most people make buying luxury watches.

Key Takeaways

Most luxury watches depreciate immediately – a few don’t. Roughly 99% of luxury models fall in value as soon as you walk out of the boutique and then plateau. A small slice of Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Audemars Piguet models are the exception and can trade at significant premiums.
Buy on the secondary market, not from the boutique. Erich’s rule of thumb: let someone else take the initial hit. Many high-end pieces can be bought at 40–50% below MSRP pre-owned, then hold value remarkably well if cared for.
Intent matters: status, utility, or strategy? Clients come to Erich for style and status and for strategy: asset security, tax efficiency, and “borderless” wealth they can literally wear on their wrist.
Watches can act like a safety asset. Prices for precious-metal pieces (gold, platinum, etc.) often move in tandem with spot gold, as capital rotates out of volatile markets into tangible, portable stores of value.
There’s a real tax and planning play. Sophisticated investors and business owners are using watches to manage gains (e.g., crypto profits), reduce year-end tax exposure, and hold high-value, non-titled assets inside their businesses.
Form follows function and lifestyle. Dive watches, aviation watches, and racing watches all have specific technical features—beyond the marketing—that map to real use cases and often to the owner’s personal story and network.

Key Moments

00:02 – Dan opens the show and frames the mission of Making Sense of Your Money.
00:44 – Introducing guest Erich Wolters, founder of Timely Souls and “chief watch guy.”
02:10 – Erich’s path from alternative assets (cards, cars, sneakers) into luxury watches.
03:34 – How exotic cars and watches overlap in engineering, design, and networking value.
05:28 – The Timely Souls model: buying status and style and using timepieces for asset security, wealth transfer, and tax efficiency.
06:04 – Boston Consulting Group’s research on luxury watches outperforming the S&P 500 over a 10–15 year window.
08:18 – Why 99% of luxury watches depreciate instantly – and how to buy value-based watches smartly.
09:18 – The Rolex Daytona example: limited supply, high demand, and instant price jumps on the secondary market.
10:28 – How tariffs, supply constraints, and MSRP increases are pushing luxury watch prices higher.
13:35 – Matching watch type (diver, aviation, racing) to lifestyle and use case.
14:43 – A technical “under the hood” look at features like tachymeter scales and helium escape valves.
17:13 – Watches as networking tools, conversation starters, and wearable art.
18:28 – Macro forces: gold prices, safety assets, and why some pieces track the gold market.
23:27 – Three advanced uses: asset security, tax efficiency, and borderless wealth.
23:53 – The crypto example: moving BTC gains into a $70K Rolex and changing your tax exposure.
25:35 – Business owners, year-end taxes, and adding watches to the books.
26:18 – Moving hundreds of thousands of dollars across borders via high-end watches.
28:06 – Lightning round: food, favorite watches, quotes, and advice to his younger self.
30:11 – Where to find Erich and Timely Souls for inventory and thought leadership.

Episode Summary

In Episode 30 of the Making Sense of Your Money podcast, Dan talks with Erich Wolters, founder of Timely Souls, about how luxury watches can be both passion pieces and purposeful components of a wealth strategy. Erich shares how he came up through alternative assets—sports cards, vintage tobacco cards, photography, and exotic cars—before becoming fascinated with high-end timepieces and building a business around advising clients on them.

They start by reframing what a luxury watch really is when viewed as an asset. Drawing on Boston Consulting Group research, Erich explains that a curated “basket” of certain Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Audemars Piguet models has outperformed the S&P 500 over a 10–15 year period, and why those models behave differently from the 99% of watches that depreciate as soon as they leave the boutique. His core advice: avoid buying new at retail except in very specific cases, and instead let someone else take the initial 40–50% hit, then buy smart on the secondary market.

From there, they explore how to align watch choices with lifestyle (divers, pilots, racing, etc.), and why technical features like tachymeter scales and helium escape valves are more than just marketing. Erich also highlights the soft benefits: watches as networking tools, conversation starters, and wearable art whose skeleton dials, movements, and finishes signal identity and taste.

The conversation then moves into advanced territory: watches as a safety asset and a tool for tax and cross-border planning. Erich outlines how spot gold prices and precious-metal watch prices move together, how high-net-worth investors are rotating into elite models for capital preservation, and specific techniques used by crypto investors and business owners to manage tax exposure by moving gains into luxury watches. They close with a fast-paced lightning round that reveals Erich’s favorite pieces, his sales philosophy, and the advice he’d give his younger self.

