High net-worth consumers rated Vacheron Constantin the most prestigious luxury watch brand, according to a survey by the Luxury Institute. Patek Philippe and Piaget were ranked second and third, respectively. 

Vacheron Constantin Patrimony 
traditionnelle openworked perpetual calendar

Vacheron Constantin is “one of the best in skeleton movements and finishing” is “very dependable” and “unique,” respondents to the 2008 Luxury Brand Status Index said.

“Luxury watch marketers break down into two types,” said Milton Pedraza, Luxury Institute chief executive officer. “One type craves customer feedback to understand how they are rated on critical metrics vs. competitors and use that feedback to make improvements. These executives operate from a passion for serving customers at the highest levels.

“The second type operates from the knowledge that only they know what is best for the customer and disdain customer feedback. Wealthy consumers today gravitate to those who listen carefully and serve them best.”

31 luxury watch brands were rated (alphabetical order):

1. Audemars Piquet
2. Baume & Mercier
3. Blancpain
4. Boucheron
5. Breguet
6. Breitling
7. Bulgari
8. Cartier
9. Chopard
10. Dior
11. Dunhill
12. Ebel
13. Franck Muller
14. Girard-Perregaux
15. Harry Winston
16. Hermes
17. IWC
18. Jaeger-LeCoultre
19. Longines
20. Louis Vuitton
21. Montblanc
22. Movado
23. Omega
24. Patek Philippe
25. Piaget
26. Rado
27. Rolex
28. Tag Heuer
29. Tiffany
30. Vacheron Constantin
31. Van Cleef & Arpels

The proprietary Luxury Brand Status Index measures the prestige of leading brands among wealthy Americans. A national sample of 513 wealthy American consumers, with an average income of $789,000 and average net-worth of $15.1 million, was surveyed online.

JCK