The Grand Seiko Guy takes time to collect and document these vintage luxury watches

The Grand Seiko 6185-8010 VFA (very fine adjusted) watch and the 4580-7010 Grand Seiko (right). These Grand Seiko watches were entirely made in Japan by the Shizukuishi Watch Studio in Iwate Prefecture.

Until about six years ago, Gerald Donovan was your regular watch collector—Rolex, Panerai, FP Journe… you know how it goes. Then, he encountered vintage Grand Seikos and his passion acquired a laser-focus. Today, the Thailand-based photographer runs the Grand Seiko Guy, a website that is both among the best resources on the brand as well as a platform that sells vintage timepieces acquired by Donovan.

The 53-year-old’s collection includes the Grand Seiko “First” Platinum, the very first Grand Seiko timepiece in platinum and a recently acquired 6185-8010 VFA (Very Fine Adjusted), among others.

Grand Seiko “First” Platinum

The vintage Grand Seiko era lasted between 1960 and 1974, and “every vintage Grand Seiko reference, and their variants, ever released, is fully documented” on the The Grand Seiko Guy website. When he started building his collection, there was almost no interest in vintage Grand Seikos outside Japan, but now things, Donovan says, are changing. Here, he talks about how he got started with vintage Grand Seikos, the growing interest in these timepieces, and the one modern Grand Seiko he would love to buy.

The catalyst: The turning point was shortly after I purchased my FP Journe. That was when I turned from someone who had always had an appreciation for watches into a watch collector. I soon realised that I wanted more than one FP Journe, but there was no way I could ever afford to build a collection of them, so I started to look around for a brand that I could afford to build a collection of, and discovered modern Grand Seiko. My first aim was simply to get example of each of the main movements from the modern era—quartz, Spring Drive, and mechanical. I got the first two, and then when shopping for a mechanical started to look into the history of the brand and realised that for the price of a new mechanical Grand Seiko, I would pick up half a dozen vintage Grand Seikos. So I did. And didn't stop at half a dozen!

A niche within a niche: Vintage Grand Seikos are not common but there is a growing interest in them. Back in the mid-2010s, there wasn’t a single dealer outside Japan who offered them. Today, while they remain a niche within a niche, there is a marked difference. Grand Seiko as a brand have made huge investments in expanding the business overseas. With the market for the modern watches expanding from pretty much just Japan, to now being worldwide, it's only natural that a proportion of those buying and collecting the modern pieces become interested in the vintage era as well. Clearly vintage heritage is an extremely important part of the modern marketing message, and this too has helped to increase the desirability of the vintage references. Among the most interesting people collecting these watches include seasoned collectors who have significant collections comprising vintage Swiss watches. These individuals are looking to diversify and will be extremely influential in driving where the market goes from here.

A modern Grand Seiko he’d buy: If by "modern" we can include everything produced in what is considered to be the modern era of the brand (post 1988), then I’d pick the SBGW021. This was a platinum-cased watch issued in a limited edition of just five pieces back in 2007. With full Arabic numerals on the dial, each carved by hand, and an "officers" caseback, there really is nothing else quite like it. From the current range, as long as price and potential future value was not of concern, I would pick the watch issued to celebrate the 160th anniversary of the birth of Seiko's founder, Kintaro Hattori. Based on the original Grand Seiko "First" from 1960, this watch has a dial whose design is based on a prototype dial from 1963 that never made it to production. I have been fortunate to see a photograph of the original dial, and have to profess to be somewhat surprised that Grand Seiko haven't shared it publicly - there is a real story to be told there that I am sure would help to sell a few more of these $100,000 timepieces!

The joys of collecting vintage GS: Firstly, there is a huge variety of design in the watches across the vintage era - certainly significantly more than one would find in the modern range. One of the great things about collecting vintage Grand Seikos is that the market is still relatively nascent, and, I believe, when compared to the more commonly collected Swiss brands, there is significant value for one's money out there. I don't think it will be long before we hear of the first USD six-figure vintage Grand Seiko transaction. But since there are around 150 distinct references from the vintage era, with some of them originally produced in significant quantities, you can get a good example of a classic vintage Grand Seiko for just a couple of thousand dollars. Whether one has a budget of $10,000, $25,000, or $100,000, it is possible to put together a three watch collection that tells the story of the vintage Grand Seiko era.