Antiquorum
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1974
- HeadquartersGeneva, Switzerland
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Antiquorum does
Antiquorum is a Geneva-headquartered auction house specializing in modern and vintage timepieces, founded in 1974 and operating as Antiquorum Genève SA. The company runs a hybrid auction model combining traditional live auction events in Geneva, Hong Kong, Monaco, Milan, and Paris with proprietary digital infrastructure including live.antiquorum.swiss for real-time bidding, catalog.antiquorum.swiss for lot browsing, and iOS/Android mobile applications. Supporting the auction core are a proprietary watch condition grading system, an offline Private Sale service, and worldwide free valuation days in 12+ countries that source consignments. Authentication is augmented through a strategic partnership with Watch Certificate, providing standardized condition reports, market valuations, and theft recovery services.
Antiquorum monetizes through transaction fees on both sides of each sale: seller's commissions of 15% (lots up to CHF 10,000) and 10% (above), plus 1% insurance premium, layered against buyer's premiums ranging from 26% (up to EUR 1M) down to 15% (above EUR 5M), with VAT-adjusted rates in Monaco and Milan. Additional revenue streams include catalog photography, laboratory certification, restoration services, and occasional seller advances. The customer base consists of private watch collectors, investors, and consignors, with no individual buyer or seller dominating volume given the high-value single-lot transaction structure.
The company maintains wholly-owned subsidiaries in Hong Kong (Antiquorum Auctioneer HK Ltd), Milan (Antiquorum Auctioneer SRL), and Paris (Antiquorum Paris), with Monaco auctions operated jointly through partner Accademia Fine Art SARL. Cloud infrastructure is hosted on AWS. Ownership is private with no disclosed investors, parent company, or funding rounds in the source material.
Antiquorum firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Antiquorum
- Legal name
- Antiquorum Genève SA
- Website
- https://antiquorum.swiss
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1974
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Antiquorum industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Luxury Watch Auctions
- NAICS
- Used Merchandise Retailers (459510)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Jewelry, Watches, Precious Stones & Metals (5094)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Auction Houses (Luxury Watches & Jewelry) (CRAKAKAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Pre-owned, Vintage & Certified Pre-owned Watches (CRAKADAM), Authenticated Luxury Resale Marketplaces (CRAKAKAA)
Keywords
Where Antiquorum is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Geneva
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices5 records
Markets served
Antiquorum business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Seller's Commissions: Commission charged to sellers on sold lots: 15% for lots sold up to SFr 10,000, 10% for lots sold above SFr 10,001. Also charges 1% insurance premium on hammer price.
- Buyer's Premium: Commission from buyers on hammer price: 26% up to EUR 1,000,000, 20% from EUR 1,000,001 to EUR 5,000,000, 15% above EUR 5,000,001. Rates vary by location (Monaco includes VAT at 31.2%, 25.2%, 16.2% with VAT).
- Catalog and Documentation Fees: Fees for catalogue photography, laboratory certification, repair and restoration services when applicable.
- Special Financing: Under certain circumstances, Antiquorum may advance funds to sellers against consigned goods for sale.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Multi-year contract | Seller's Commission: 15% for lots up to SFr 10,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Multi-year contract | Seller's Commission: 10% for lots above SFr 10,001 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Milano Buyer's Premium: 26% up to EUR 1,000,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Milano Buyer's Premium: 20% from EUR 1,000,001 to EUR 5,000,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Milano Buyer's Premium: 15% above EUR 5,000,001 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Monaco Buyer's Premium: 31.2% VAT inclusive (26% ex VAT) up to EUR 1,000,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Monaco Buyer's Premium: 25.2% VAT inclusive (21% ex VAT) from EUR 1,000,001 to EUR 5,000,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Monaco Buyer's Premium: 16.2% VAT inclusive (13.5% ex VAT) above EUR 5,000,001 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Insurance Premium: 1% of hammer price |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Insurance Premium: 1% on final hammer price |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels8 records
Antiquorum product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Antiquorum is a Geneva-headquartered auction house specializing in modern and vintage timepieces, founded in 1974. The company conducts live in-room auctions and online auctions for luxury watches, providing authentication, cataloging, and bidder services across offices in Geneva, Hong Kong, Monaco, Milan, and Paris. Revenue is generated through seller's commissions, buyer's premiums, catalog fees, and special financing arrangements.
