One Direction?

The Swatch x Omega MoonSwatch…

The Audemars Piguet Black Panther & Spiderman

The JLC Batman Reverso…

What do all of the watches above (and similar) have in common? They are all accused of dragging down or tainting the reputations of the respective brands. I happen agree with that statement, but not in the way you might think. There might be a very good reason for it and one we might want to pay attention to.

Yes, these brands are catering to customers that are outside of what has been their historical target demographic. Customers who, due to the current economic trends, may not be likely to ever be able to afford even the lower tier watches that the brands/conglomerates offer.

With the advent & proliferation of computers, electronic pocket watches that also serve as communication devices and Dick Tracy 2-way wrist radios -basically clocks everywhere- society’s collective desire for traditional wrist watches is gradually waning. Yes, interest in watches (and prices of same) spiked over the last few years thanks to the COVID pandemic, but if you look at the long game, traditional mechanical watches have been in decline for the last 50+ years. Society has also been changing from a formal and regimented one, to a more casual and less structured one for quite a long time. Wristwatches have changed quite a bit from their origin; from what we would now consider a dress piece to most watches now being purchased being a sports watch. This change in watches is maybe not mirroring the change in society, but following it and the move to these types of watches is the next evolution. I’m not totally OK with it because I don’t see the value in buying a plastic watch, but I am beginning to understand what’s happening with these.

What’s happening in my opinion is that the brands know that the ladder that used to exist from the Timex’s & Citizen’s of the world to the Longines’, Breitling’s, Omega’s & Rolex’s of the watch industry have been severely reduced with the continual shrinking of the middle class and the enrichment of the 1% at the expense of everyone else. The brands have to do something to possibly re-create that ladder or at least create enough low-market & high-market sales (where volume & margins, respectively, create cash flow) to keep them in business. This isn’t a movie or novel where the supporting protagonist can be sacrificed to “fighting the good fight” for plot development only for the hero to avenge or prevent their demise at the last moment. It’s not Hollywood. It’s not about maintaining historical stature. No, the MoonSwatch, the Bulova Snorkel, the Marvel AP’s and the like are about survival. Without these watches, the industry may soon be all high- & low-cost watches with very little in the middle where I believe most of us like to enthuse about watches.

I’m not saying we all should buy one of these watches that some of us have a strong dislike for, but maybe we dial back on the out loud verbalizing of our dislike unless we are directly asked for our opinions and when we give the requested opinion that we at least try to see what the purpose is of the watches and also provide that side of the discussion as well. Or at the very least, be diplomatic in your expression of your opinion. Who knows? It might be part of the formula that keeps the watch industry alive.