We're going to make a million euros this week. For the first time.
This week, we're going to break the million euro barrier.
Finding the watches is the hardest. It's the trick of the trade.
When they're on display in the store, they get sold.
Every time.
Finding the right watches that everyone wants...
those are the watches no one wants to sell.
To get them in the right condition, for the right price...
that's hard and it takes up most of our time.
To get that collection from all over the world to our store in Amsterdam.
That's the hardest part. In this industry, the company's value...
mainly consists of the value of your inventory, your stock.
Roughly estimated, it's worth 1,5 million. Maybe almost two.
Vintage watch dealer
My name is Jasper. Jasper Lijfering.
I've been into watches for a long time now.
I've been into it for 10 years. I'm 26 years old now.
These last 5 years, I've been working 70 hours a week.
I've been trading, searching for, selling and restoring watches.
I've been working with social media, Instagram and such.
We're based at the Singel, in the middle of Amsterdam along the canal.
The word vintage is often mentioned.
That term is thrown around a lot these days.
To me, vintage means it gets better over the years.
Like good wine, a vintage wine.
Collectible watches from the 50s, 60s and 70s.
Most are Rolex watches.
That's the largest collector's market.
Valuable.
It starts with 4000 euros.
There are some outliers that cost a few hundred thousand.
It's very capital intensive and starting out is not easy.
It's harder to make the first hundred thousand than the first million.
The vintage watch market in itself is a very closed market.
It can be a little bit snooty.
Our marketing, using social media like Instagram and YouTube...
reaches a large target group...
of watch afficionados. It feels like a community.
I meet people in the store or out on the street...
and they think they already know me, because they follow me online.
They know what I do every day and how I work with watches.
I think it's great how social media make this possible.
Normally, people wouldn't know about me.
But with this personal approach, we can open up...
and say: You like watches? Come by our store.
Have a coffee or a beer and let's talk about watches.
Every week, for instance...
we sell at least one watch to someone under twenty. At least.
You need two things in life.
One is SpongeBob, the other is your watch.
6238 Pre-Daytona 1962.
This is a pretty valuable watch, because it's rare.
Daytona originally wasn't popular.
Because it wasn't popular back then, not many were made.
They're highly collectible now because there are so few of them.
That's how people's brains work. If something is hard to get...
people want it. This applies to watches too.
The more rare and collectible it is, the more people are willing to pay.
It's simply a matter of supply and demand. This is 40,000 euros.
I agree that it's a lot of money for a watch.
I have to explain to my friends why these figures make sense.
It's made of steel. Melt it, and it's worth less than a hundred euros.
You don't buy a Van Gogh painting for the paint or the canvas.
You buy it for the art, because of the artist and his story.
The same goes for watches.
People think I'm arrogant for saying things like this.
The only downside of this business is security.
I bought this house because it's next to the police station.
Still, I've had two burglaries.
It's become a deduction worth 60 grand, I think.
I've been through plenty on the street and also at fairs.
I was followed a few times. You have to be careful with Instagram.
I only post things when I'm already out of there or the next day.
We have 70,000 followers.
Maybe one of those guys isn't very pleasant.
He will think: He's at the Conservatorium Hotel.
When I came outside, they were waiting for me. 'Give me the watch.'
When I had graduated, my parents were of ill health.
I had to take over the company.
I set the condition that I wanted to do my own thing with the company.
I wanted to fully focus on watches.
So I took over the company, quite impulsively.
It all went pretty fast and it wasn't easy at all.
At the time, I asked for professional help
from psychologists, to be able to deal with the pressure.
I was under enormous pressure and I had very long work days.
I'm talking about working 70, 80 hours a week.
That will start to show. You'll get mentally unbalanced.
Anxiety and panic attacks were part of it.
I usually start the day with a mindfulness session.
It's a daily ritual to put everything in perspective
and to calm the chaos in my mind.
I can't really concentrate like this.
At least you know what I mean.
Hey, old dog.
How are you, brother? -Good.
Do you want a drink? -Absolutely.
What do you want? -A beer.
Nico is from Northern Ireland.
He's in the same line of work.
Today, we're going to make a good deal.
We have some watches that he can sell in Northern Ireland.
We're going to look at those.
It's funny. I had a simple job, no education.
I've always been interested in watches.
I think I saw Jasper on YouTube.
I started following him and I thought: This is what I want to do.
I called him and I said: This is what I'm going to do.
This is what I'm going to do. -I didn't know him at all.
I thought: Who's calling me from Northern Ireland? Some Dutch guy?
I said: I love your store. It's awesome.
I'm not going to copy you. I am. I'm going to blatantly copy you.
I can't deny that. He inspired me to change my life.
From a simple job to where I am now. I had a 20,000 euro loan.
Let me wipe away those tears. -Get lost.
Nico is a big Daytona afficionado.
We begin with two Daytonas. This is from the 90s, the Zenith Daytona.
To top it off:
this is what 200,000 euros look like flying.
