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Watchfinder & Co. is an online retailer of second-hand watches based in Maidstone, UK. The company was described by the ''Financial Times'' as the "leading pre-owned e-tailer" for watches;〔http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/21369836-f353-11e1-9ca6-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2EwfZ9SZA〕 its annual turnover was £60m〔http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/eb015eb6-2ed9-11e5-91ac-a5e17d9b4cff.html#axzz3qzrq8EcQ〕 in 2015 and is forecast to hit £70m by 2016,〔http://www.fasttrack.co.uk/fasttrack/leagues/fastotrDetails.asp?siteID=11&compID=4112&yr=2014〕 and the total value of the watches it has sold was £165 million as of 2015. The website receives 7.4m unique visitors per year, one of the highest numbers for any website about watches. It has a stock of over 2,500 watches across more than 50 brands,〔http://www.watchfinder.co.uk/NewArrivals〕 making it the UK's largest second-hand seller.〔http://www.professionaljeweller.com/article-10430-watchfinder-to-open-bricks-and-mortar-store/〕 As well as this market-leading position,〔http://www.qpmagazine.com/news/watchfinder-takes-on-sevenfriday/〕 Watchfinder has also been notable for many original practices in the world of used watch sales: it was the first UK website dedicated to the online sale of second-hand watches when it started in 2002; it was the first such company to introduce a buy-back guarantee in 2011;〔http://www.professionaljeweller.com/article-10507-youll-miss-out-if-you-dont-offer-part-exchange/〕 it has an in-house servicing department, which employs expert watchmakers to service and repair watches from a wide array of manufacturers;〔http://www.retail-jeweller.com/watchfinder-unveils-omega-and-longines-service-centre/5037796.article〕 and it is one of the only watch retailers to publish a mainstream online magazine, ''The Watch Magazine''.〔http://www.watchpro.com/16317-new-watches-enter-the-watchfinder-mix/〕 Watchfinder has won several awards for business success. It was named named the Watch Retailer of the Year at the UK Jewellery Awards in 2014 and 2015,〔http://www.retail-jeweller.com/home/uk-jewellery-awards-2015/watch-retailer-of-the-year-winner/5075962.article〕 E-commerce Business of the Year at the 2014 Digital Entrepreneur Awards,〔http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent-business/county-news/watch-seller-right-on-time-21742/〕 and Retail Hero at the Growing Business of the Year Awards. The brand was one of only 10 UK companies among the 2014 Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track Hot 100 "ones to watch".〔http://www.retail-jeweller.com/news/watchfinder-named-one-to-watch-in-sunday-times-virgin-fast-track-hot-100/5067201.article〕 Watchfinder is a finalist in the 2015 National Business Awards,〔http://www.nationalbusinessawards.co.uk/Content/National-Business-Awards-Finalists-2015/15/〕 while the company founders were shortlisted for the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Awards〔http://www.retail-jeweller.com/digital/watchfinder-founders-shortlisted-for-entrepreneur-of-the-year-awards/5074600.article〕 and head watchmaker Tony Williams was one of WatchPro's Top 100.〔http://www.watchpro.com/pics-18036-watchpro-hot-100-2015-trailblazers/2〕 ==History== Watchfinder was founded in 2002〔http://www.kentonline.co.uk/maidstone/news/sales-surge-for-watch-firm-11014/〕 as a means of using the Internet to facilitate the sale of pre-owned luxury watches. The company moved to its office to Maidstone in 2003, following the sale of a Paul Newman Daytona for £13,000 - an unprecedented sum for an online sale at the time. Interest generated by this and early press coverage drove sales to an average of 55 watches per week by 2005; over 10,000 customers had been served by 2006. By 2009, the site had over 25 million pageviews per year, having introduced commission-based sales and a dedicated photography department. In 2011, Watchfinder launched the WF&Co Group - this comprised other projects beyond the site itself, including ''The Watch Magazine'' and the WF&Co Boutique, a shop in the Royal Exchange that opened in 2013.〔http://www.professionaljeweller.com/article-10430-watchfinder-to-open-bricks-and-mortar-store/〕 Over the course of its history, the company's turnover has continued to grow thanks to a booming watch market.〔http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/618a4f7a-9b3f-11e1-8b36-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1vDoWSygc〕 Turnover grew 56% in 2013.〔http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent-business/county-news/watch-seller-right-on-time-21742/〕 In 2014, Piton Capital and Beringea invested £6.2m in Watchfinder, and HSBC loaned a further £6.6m in 2015. Today, the company employs more than 80 people and continues to operate out of Maidstone.〔http://www.watchpro.com/17158-watchfinder-named-retail-hero-2014/〕 In 2015, a video on Watchfinder's YouTube showing the company’s head watchmaker servicing a Rolex Submariner went viral with over one million views.〔http://www.watchpro.com/17291-in-video-1million-hits-for-watchfinder-rolex-film/〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Watchfinder」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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