Full Episode Transcript

Transcript edited lightly for clarity; timestamps removed.

Narrator: Brought to you by Tailored Wealth, helping business leaders live their version of a rich life.

Dan: Welcome to another edition of the Making Sense of Your Money podcast, where we cut through the financial noise and help business leaders make smart, confident money decisions. I’m your host, Dan. I’m the founder and CEO of Tailored Wealth.

Dan: Each of our episodes brings a trusted voice in the financial world, someone who brings their expertise to help high achievers confidently make sense of their money. And today, I’m really excited about our guest. We’ve got a really unique conversation for you.

Dan: I’ve got with me Erich Wolters, who is the founder of Timely Souls and also the chief watch guy, if you will. Erich’s got a really, really interesting story and specializes in not only collecting but also investing in timepieces. So I’m really excited about this. Erich, thanks for joining the Making Sense of Your Money podcast. We’re pumped to have you today.

Erich: Yeah, thanks so much, Dan. I appreciate the invite and look forward to hopefully sharing some insights and education with your audience.

Dan: Yeah, we’re definitely going to do that. We’ve got a lot to cover. I know there’s a lot our audience will want to hear from you. But do me a favor: just give us a quick 90-second overview of what you do at Timely Souls—I think it’s a pretty unique value and a unique offering—and then tell us a little bit about how you got into the space.

Erich: Yeah, absolutely. So at Timely Souls, what I do is empower my customers to buy status and to buy style—but I also advise them on how to use timepieces for asset security, wealth transfer, and tax efficiency.

Erich: There’s a lot I can go into there over the course of the podcast, and I will, because I think it’ll be really, really interesting to your audience. But generally, what got me into luxury timepieces, and then expanding beyond the traditional use, really kind of started with my interest in collecting alternative assets.

Erich: So I’ve been a heavy alternative asset guy for most of my professional career. I’m in corporate sales, and most of my early-days commission checks I plowed into rookie cards for some of the up-and-coming Major League Baseball players. Then my taste started to evolve into more vintage, pre-war collectibles from Hall of Famers.

Erich: It’s gotten into crazy photography, crazy vintage tobacco cards… and then it continued to evolve into cars. I’m an exotic car owner and I look at exotic cars not just as something cool to drive, but as something that can give me a unique experience and a ticket into circles and networks that I wouldn’t otherwise have access to.

Erich: The exotic car space is what got me exposed to the luxury watch space, because most of the guys that are driving these exotic cars are also really into watches. The watches themselves are precision instruments with movements inside them that look just like the engine bay of a Lamborghini or a Ferrari. So you have a similar type of taste there for the engineering and the beauty of the design of these watches as you see in exotic cars.

Erich: That’s generally what brought me into the world of luxury timepieces—and it’s actually become a complete fascination for me. I’ve started an entire business around it where I’m advising my customers in some of the ways I described earlier, called Timely Souls.

Erich: And just real briefly, the name of that company actually comes from another thing that I collect, which is sneakers. I’m a huge sneakerhead and I’ll still match my watch with my shoes. So I was like, “You know, I’ll call my company Timely Souls.” I don’t resell sneakers; I just collect the sneakers. But that’s kind of another fun passion of mine.

Dan: So cool. I love the name of the company. I try to be a pretty astute matching guy as well, but I don’t think I’ve gotten down to the watch-with-the-sneakers yet. So you’re going to have to give me some advice on that.

Dan: Alright, you said a lot there that I want to unpack. It’s funny—we recently had another individual who runs a company in the collectible space, a company called Rally, where they essentially securitize assets like this. We had an interesting conversation about what we called “alternatives to the alternatives,” because we talk to our clients a lot about alternative investing. A lot of times that looks like real estate or private companies versus public companies.

Dan: But you’re really investing in—and helping people invest in—the alternatives to the alternatives, which is really cool and unique. I know you’re going to help us understand the unique wealth-building opportunity that’s there, but it’s also pretty cool that you get to invest in and make money off something that you’re really passionate about, which I think is an awesome concept regardless of what that passion is.

