Luxury collectibles took a hit in 2024, with fine art suffering the steepest decline among passion investments, dropping 18.3% year-on-year, according to Knight Frank’s Wealth Report 2025. The report, released on Wednesday, reveals that while some high-end assets managed to hold their ground, several once-thriving categories saw sharp corrections.
The Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index (KFLII), which tracks the performance of ten sought-after collectibles, showed that only half of them appreciated in value last year. Handbags emerged as the strongest performer, with a 2.8% rise, followed by jewelry (2.3%), rare coins (2.1%), watches (1.7%), and classic cars (1.2%).
At the other end of the spectrum, fine art took a major hit, reversing its double-digit gains from 2023 and faring worse than it did during the COVID-19 crash, when values dropped 17%. Fine wine was next in line, sliding 9.1%, as shifting consumer habits reshaped the market.
The rare whisky sector, which had been on a decade-long bull run, saw another difficult year. Prices slumped 9% in 2024, bringing total losses to 19.3% since the market’s 2022 peak. Increased availability of stock in the secondary market has put significant pressure on prices.
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Other categories that struggled included designer furniture, which declined 2.8%, and colored diamonds, down 2.2%.
Overall, the KFLII index fell 3.3% in 2024, marking its second consecutive year of negative growth. The once-reliable assumption that rarity guarantees rising value is now being challenged, as collectors and investors navigate a more unpredictable landscape.
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Liam Bailey, Global Head of Research at Knight Frank, provided a long-term perspective on the luxury investment space:
“Over time, collectibles have proven their worth as an investment. If you had put $1 million into the KFLII in 2005, that portfolio would now be worth $5.4 million. By comparison, the same amount invested in the S&P 500 would be valued at $5 million today.”
Despite the current slowdown, the report suggests that luxury assets remain a key component of high-net-worth portfolios, though selectivity and timing will be crucial moving forward.
