Dubai Luxury Frenzy Has Buyers Snapping Up $240,000 Watches

Independent Swiss watchmaker MB&F’s founder Maximilian Büsser recalls struggling to sell even two ultra-luxury timepieces in the Middle East a few years ago. Last year, his firm sold 46 in the region, some worth as much as $240,000.

At Dubai’s biggest mall, business has been so brisk that MB&F had only one watch left on display this January, requiring more to be shipped in from Geneva. People were coming to the store and asking, “Can I try something on?,” Büsser said, and the answer often was: “No, sorry. We have nothing.”