Dan: So let’s focus on the watches for right now, because that’s your true expertise—although maybe we’ll expand it a little beyond that as we go on. Tell us a little bit about what you help your clients do, and maybe what the whole process looks like.

Erich: Yeah, absolutely. Let me first start off with positioning what luxury watches actually are when we think about them as an asset.

Erich: The Boston Consulting Group, probably about three years ago, published a really comprehensive report that basically declared that the time for viewing luxury watches as investments has definitively arrived. Their analysis looked at about a 15-year view into luxury watches—and in particular, a basket of luxury watches and models from Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and Rolex.

Erich: There’s a basket of models within these three brands, very similar to what the Dow Jones or the S&P 500 is, in that these are the models that really drive the luxury watch market. They took a look at these specific models—things like the Nautilus or Aquanaut from Patek, the Daytona from Rolex, the Royal Oak from Audemars—and went back and historically looked at the value of these models over a 10–15 year period and how they’ve performed more recently throughout the COVID and post-COVID period.

Erich: The conclusion from Boston Consulting Group—this is a very reputable management consulting firm—was that luxury watches outperformed the S&P by a crazy margin. That was a very profound finding for them and is why the thesis of their entire report was: these are legitimate assets and we need to start looking at them differently.

Erich: I believe that in 10 years we are going to see watches as balances to risk in portfolios that Wall Street is very seriously building into their customers’ investment strategies. That’s where we’re trending. Watches are already mainstream as consumer luxuries.

Erich: Generally, the areas that I help my customers and advise them around are: number one, making smart money decisions when it comes to luxury watches. Ninety-nine percent of watches in the luxury watch space—models from Breitling, Omega, IWC, Hublot, TAG Heuer, to some extent, and then also many models from Patek, Rolex, and Audemars—depreciate the minute they’re purchased at the boutique and you walk out.

Erich: What I mean by that is: if you bought a Breitling Navitimer, which is about a $10,000 watch, very popular, their most popular line, a great watch—you buy it for $10,000, maybe $11,000 with tax. If you took that watch, didn’t even wear it, and sold it on the secondary market the day after you bought it, you’d reliably collect maybe $5,000–$6,000 for it.

Erich: And what’s really interesting is that if you sold that same watch five years later, you’d still collect $5,000–$6,000 for it. Watches depreciate immediately and then hold or plateau at that lower level into perpetuity, depending on the condition of the watch. If the watch is really beat up it’ll lose value, but if you’re taking care of it, it will maintain its value.

Erich: So where I advise my clients first and foremost is on smart money decisions, which is: never buy a brand-new luxury watch. The only exception is about 8% of the Rolex portfolio and a small percentage of the Patek and Audemars portfolios. What’s interesting is, let’s look at the Rolex Daytona, which is a very popular watch.

Erich: If you bought that at the Rolex boutique tomorrow and sold it the next day on the secondary market, you would turn your roughly $16,000 purchase at the boutique into about $32,000.

Dan: Why? Why does that one have that sort of growth versus everything else you mentioned earlier that depreciates immediately?

Erich: Yeah, absolutely. Rolex intentionally limits the supply of those watches in the market, and there’s significant demand and interest in them. The Rolex Daytona is iconic. Everybody wants one, but very rarely can you actually buy one at the boutique.

Erich: Rolex creates this type of market hype intentionally, based on their own supply chain constraints, and they continue to increase MSRP pricing on these watches. That elevates the secondary pricing. We’re seeing tariffs—just recently we saw that the Trump administration announced, I think, a 32% tariff on all Swiss goods. That’s a direct attack on the luxury watch market.

Erich: Right now you’re seeing imports with about a 10–11% customs fee based on the new tariffs, but that could triple if Switzerland doesn’t figure something out with the Trump administration in the next couple of weeks. That’s going to really raise prices everywhere. You’re going to see the Swiss manufacturers significantly limit the product they’re sending to the U.S.

Erich: The U.S. is the largest luxury market next to China, and you’re going to have all this demand for luxury goods and people not being able to access them. So pricing is just going to continue to skyrocket.

Erich: I’d say most of my customers are buying what I call value-based watches, which are the ones that depreciate immediately. For example, there’s another guy I work with from LinkedIn who messaged me and wanted a Hublot Big Bang. We decided which one he wanted, and he asked, “Is this a smart money decision?” I said, “Yeah, absolutely,” because the MSRP on this watch is $22,000 and he was going to be buying it for $12,500.

