Q&A: Chrono Hunter’s co-founder on almost a decade of trading

Chrono Hunter is a luxury watch brokerage platform, bringing watch collectors and its vetted network of professional watch retailers together. Co-founder Sam Rayner reflects on the lessons he’s learnt, and continues to learn, almost 10 years into the platform’s journey.

Almost a decade into your journey as a business, what has gone right and what has been challenging? 

Sam Rayner: Since the very beginning, we have gained the trust of our customers. Without them, we wouldn’t be where we are today, where we have surpassed transacting £60 million in watch value through our platform. Whether people choose to buy or sell a watch through us, we have helped more than 10,000 customers find the best deal, saving not only time but money. Customers entrust Chrono Hunter with single sales as well as collections, demonstrating we are a highly secure and reputable platform. 

In addition, we’ve also started working with luxury watch brands to boost their profiles via content and media as we’ve grown the Chrono Hunter customer base and audience. We have built extremely close relationships with many brands, which not only demonstrates the value our business model represents, but the insight it gives the wider community. Moreover, this allows brands the opportunity to elevate their profile by partnering with us, reaching out to a large audience of fellow enthusiasts and connoisseurs. 

Another point that has gone right would be improving the customer journey. We have worked tirelessly since the start to streamline and refine this. I think it’s the most transparent way, as customers can see the offers they are receiving, when a timepiece has been inspected, with notifications right up to when money arrives in their account. 

As far as challenges go, we’ve had our fair few going as far back as Brexit. We had started relationships with retailers in Europe that suffered. Covid was another challenge — we adapted and pivoted the business model to ensure we were helping our retailer partners. There have been periods of heavy price swings that are not good for business but right now we are optimistic about the future and have always remained optimistic. 

WI: You just mentioned Covid — how did that affect business?

SR: I don’t think there were many businesses out there that weren’t affected and it seems a distant memory now. But it was a period of learning for us — we had to pivot our strategy to be more accommodating for our partners. 

This period is where we saw massive price fluctuations so it was difficult when managing expectations at times, especially in the aftermath when customers were still trying to achieve prices that were no longer possible. 

How closely do you vet your network of retailers? Up to a point, surely you don’t need to worry too much about how they got their hands on a given watch, as long as it’s genuine and your customers get a deal that they’re happy with?

SR: We are consistently fine-tuning the criteria credentials as only the best retailers can join our network.  In the first instance, it is based on credibility. What is their reputation? How long have they been in business? Trading history comes into play, while other areas include industry referrals, online presence, and if they have a bricks and mortar establishment.

It is absolutely imperative for them to understand the nuts and bolts of the business, which only comes through experience and a professional infrastructure setup. In fact there have been plenty of occasions where retailers have approached us but we have had to decline as they did not meet the criteria we have already put in place. As Chrono Hunter never physically holds the watches, our partner retailers are responsible for all due diligence and checks, guaranteeing authenticity and provenance. 

How does your business model look today versus when you started? Has it changed at all?

SR: We have a unique concept that is simple but completely distinctive, separating us from the competition — namely, multiple offers on a luxury watch. People can compare and contrast offers from our exclusive network of approved retailers to discover the best possible price, on both the buying and selling side. This has remained since our inception.

But that doesn’t mean we haven’t tweaked the buy and sell processes when necessary to grow and become adaptable. Our focus is on delivering a highly personalised service that is often missing in the world of today’s luxury watch market. Building a genuine relationship with the buyer (or seller) is critical, especially with AI on the rise. For us, technology is a great benefit but only if it is implemented in the right way. You cannot replace human interaction.

What patterns and trends in behaviour among your retailer network have you noticed over the past few years? Do you ever get significantly different offers between different retailers?

SR: Yes, different retailers will, to a certain degree, have different watches they specialise in. In this way they may value a timepiece in a completely different manner, often down to their clientele. Some retailers have an overlap in interest for certain watches. But there can be retailers that have a customer base that is suited to a certain watch, which may result in a considerably different offer. We have seen watches that have thousands of pounds’ difference between the lowest to highest offers. One retailer might have a buyer already, therefore they are happy to make a much higher offer than another retailer who may be buying it for stock.

Which brands have made you the most money? Have there been any surprises?

SR: Our business is a reflection of the market, represented by some of the most popular Swiss luxury brands out there like Rolex, Patek Philippe, TAG Heuer, Breitling, Tudor, Cartier, Omega, and more. So no real surprises on that front. The higher value brands are more valuable but less plentiful and vice versa.

Has the role of technology changed for your business? If so, how?

SR: Definitely. It has helped us with complete transparency, through streamlining the entire customer journey from initial enquiry to completing a transaction. In addition, we have a major update coming in terms of customer relationship management that will improve efficiency, speed, and general tasks that would have taken more time previously. We are currently implementing more detailed, scalable, personalised communications with customers with the use of the most up-to-date technology. 

What does expansion look like for you? Is it simply a case of improving what Chrono Hunter already does? Or have you got plans for international expansion?

SR: We are working with some of our partners to introduce a platform to help sell their watches more efficiently and at scale and we are planning to expand further into the US and Europe. Given the US is the biggest market and the pre-owned sector is growing at a phenomenal pace, we are looking forward to making even more waves across the Pond.

This article was first published in the August 2026 edition of Watch Insider.