Should you treat luxury bags, jewellery and watches as investments? What you need to know

With a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime timepiece auctioned off for 31 million Swiss francs (S$50.77 million) in 2019 and a Hermes Himalaya Niloticus Crocodile Diamond Birkin 30 sold for over US$450,000 (S$574,861) in 2022, it is easy to see the appeal. Florence Low, founder of LuxLexicon, a Singapore luxury resale and consignment platform, is a strong advocate of investing in luxury goods as an alternative asset class – she allocates a portion of her investment portfolio to buying designer handbags, watches and jewellery. Karen Tang, a certified financial planner and a finance coach said that while luxury goods can be seen as alternative investments, they should only be viewed as speculative assets with limited value, and not as true investments like equities or income-producing property.