Erich: The watch is in excellent condition. I personally warranty the watch, and it comes complete with the box and papers. So you basically have a great money store on your wrist that you can brag about: “Some other guy took a $10,000 depreciation hit on this thing, and I bought it at $12,500.” By the way, if he wants to sell it in a few weeks, he’ll probably get about $12,500. If he waits five years, maybe a little bit more because of inflation.

Erich: So you can basically buy these watches as a reliable store of value and a smart way to park your money.

Dan: A lot of good stuff in there. It sounds like you’re not only a lot of times supplying the watches or selling them, but you’re also advising the client on which watches maybe fit them from a style and interest perspective as well as from an investment perspective.

Dan: Specifically on the investment piece—because style, everybody looks at differently and everybody’s unique—but specifically on the investment piece, what do you look for? If you’re advising a client… let’s just say I came to you and said, “Erich, I want to buy a new watch every year. I’m going to wear it for a year, and then I’m going to sell it.” How would you advise me to think about what would be the best investment for me if I’m going to own it for a short period of time, but I’m not looking to flip it the next day?

Erich: Yeah, absolutely. Generally, the answer to that question depends on how exactly you plan to wear the watch. There are different brands and models that suit different interests and activities.

Erich: For example, from most major manufacturers you have dive watches. If you’re into diving or water sports, you might want to consider parking your money into a diver watch. Some of the most popular diver watches are the Rolex Submariner, the Rolex Sea-Dweller, the Rolex “James Cameron.” You’ve also got the Omega Seamaster as another very popular dive watch.

Erich: You also have aviation watches like the Breitling Navitimer we talked about. I work with a lot of guys in aviation who are pilots. That’s another industry that loves watches. Or you may just be interested in flight in general and want an aviation watch.

Erich: You also have watches built for speed. You’ve got the Omega Speedmaster, the Rolex Daytona—models you might buy if you’re a car guy.

Dan: What does it mean that it’s “built for speed”? The name always sounds cool; I get it from a marketing perspective. But what does it actually mean that it’s built for speed, or that it’s built for diving or aviation? Give us a look under the hood, so to speak.

Erich: Yeah, absolutely. On most watches built for racing, you have what’s called a tachymeter on the bezel or dial. That’s a way to tell your speed using the chronograph function and measuring over an interval of known distance.

Erich: So if you have 100-yard markers, you hit your chronograph, and as that seconds hand sweeps, when you cross the 100-yard marker, it will convert and tell you how fast you’re going. It’s basically an analog way to understand your speed.

Erich: Across the diver watches you have, for example on an Omega Seamaster, a helium escape valve so that as you’re diving, you’re not putting your watch at risk of cracking as you move through different pressure zones while ascending from depth.

Erich: You have the Rolex “James Cameron,” which has something like a 20,000-foot depth rating. It signified James Cameron’s dive into the Mariana Trench, and Rolex designed that watch for him. If you’re a super serious diver… though, to be honest, most guys who buy those watches will never dive more than 12 feet—the depth of their backyard pool. But they like to have that symbolism of adventure that the James Cameron brings, because he wore that watch on that famous dive.

Erich: It’s features like that that are pretty cool.

Erich: So that’s where we would start, and then the same type of money story comes into play. All of these watches depreciate—99% of them—so we’d look at the secondary market and make sure you’re buying at a discount to MSRP of at least 40–50%, so you’ve got a reliable asset you’re simply parking money into on your wrist.

Erich: In many cases, these watches are not only assets, but so many of my customers, including myself, use their watch as a business networking tool to break the ice. If you meet another watch guy and you don’t even realize it at first, talk about an instant connection. And beautiful luxury watches drive a lot of curiosity—so you just start conversations with folks in business networking environments using your watch.

Erich: Finally, there’s also a major trend within the industry around luxury watches as wearable art. More brands are exposing the mechanics of their watches through skeleton dials or clear casebacks, and they’re experimenting with more jewels on their dials and funky, exciting colors that allow the watch to be an expression of the wearer’s personality.

Dan: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. I think if you’re truly a watch guy, you kind of know that and you’ve experienced that.

