ONLY WATCH 2019
AUCTION RESULTS
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ONLY WATCH 2019: CHF 38’593’000 RAISED FOR RESEARCH AGAINST MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY IN RECORD-BREAKING AUCTION.
GENEVA (November 9th, 2019) – Saturday 9th November was the apex of a journey on which the watch industry has embarked on with Only Watch over the past 12 months. A journey which started on July 1stby unveiling the names of the participating watch brands. This was followed by the world tour exhibition starting at the Monaco Yacht Show in September and lasted seven weeks travelling around major cities including Dubai, Paris, London, New York, Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taipei. An extraordinary program which underlined the ever-growing interest for the one-of-a-kind pieces donated by the brands.
Under the High Patronage and in presence of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco, Only Watch held its eagerly-awaited 8th auction of unique timepieces today at the Four Seasons Hôtel des Bergues Geneva.
The 50 one-of-a-kind timepieces were auctioned by the prestigious auction house CHRISTIE’S in a packed and dynamic saleroom, attended by international supporters, collectors, philanthropists, watchmaking manufacturer representatives and press. The sale took over two hours as interest in each lot was overwhelmingly high and concluded with a record-breaking result of CHF 38’593’000 / €42,452,300. The auction included a Patek Philippe lot (28) that was auctioned for the historic amount of CHF31,000,000 / €34,100,000.
The record-breaking amount is a strong signal of hope for researchers, patients and families touched by Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (genetic disease that affects 1 in 3,000 male births) around the world. Thanks to very significant investments made by Only Watch (among others) over the past decades, the research is reaching clinical trials, a critical and cost-demanding stage. 99% of donations go directly to medical and scientific research projects with administration costs running at under 1%. Thanks to these donations, the Monegasque Association against Muscular Dystrophy contributes to the development of new therapeutic avenues, some of which are on the verge of clinical trials.
Only Watch is a caritative biennial auction founded by Luc Pettavino that aims at raising funds to finance research to develop effective treatments for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a neuromuscular genetic disease affecting nearly 1 boy 3,000 at birth. Over the past 14 years (and 7 past editions), thanks to the collective effort and generous involvement of the watch industry and the numerous partners, the initiative has raised almost 80 million euros.