As tariffs hit high-end imports — from Patek Philippes to Porsches — with an extra tax, the luxury resale market is expected to boom.
It’s anticipated that prices for everything from used Ferraris to secondhand watches and vintage wine will soar as shoppers panic over tariffs. Collectors, meanwhile, will be all too happy to part with their goods at a premium.
A source who stores vintage cars for wealthy owners told me that he’s already receiving inquiries from clients interested in selling at least one vehicle from their collections.
Vintage cars may be especially attractive because not only are they tariff-free, they are also unencumbered by the pesky supply chain issues that have plagued the market for new cars in recent years.
Josh Cohen, who works in sales at Flatiron Wine, said both existing clients and those who have never sold before have reached out to him about offloading bottles from Burgundy, Bordeaux and the like — at premium prices. For those willing to pay, “there will be a lot of interesting stuff on the market,” Cohen told me.
With stock markets tumbling following the tariff announcements, luxury goods are a relatively reliable liquid asset. “[You can] get cash from something you already own,” BMO Capital Markets analyst Simeon Siegel noted.
And, while it will likely be a seller’s market for luxury resale, buyers won’t necessarily be getting bad deals.
“The beauty of resale is it is a pre-existing asset with a pre-existing cost,” Siegel told me. “People don’t have to worry about new costs for something they want to buy.”
But, some pricey toys won’t fare well.
A longtime yacht collector told me, “The boat business is toast.”
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He noted that nearly all cruising vessels are made in Europe. With the EU tariff, a new $3 million schooner will now set you back $4 million.
But, the collector added, “No one wants a second-hand boat.”
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