Amid Second Hand Drills and DVDs, My Little Secret for Watch Deals in Bienne

I wrote last month about the pleasure of purchasing affordable watches in Bienne. Some of you have since asked for my go-to places. While there are a few, none come close in their abundance of choice – and frequency of my visits – to the local Cash Converters.

Despite what some people think, Cash Converters – an Australian chain of second-hand shops that has expanded globally – is not a pawn shop. The Bienne franchise opposite the train station is no exception. You simply walk-in with something to sell, and walk out with cash; or you come in and buy, like in any other store.

Between the name Cash Converters and the vacuum cleaners, DVDs, smartphones and drills for sale, you may not expect to find a large selection of luxury watches here. But this is Bienne. Compared to any other such place I’ve seen, the number of watches they have is pretty wild. It’s all relative of course – we’re not talking Nakano Broadway here, but rather what a relatively small shop in a relatively small town can offer. Also, this is not the place to come to if you’re after a Patek or a Journe. But for anything in the Swatch to Rolex range, it’s definitely worth a visit.

So, what makes the watch offering at Cash Converters Bienne so special? As I’ve explained a few times here before, because Bienne is a (the?) hub of Swiss watchmaking – home of the Swatch Group, Omega, and with Rolex as the largest employer – many people here have access to employee rates. That means a lot of watches purchased over the years are in people’s drawers, and they eventually end up on the local secondary market. When they do, because everyone has access to those employee rates, they’re hard to sell at typical second-hand prices. As a result, between the large offer and the low demand, prices are particularly low.

The Cash Converters Bienne franchise was taken over in 2021 by Roan Herrera and his cousin Jérôme Robcis – respectively right and left on the header picture. Roan was previously an employee of the store – and I was already a customer, back when the place was run by my friend Sidney and his parents. He has a background in accounting. Jérôme used to have his own plumbing business. Both are from France. And both, over the years, have become friends.

I don’t even know how many watches I picked up of dropped off there. The collage above is just a small sample. While pricing is definitely a factor – who doesn’t love a good deal – the fact that the team is so reliable, thorough and service-oriented is why I keep coming back. Even the price at which they buy – more on that below – is usually so fair that it removes all incentive to go through the hassle of selling online.

Despite having been here dozens of times (my wife would add “per week” but that’s not true), there’s a lot I still didn’t know, and was wondering about. So I went over one morning – early enough that the place wasn’t too busy – and asked Roan and Jérôme the questions below. Here’s what they had to say.

What’s the share of watches in your overall inventory?
Watches here represent about 20 to 25% of our total inventory in value. This is very unusual – probably even unique – across Cash Converters franchises globally.

Who typically brings you those watches?
In large part, people who work in the watch industry, here in Bienne or nearby. Quite a few passionate collectors as well. Only about 20% of “regular” people.

And who typically buys the watches? (aside from me)
The more high-end and vintage pieces usually go to a group of regulars who are collectors. Aside from them, we have a lot of people from countries in Africa and Latin America who buy the more entry-level watches as gifts for back home. Finally, some people buy here to resell elsewhere.

What’s the price range of watches you currently have in stock?
Right now, probably about 20 CHF for a Casio or Swatch up to 14,000 CHF for a hard-to-get Rolex. Most of our watches are under 5,000 CHF, and the majority are under 500 CHF.

Now the question I’m sure many are wondering about… What’s the ratio between the price at which you buy and the price at which you sell?
It’s really hard to give a general rule here because – as the saying goes – time is money. Some watches we know will go very fast. On those, we can offer a better price. Others, we know will sit with us for months and months… On average, our mark-up is 35%, but again, that’s just an average and it really depends on a case-by-case basis.

What’s the ratio of brand new vs pre-owned vs vintage?
About 30% brand new, stickered. True vintage is barely 5%. The rest is contemporary pre-owned.

What brands do you have the most in stock?
A lot of Swatch Group: Omega, Longines, Tissot, Certina, Mido, Hamilton. And always a few Rolex.

How do you make sure the watches are authentic?
We work with Villiger, an authorized dealer for many top brands, right across the street. When even they’re not sure, we send the watch in for a service. Also, and this is pretty unique for a shop like ours, we have a timegrapher to check how the watches are running. We can also size the bracelets ourselves or – when a special tool or technique is required – we have it done at Villiger.

How are the watches prices?
To sell in Bienne, you need a really low price because everyone here has connections in the industry. We generally aim for about 50 per cent of the retail price, sometimes even 40. Of course there are exceptions, notably when it comes to Rolex.

Are prices negotiable?
In theory no. But when a piece has been hanging in the display for some time, we can be flexible.

What about warranty?
Many of the watches we sell are still under manufacturer warranty. For the others, we change the battery on quartz watches when needed within three months. And some watches we also sell with our own warranty, for up to a year.

How has demand evolved since you took over the store, four years ago?
Our middle range – basically watches priced between 300 and 800 CHF – has declined. People either take something “easy” or go for more of an investment piece.

Any amusing or interesting anecdote you can share with us?
Once a client came to sell his watch, a mid-range Certina. Two months later, he came to buy it back. Another two months later, he came in to sell it again. Two months later… he came back. And then again, back-and-forth three times, for the same watch. One day, he came back for it again, but we’d already sold it that time! In cases like this, we make an effort to give the customer very good rates, so that they’re not hurt too hard.

Were you personally into watches before? Are you now?
Not at all. Neither one of us. In France, it’s not really part of the local culture. Here in Bienne, it’s at the heart of it. We learned a lot, and continue to learn through our customers. Now, we’ve caught the bug. Note: Roan had his Rolex Explorer 36 mm on the wrist, Jérôme his trusty PRX Automatic.

For opening hours or any other information you need to plan a visit, you can check out Cash Converters Bienne on Google Maps.