Dan: Let’s talk about this as an asset class for a second. You started off with a really nice point around how the watch asset class has outperformed the index over time. What do you see, generally speaking? I get that each model will have its own unique experience and that depending upon the way the company prices it, brands it, markets it, etc., it may go in and out of popularity.

Dan: What impacts the watch market generally? What sort of impacts the growth curve of the luxury watch market?

Erich: Yeah, absolutely—great question. What you’re seeing very recently in global economic markets is a lot of volatility and uncertainty.

Dan: Sure are.

Erich: At the same time you’re seeing an increase in spot gold prices, because gold is a safety asset—a natural hedge.

Dan: Right.

Erich: You’re seeing gold hit record numbers. At the same time, you’re also seeing watches with precious metals like platinum, like gold, follow the price trajectory of spot gold. There’s a reinforcing relationship between the price of gold and viewing gold as a store of safety, and viewing these luxury watches as a store of safety as well, since they carry those same precious metals.

Erich: So you’re seeing certain luxury watch prices really elevate and follow the gold market, as people pull money out of volatile markets and move and store that money into the highest-end luxury watches from Patek, Audemars, and Rolex, literally as a store of value and safety to mitigate volatility.

Erich: This is very clear when you look at the data and the price ascension of these models and how it follows the price of gold.

Erich: The other factors you’re seeing impact pricing right now—one we hit on a bit—is nationalized production and tariffs. You’re seeing “America first” or “Europe first” policies. The cost of transporting goods has gone up significantly. We’ve seen brands like Porsche do multiple price increases this year. Luxury watch manufacturers have already done one price increase on all their models, and I’m calling that they’ll do another next month.

Erich: Prices will continue to elevate because the secondary market will respond and react according to the elevated MSRP and retail pricing of these watches. So you’re seeing a lot of forces: they’re viewed as safety assets by high-net-worth individuals, and you’ve got manufacturers elevating prices in a challenging macro environment too.

Dan: Very cool. Great breakdown. Super interesting.

Dan: Let’s talk about it through the lens of a potential customer of yours. I want to play this scenario out—where I think a large portion of our audience may be: high earner, high achiever. Maybe I’ve got a luxury watch already—I’ve got a Rolex or a Breitling, and I love it. I enjoy watches, but I’ve never really viewed them as an investment; it’s just something I enjoy wearing.

Dan: Now I want to make this shift and start to actually view this as an investment and as a real asset class within my portfolio. I’ve got a broader diversified portfolio, and I’ve got some excess cash I want to put to work. I like everything you just said from an investment perspective, and I also like the fact that I get to invest in something cool that I’m passionate about.

Dan: I don’t know a whole lot about buying and selling watches. I just know what looks cool, and I know the names you’ve mentioned. I have a decent understanding, but not nearly as much knowledge as you do. Where would I start? Walk us through somebody who’s not a diehard watch enthusiast, maybe likes them, and wants to view them as a potential investment.

Erich: Sure. We want to start with intention. There are generally three intentions I see across my customers when they’re seriously thinking about viewing their luxury watches as more than just a watch.

Erich: First is asset security, like we’ve talked about: they’re smart enough to understand that taking money out of volatile markets and putting that money into the right models from Patek, Audemars, or Rolex allows them to preserve wealth in a more reliable and safe way.

Erich: The second intention I’m seeing is using luxury watches for tax efficiency.

Dan: Let’s talk about that. That’s big for us.

Erich: Yeah, this is a very popular technique among crypto enthusiasts and business owners. What I see consistently in the market is something like this: let’s say you bought Bitcoin 18 months ago at about $50,000. We all know it’s north of $100K today—call it $110K or $120K. You’re sitting on 60–70% unrealized gains that, if you cash out, you’ve got a very significant tax bill on.

Erich: What sophisticated crypto traders are doing is purchasing a luxury watch with their cryptocurrency. Let’s say, for example, they’re eyeing a Rolex Daytona “John Mayer,” which is about $70,000. They move the equivalent of $70,000 of Bitcoin into that watch.

Erich: Watches don’t require registration; there’s no title for a watch. But you can spend a lot of money on one. So you take that $70,000—leaving you with your original $50K cost basis in the Bitcoin—and simply transfer that wealth from Bitcoin into the John Mayer. Now you have $70,000 sitting on your wrist.