Nice, man. -Great, huh?
This is platinum. Platinum has a high specific weight.
That's why it's heavy.
It's a technical work of art...
so it's not cheap. I'm not even talking about the platinum...
or the diamond bezel and the diamond dial.
That makes it a unique piece. Hence its price.
Enjoy. Do you have a flight? -I have a flight. Two hours left.
At least that's out of the way.
Finding the watches is the hardest. It's the trick of the trade.
We used to search for watches ourselves.
We went to auctions and fairs, which could be risky.
But people come to us now. That's what I love.
Nowadays, we get offered 20, 25 watches a day.
While we're sitting here. Through e-mail, WhatsApp and Instagram.
If you get into watches, you will eventually come across our channel.
Whether you're from Italy, Spain or the Netherlands. We're out there.
We've drawn attention through social media.
Because of social media, everybody knows where to find us.
You can't miss us. I just got a text from a client. It's Ellen DeGeneres.
She's looking for certain watches...
and she trusts me to find them.
'I want this watch. Go find it, this is my budget.'
We've found it for her.
It's at least half a million. -A little more.
This model was auctioned for about a million in the past.
A more expensive watch doesn't mean a higher sales margin.
There are very few of these.
If they've ever been auctioned, you can easily look up the value.
If they went for 800,000, I can't charge Ellen 900,000.
She'll know that the other ones cost 8.
That's why this is a fairly transparent market.
The seller knows what they can get for it...
and Ellen knows what she has to pay for it.
So there's little margin, but this is risk-free...
because I already have a buyer before purchasing the product.
I was in LA the last couple of weekends. The only downside is...
now she texts: 'I have an event Saturday. I want to wear it.'
You can't tell a client like this to wait another week.
We'll have to go there again.
Next week, we're going to do something awesome.
We're going to Ibiza, with the entire team.
We're going to deliver a watch to a collector. I have to go now.
There he is. How are you, buddy?
It's been a while. -How are you doing?
Good to see you, man. -Great to have you here.
Why am I here?
Look around, and you'll see why I'm here.
It's strictly business.
No fun at all, just strictly business.
Just making a deal and going back home looking surly.
Working hard.
I've known Tim for a while now.
He's a valued customer of Amsterdam Vintage Watches.
It's great that young entrepreneurs who want something special...
go for a vintage watch.
They're creative and interesting people.
Tim is a great example. He's a renowned artist.
Am I introducing you right? -Sure.
Right? -I appreciate it so far.
What are we doing here again? Something about watches?
I forgot. -Why are we here again?
We brought a selection to inspire Tim.
This is a 1950s Omega Seamaster with someone's face depicted on it.
Not just anyone. It's king Abdul Aziz.
Cool. That boat is moored here. -Really?
It's anchored here in the summer. -You should show it to him.
King Abdul is an important man. When he orders a watch...
and this is fifty years ago...
he wants his own face depicted on it. So there it is.
He's so important, they have moved the word Omega...
from the top to the bottom. Because he should be on top.
This is another watch with an important story.
This watch was used by NASA at the moon landing in 1969.
However, a true afficionado wants a Speedmaster...
from before when they went to the moon.
Those watches don't have the inscription.
It only says Speedmaster, with the seahorse logo.
The pre-moons are more rare.
They made a lot more of the other watches after the moon landing.
This is from '67, two years before the moon landing.
Two years before the moon landing? -Yes, and the price reflects that.
A post-moon watch is 4000, 5000 euros.
This is more than double the price. Triple the price.
I'll take that briefcase as payment. There's a briefcase full of cash.
Then I'll take more watches. -You'll take some more. Nice, man.
We're going to need more. But we'll figure it out, we always do.
Good to see you. I love your house.
Our team is very important to me.
Together, we have broken the barrier this week.
I never thought that possible. You have to imagine...
when I started out, we made 50k a month.
This is the first time we made a million in one week.
That's why we decided to take the team with us.
They deserve it. They're sunbathing like lazy pigs.
It's also good for marketing.
I do think about that. It has to look nice.
It has to look genuine.
People feel like they're here with us.
It works really well on Instagram.
It's okay if it's over the top. We're allowed to flex a little.
We're going against the Calvinistic way of thinking.
We're the only ones in the industry to work like this.
We're the new kids. We're the young ones.
We're showing the establishment how it should be done.
Do I make my parents proud?
They told me they like the way I handle things.
But they wouldn't judge me by my success.
Revenue might say something about how well you're doing financially...
but it doesn't say anything about you personally.
I often get asked about my future plans.
I'm not a visionary.
We've been doing this for 5 years now.
5 years ago, I would never have thought we'd be where we are now.
I think it's part of our strength...
to live in the moment, doing what we love.
That's why we got this far in the first place.
I don't want more watches, or more deals.
I'd rather have better watches and make better deals.
I'd rather have better clients than more clients.
Quality is more important to me.
I would like to have a house like this within the next 5 years.