Used Watch Market Outlook - Nomos Tangomat

Here at the SecondhHander, we realize there are many other sites reviewing watches (and doing a really good job of it). So we thought take a different approach by reviewing watches through the lens of the used watch market. We’ll tell you how a watch is trending, if it’s being offered at a good value, and what price targets you can expect. We hope you enjoy!

In 2005, Nomos released the Tangomat to offer an automatic companion to the hand-wound, and very successful, Tangente. Keeping true to the Nomos aesthetic, the Tangomat carried forward the bahaus design for which Nomos is now rather famous.

As watches began to creep larger in diameter, Nomos held true to their original design, bucking the trend industry wide. Now it seems many other manufacturers are trying to capitalize on this aesthetic.

In a great nod to design, however, the Tangomat presents a wonderful balance of clean design face, while offering an absolutely stunning in-house movement via a display caseback.

Secondary Market

We were very excited to take a look at the Nomos, as it presents a compelling trend that often takes 10+ years to materialize: significant upward movement in secondary market prices, even exceeding original MSRP.

The 2005 variety of the Tangomat was introduced to the world with an approximately 1700 Euro price point ($2550 USD given the exchange rate at the time, $1890 with today’s exchange rate). Currently, the basic non-date Tangomat will run you $3280 USD. For the Tangomat Datum, you've got to punch another $600.

Our current price target is $1870 and the date variety runs about $2200, but the actual price could vary wildly. The Tangomat (and to a larger degree all Nomos models), presents a curious juxtaposition in the market – highly in demand for a specific subset of people, and rarely available in the secondary market. This is great news for both buyers and sellers. For sellers, the lack of used availability for these watches means a motivated buyer will pay a premium. For buyers, the fact that these appeal to a smaller subset of buyers, these sometimes don’t move quickly – creating some negotiating power for the buyers. For both, patience is key.

When I say these appeal to a smaller subset of buyers, it doesn’t mean they aren’t almost universally acclaimed, because they are. Nomos has made their mark by executing a high quality product while paying attention to details in a very impressive way.

The universal praise has likely influenced Nomos' move to raise prices across the board. The secondary market has mirrored this move with prices on all Nomos models seeing an upward trend. For many years, Nomos enjoyed almost no competition in the segment of boutique brands offering an in-house movement at an affordable price. Now that brands like Frederique Constant, Christopher Ward, and others are doing the same, it makes things a little tougher for Nomos should they wish to continue moving up-market.

Low Availability

As previously noted, these don't often hit the market, at least not at a level commensurate with their praise on the forums. Across the entire Tangomat line, the white-faced datum (date) version is by far the most widely available. The Tangomat of any variety not a great model for flippers, but is fantastic for sellers when the right buyer is looking.

We've seen this model sell as low as $1500 (which is almost stealing), all the way up to $2200. As the data increases, and the price stabilizes, we expect this one to settle around $1775 in the used market.

Competition

Nomos has positioned itself in a very interesting segment. They're not too high to push up against the super boutiques like A Lange Sohne. But they're actually priced higher than some well known brands like Tag Heuer. Their in-house calibre justifies the higher price, and good will they've garnered among the WIS elite has solidified it.

There are a few "me too" bahaus watches, like the Stowa Antea, that offer great value, without some of the brand cache of Nomos. And the major brands are mostly avoiding such a distinct styling path.

Nomos may compete for the attention of buyers browsing for a low profile dress watch, but their unique styling has somewhat insulated them from competition of derivative or even similar nature

Ultimately, the Tangomat, like most of the Nomos models, proves to be a fierce competitor in its space. And we're hard pressed to find to many qualms with the Tangomat in spite of it's high MSRP and used price. The gorgeous in-house movement and clean lines leave us happy at the used price target. While we feel it's less of a bargain at MSRP than others we've reviewed, it's still worth a long look - especially if you plan on hanging on to it for a while.

See active and sold listings for Tangomat