Product overview
Antiquorum operates as a traditional auction house specializing in modern and vintage timepieces and jewelry, offering its services through a platform-plus-services model. The core offering consists of live and traditional auction platforms for bidding on watches at events held in Geneva, Hong Kong, Monaco, Milan, and other major cities worldwide. Supporting this are the online catalog for browsing and research, a proprietary grading system for assessing watch condition, private sale services for off-auction transactions, and worldwide free valuation days. The company also partners with Watch Certificate for authentication and certification services. All auction activities are facilitated through their proprietary bidding platforms available on web and mobile applications.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Live Watch Auctions
- Online Watch Auctions
Quantifiable outcome
- Monaco auction December 2025 achieved EUR 6.5 million in sales
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Antiquorum
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Antiquorum technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Antiquorum partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Watch Certificate™corePartnership with Watch Certificate™ for authentication and certification service accompanying timepieces throughout their life. Provides condition reports with 53 standardized checkpoints and 8 photographs, market value estimates validated by internationally recognized experts recognized by insurers, maintenance logbook, and theft assistance services.
- Accademia Fine Art SARLcorePartnership with Accademia Fine Art SARL for conducting Monaco auctions. Accademia Fine Art handles Monaco auction operations including AMSF regulations compliance, cultural property documentation, and local banking relationships.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Antiquorum competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Phillips Watches: Phillips runs a focused watch auction business under the Phillips brand alongside its broader art and luxury verticals, operating marquee sales in Geneva, Hong Kong, and New York — directly comparable in target market, auction format, and watch-only specialization.
- Bob's Watches: Bob's Watches is one of the largest pre-owned watch dealers in the United States, specializing in Rolex and luxury sports watches via a transparent marketplace model — overlapping with Antiquorum's addressable buyer/seller pool but at lower price points and via dealer-brokered sales.
- A Collected Man: A Collected Man is a specialist dealer and broker of high-end independent and vintage timepieces, competing for the same HNW collector segment as Antiquorum but operating through private sale and brokerage rather than open auctions.
Broad incumbents
- Sotheby's: Sotheby's runs an international watch department with major sales in New York, Geneva, and Hong Kong, competing head-to-head for high-end watch consignments and offering the scale, integrated luxury platform, and brand reach that Antiquorum benchmarks against.
- Christie's: Christie's operates a global watch department within one of the world's two leading fine-art auction houses, with sales in Geneva, Hong Kong, and New York — overlapping directly with Antiquorum in luxury watch consignments but as part of a much broader fine-art portfolio.
- Heritage Auctions: Heritage Auctions is a major U.S.-based auction house with a dedicated watch department, conducting timepiece sales that overlap with Antiquorum's vintage and modern watch offerings — a comparable specialty within a much larger multi-category collectibles platform.
- Bonhams: Bonhams is a global auction house with established watch sales in London, New York, Geneva, and Hong Kong, offering comparable lot categories (vintage Rolex, Patek Philippe, modern independents) to Antiquorum but as part of a broader fine-art and luxury portfolio.
Emerging players
- Wristcheck: Wristcheck is an Asia-based online platform combining authentication, consignment, and marketplace sales of pre-owned luxury watches — emerging as a digital alternative to traditional auctioneers and addressing the same collector and investor base.
Regional players
- Dorotheum: Dorotheum is one of the oldest European auction houses, headquartered in Vienna, with watch and jewelry auctions that overlap with Antiquorum's offering — comparable in model but primarily serving Central European consignors and bidders.
- Bukowskis: Bukowskis is a leading Nordic auction house with watch and jewelry auctions in Stockholm and Helsinki — comparable in model and category focus but primarily serving Scandinavian consignors and bidders rather than Antiquorum's global footprint.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Antiquorum social profiles
Digital presenceAntiquorum financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Antiquorum leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Antiquorum subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
Antiquorum funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Antiquorum M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Antiquorum
What does Antiquorum do?
Antiquorum is a Geneva-headquartered auction house specializing in modern and vintage timepieces, founded in 1974. The company conducts live in-room auctions and online auctions for luxury watches, providing authentication, cataloging, and bidder services across offices in Geneva, Hong Kong, Monaco, Milan, and Paris. Revenue is generated through seller's commissions, buyer's premiums, catalog fees, and special financing arrangements.
Is Antiquorum a public or private company?
Antiquorum is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Antiquorum founded?
Antiquorum was founded in 1974. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Antiquorum based?
Antiquorum is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Antiquorum make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Seller's Commissions are the primary driver. The others are buyer's Premium, catalog and Documentation Fees and special Financing.
Who are Antiquorum's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Phillips Watches, Bob's Watches and A Collected Man. Broad incumbents are Sotheby's, Christie's, Heritage Auctions and Bonhams. Wristcheck is listed as an emerging player. Regional players are Dorotheum and Bukowskis.
Does Antiquorum have an API?
No public API is recorded for Antiquorum.
What industry is Antiquorum in?
Antiquorum's product category is Luxury Watch Auctions. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAKAKAF, Auction Houses (Luxury Watches & Jewelry), with a secondary code of CRAKADAM, Pre-owned, Vintage & Certified Pre-owned Watches. Its NAICS code is 459510 and its SIC code is 5094.