For all auction houses, luxury collectibles have been one of the most effective segments to offset declining art sales while expanding audiences. As demonstrated—and amplified—by Sotheby’s “Anotherworld” strategy, which has repositioned its headquarters as an experience-driven shopping destination, the luxury component is increasingly central to the auction house’s business models. By 2025, Sotheby’s luxury category generated $2.7 billion in revenue, up 22 percent year-over-year and surpassing $2 billion for the fourth consecutive year. At Christie’s, luxury sales reached $795 million by 2025, up 17 percent from 2024, and proved to be one of the most effective tools in attracting new and younger buyers, who accounted for 38 percent of new buyers last year.
Across all auction houses and properties, jewelry and luxury accessories emerged as other strong performing segments, accounting for a decade high of 18.8 percent of total auction value by 2025. At a time when gold and other precious metals continue to rise, it is especially telling to watch how the secondary market is also booming in stages, moving with price fluctuations.
Sotheby’s jewelry sales topped $300 million in December, excluding its Dec. 5 jewelry and watch auction in Abu Dhabi, which was led by an $8.8 million 31.68-carat brilliant orange-pink diamond. Additional first-format sales at the Breuer Building generated $43.9 million in total sales. Meanwhile, Christie’s has held a series of high-selling jewelry auctions throughout the year, including a June sale of $87.7 million in New York and a December sale of $46.5 million, with a jewelry sale in Geneva in between. Among the highlights was the Mellon Blue diamond, which sold for nearly $25.5 million—the highest jewelry lot of the year—during a week when jewelry sales rose 24 percent.
Although the market for colored gemstones remained remarkably strong, prices were driven significantly by the relatively small number of quality stones. At the same time, the demand for signed gemstones with a history rose. One notable example was a diamond brooch that once belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte, which sold for nearly $4.4 million—more than 15 times its high estimate—at Sotheby’s Royal & Noble Jewels sale last November. Yet there is a difference between veteran collectors and a new generation of buyers, who tend to gravitate towards wearable jewelry designs from the late 1960s and 1970s. Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Hermès, Bulgari and Chanel continue to attract a lot of attention in this category.
A recent study by FashioNica, a retailer of high-end accessories, analyzed popular pieces of jewelry from major jewelry companies to assess which ones have experienced strong price growth since 2020, making them compelling opportunities when appearing on the secondary market and proving their role as reliable long-term value-saving assets.
In the past five years, Chanel’s Coco Crush line has increased by more than 30 percent in stores, with a bracelet now priced at $15,750 and a ring at $3,250, respectively, up 36 percent and 32 percent from their previous retail prices ($11,600 and $2,500). For secondaries, prices typically vary between approximately $10,000 for a bracelet and $2,500 for a ring, depending on condition and materials.
The Cartier Trinity Ring stood out by recording the biggest increase in sales, rising 65 percent over five years to $2,350 from its previous $1,400. Prices on the secondary market are almost always in line, usually averaging around $2,000. As FashioNica notes, the Trinity ring contains about seven grams of 18k gold—worth about $750 at current metal prices—while retailing for $2,350. The remaining premium reflects the brand’s equity and cultural capital linked to the design that has been a hallmark since 1924. Notably, like few models of gem jewelry, the history of the Trinity Ring is deeply intertwined with the world of art. According to widely cited accounts, its inspiration relates to Louis Cartier’s close friendship with painter and writer Jean Cocteau, who was famous for wearing two Trinity rings attached to his little finger, their six interlocking bands creating a striking touch. The ring quickly became a cult favorite, especially among Parisian avant-garde and queer circles, cementing its status not just as jewelry but as a cultural symbol.
Bulgari’s B.Zero1 ring follows closely behind, with a 41 percent increase in retail, from $2,700 to $3,800. The bold design aesthetic continues to resonate, with more than 67,000 annual internet searches. On the secondary market, B.Zero1 rings typically trade for around $2,800, which represents about a 75 percent retention in value. Recent results at smaller European auction houses—including Stockholm’s Auktionsverk—show B.Zero1 standard 18k gold rings selling for between £810 and £1,012 ($1,000-1,250), broadly in line with estimates.
The Alhambra necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels remains one of the most sought-after pieces of jewelry, attracting an estimated 2.6 million searches per year. In a recent Phillips sale, a vintage Alhambra onyx necklace sold for about $12,700 against an estimate of $5,000-7,000. Bracelets from the same collection sold at or above average, ranging from about $4,825 to $7,000. On second bases like 1stDibs, vintage Alhambra necklaces show a wide variation, from about $11,750 for pearl examples to up to $75,000 for rare 20-motif gold versions, depending on materials, motif count and origin.
Hermès’ Finesse ring is another highly desirable jewelry design that has seen significant price increases. Diamond-set white gold versions now start at around $9,700 in the US, up nearly 20 percent from around $7,600 five years ago. Although it rarely appears in major auction houses, the ring is often traded on secondary platforms such as eBay, 1stDibs, and The RealReal, typically ranging from $1,200 to $4,800, depending on materials, condition, and provenance. Diamond versions with a higher carat weight can exceed $5,000.
Cartier’s Love Bracelet has also risen from a retail price of around $4,500 five years ago to $5,500 today, a nearly 20 percent increase that reflects the enduring power of the design, which has been at the forefront since 1969. Diamond versions now sell for between $12,000 and $15,000. In the secondary market, retention can reach 95–96 percent for well-marked examples, placing the Love Bracelet—alongside the Trinity ring—among the “investment-grade” jewelry pieces at this price point. Standard 18k gold models trade between $4,000 and $8,000, while diamond-set models can reach $12,000.
Even higher is the current retail price of Cartier’s Juste un Clou bracelet, now listed at around $8,700, up 16 percent from $7,500 five years ago. On the secondary market, 18k plain gold versions typically trade between $4,500 and $6,000, while diamond examples range from $9,000 to $14,000, depending on condition and configuration.
When it comes to luxury brand jewelry, the mentality of the secondary market is very different from that of art. The appeal lies less in resale towards structural stability. Although secondary prices tend to remain below retail prices, they tend to track higher over time as the underlying prices rise, reducing volatility rather than generating speculative gains.
But the fact that secondary prices are already tracking closely with rising sales levels after a short holding period supports the long-term investment appeal—especially as scarcity favors vintage examples. In a secondary market dictated by inflation, recurring resale price increases and a tight underlying supply, iconic jewelry acts less as a speculative asset and more as a store of value, benefiting from some buying while exhibiting relatively low volatility.
Luxury jewelry houses such as Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Bulgari, Hermès and Chanel strictly control production and supply, enforce strict price discipline and make frequent price increases. At the same time, a significant part of the value of jewelry remains concentrated in physical materials—gold, platinum, diamonds and colored stones—the price of which is supported by global commodity markets. Together, these structural factors create predictable upward pressure on stores, which suppresses volatility between primary and secondary markets.
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