Erich: That $70,000 gain has essentially disappeared from the crypto side. Let’s say three months later, or three years later, you decide to sell that John Mayer. If it’s appreciated to $75K or $80K, your tax exposure has moved from $70,000 of crypto gains to maybe $5–10K of watch appreciation. That’s a big difference.

Erich: This is happening a lot. It’s a sophisticated tax-efficiency tool. I see this from business owners as well who, at the end of their fiscal year, want to minimize their tax exposure. They’ll buy luxury watches and add them to the books of their business.

Dan: Right, yeah.

Erich: So they’re lowering their tax burden and they’ve got really cool watches they can wear—and they don’t get taxed the same way as if that cash stayed on the books.

Erich: The third thing you see is borderless wealth. Let’s say you’re an international businessperson with assets across countries. You’re taking payment in Hong Kong for some project, and you want to move that money to Argentina or the United States.

Erich: You take the money you earned in Hong Kong, go down to the Hong Kong luxury watch district, and buy two or three watches worth $300K–$400K. You put those watches on your wrist, put another on your friend’s wrist, you hop on a plane, fly to Argentina or the U.S.—and you’re just wearing watches. You’ve just moved three or four hundred thousand dollars across borders covertly.

Erich: That’s happening all the time. These are the kinds of things ultra–high-net-worth individuals are doing today. It’s how they’re viewing luxury watches in a completely different way than 99.9% of the population on earth. They’re doing it in a very sophisticated way that allows them to minimize tax exposure. Ultra–high-net-worth individuals are way over tax-exposed, so they’re always looking for ways to minimize that, and they’re using luxury watches to do it.

Dan: It’s a really, really cool concept. We’ve talked to a number of clients about other assets—watches and other things—where you can limit your tax exposure. Is it safe to say that if you’re going to use it for a tax play, using the three core brands you mentioned earlier makes the most sense, because they have the most efficiency to keep their value?

Erich: Not necessarily. It depends how much money we’re talking about, because those three brands are typically the highest-valued watches. If we’re talking about protecting hundreds of thousands of dollars, you’ll want to look at those. But if you’re looking at a different sum of money, you can simply buy on the secondary market after the watch has already depreciated, and that becomes a reliable store of wealth for you.

Erich: You can make the value play or the pure market play, depending on what direction you want to go. You can play that strategy with either end of the market.

Dan: Very cool. This has been super, super interesting. Thanks for all your thoughts on that.

Dan: We’re going to shift gears now for a second, Erich. We’re going to get to know you a little bit more. You’re officially entering the lightning round. We never tell our guests about this—we just want organic, first-thought answers. Could be a one-word answer, could be a long, drawn-out thought.

Dan: You ready?

Erich: Go.

Dan: Coffee or tea?

Erich: Coffee.

Dan: One meal for the rest of your life. What is it?

Erich: Halal Guys, 58th and 6th, New York City.

Dan: Okay. Yeah, I know that spot. I’m going to throw this one in there specifically for you: one watch for the rest of your life. What is it?

Erich: That’s like asking me who my favorite daughter is.

Dan: Yeah, I get that. Alright, so you’ve got two daughters, right?

Erich: Yeah.

Dan: I’ll let you pick two.

Erich: Alright, got it. I think I would go with a Ulysse Nardin Maxi Marine or Maximar—that’s an amazing networking watch and connoisseur-profile watch. And then, just because you have to have a Rolex, I’d go with the “Rolex Zombie,” which is an 18-karat gold Jubilee bracelet Submariner with a black dial. I think it’s just a beautiful piece.

Dan: Very cool. What’s one tool or piece of technology—other than your computer or your phone, so it could be hardware or software—that you can’t live without?

Erich: Nothing comes to mind.

Dan: Got it. Do you have a favorite quote or phrase or thought about money or success?

Erich: Yes. “Sales is the transfer of enthusiasm.”

Dan: Oh, I love that. Very good. Do you have—either finance-related or personal—a personal hack you can share with our audience?

Erich: Yeah. Let your wife manage the finances.

Dan: That’s a good one. I’ll attest to that one as well, personally and professionally.

Dan: One bucket list item that you’ve already accomplished?

Erich: Australia.

Dan: Very cool. One financial milestone that you’re working toward?

Erich: A million dollars of watch-trading profitability.

Dan: Love it. Good luck on that journey, brother. And if you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be?

Erich: You have the right idea. Don’t give up.

