Stephanie Crespin's Vintage Audemars Piguet is Her Other Baby

The founder of pre-loved e-tailer Style Tribute is an eclectic chick at heart. But when it comes to that One watch, she prefers something classic, manly and discreet – and doesn't mind taking her time to find it.

Who: Stephanie Crespin, 30, founder of pre-loved e-tailer Style Tribute, which she describes as "combining the premium shopping experience and assortment of Net-a-Porter with the discount asset of eBay". A self-professed watch junkie, this Japan-born, Belgian-French clotheshorse has devised her own checklist of buying vintage watches. Take your time, she says, as there are going to be many watches that look amazing at first glance, "only to look terrible or less than exciting a few days or months later". Also go for something personal. "I don’t believe in following a list of 'must-own' watches. Learning aout a watch's uniqueness, complications or the brand’s history might help in making that decision.  

What: A vintage men's Audemars Piguet watch 

Why: "I'd been eyeing this piece from a small boutique in Brussels that sells unqiue and hard-to-find vintage watches for a few months. I slowly developed a relationship with it, making impulse visits and trying it on, before committing to it. Each time, my desire to own it kept growing. My husband secretly purchased it as a push present for the birth of my first child. Gifting a piece of jewellery to the mother of your child is a tradition in France, but it’s not common to receive a men’s watch. I wear my Audemars Piguet the same way I would wear any type of jewellery. Except, this piece is special: I like imagining what lifestyle or historical moments it has gone through with its previous owner."