Dan: I love it.

Dan: Lastly, Erich—this has been great—if our audience wants to connect with you, wants to learn a little bit more about what you do at Timely Souls… you’ve shared a lot of wisdom with us today and they want to dive into that a little further, where can we find you?

Erich: Yeah, best place to check me out is my website: Timely Souls—so timelysolouls.com, like soles of sneakers, because we talked about my passion for sneakers, and timely for the watches.

Erich: So timelysolouls.com. You can check out my inventory. You can also check out all of my industry thought leadership there as well. I post thought leadership every week, so a lot of the stuff I talked about today, I’ve literally published articles on over the past year plus. You can always follow me there.

Dan: Very, very cool. I’m looking forward to checking that out, and I’m sure our audience is as well. Thanks for sharing your time and your insights with us.

Dan: That’s all for the episode. You can find the podcast along with our newsletter and our YouTube channel, all for free, at makingsenseofyourmoney.com. And as always, prioritize your version of a rich life. Cheers.

Resources & Citations

FAQs

Are luxury watches really a viable investment, or are they just expensive toys?

For most buyers, watches are lifestyle purchases first. But in certain segments—especially specific models from Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Audemars Piguet—prices have shown strong long-term appreciation and, in some cases, outperformance versus broad equity indexes. The key is being selective, buying at the right price (usually on the secondary market), and understanding that you’re combining passion with disciplined capital allocation, not replacing a core diversified portfolio.

Why do most luxury watches lose value the moment I buy them?

Like new cars, most luxury watches are sold at a retail premium that reflects brand, boutique experience, and overhead. Once you walk out of the boutique, the market immediately reprices the piece at its “true” clearing value—often 40–50% below MSRP. After that initial drop, well-cared-for pieces tend to plateau in value and can function as relatively stable stores of wealth over time.

How do I start if I’m not a hardcore watch collector?

Begin with your intent and lifestyle. Are you buying primarily for enjoyment and status, for capital preservation, or for specific planning goals like tax efficiency? Then, choose a category (diver, aviation, racing, etc.) that fits how you’ll actually wear the watch. From there, work with a trusted advisor or dealer to identify models that can be purchased at attractive discounts to MSRP on the secondary market and that have healthy, transparent trading activity.

What are the biggest mistakes people make when buying luxury watches?

Common pitfalls include: buying brand-new at boutique pricing when there’s a deep secondary market, choosing models with weak resale demand, overpaying because of hype, neglecting condition and completeness (box and papers), and treating watches like day-trading instruments. A more sustainable approach is to buy well, wear and enjoy the piece, and think in terms of multi-year ownership, not quick flips.

How can watches be used for tax or planning purposes?

Some investors and business owners use high-end watches to manage realized gains (for example, moving a portion of appreciated crypto into a luxury watch), or as business assets that can reduce taxable income when purchased through a company, subject to applicable laws and accounting rules. Others use them as portable, borderless stores of value when operating internationally. These strategies are highly fact-specific and should always be coordinated with a qualified tax and legal advisor.

How do luxury watches fit into my overall financial plan?

For many high earners and business owners, luxury watches sit in the “aspirational” or “alternative” sleeve of their balance sheet—after essentials, safety reserves, and core investments are handled. Done thoughtfully, they can complement more traditional holdings, function as a tangible store of value, and add joy and networking upside. The right allocation depends on your total net worth, risk tolerance, time horizon, and how important this passion is to you personally.

Disclaimer

The information in this episode and on this page is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as tax, legal, or individualized investment advice. Luxury watches and other collectible assets can be volatile, illiquid, and speculative. Any strategies discussed may not be appropriate for your specific situation and are subject to eligibility, current laws, and regulatory requirements, which can change over time. Before making financial, tax, legal, or investment decisions, consult with a qualified professional who understands your personal circumstances.

Next Steps

If this conversation got you thinking about watches as more than just accessories, here are two practical next steps:

1. Connect your passion assets to your overall plan. If you own (or want to own) meaningful amounts of luxury watches, cars, art, or other collectibles, consider a Wealth Clarity Chat to see how they fit alongside your business, retirement, and family goals.
2. Learn more about Tailored Wealth’s approach. Visit YourTailoredWealth.com to see how Life-Driven Planning and evidence-based investing can work together with the passion assets you care about most.