Watch appreciation is a niche hobby that tends to have connotations of excessiveness, snobbishness and, depending on the type of watches people collect, garishness (Jacob & Co., Richard Mille, MB&F, Hublot to name a few). To some extent, these associations are true; watches can get really expensive for what they are. And it doesn’t help that the watch community can be pretty and opinionated and imposing toward someone just starting out.
But do you have to own multiple watches, watches of a certain type or know a great deal about horology to be part of this ‘exclusive’ community? No. All it should take is an interest and appreciation and that should be an end in itself.
To distill this further, what should define a watch enthusiast should simply be an enjoyment of watches, regardless of brand, type or price. That is how the watch community can be better — to be more inclusive, accessible and open-minded; to share this enjoyment and help others to develop their interest in the field.
However, as it does in any community, there will invariably be some that seek to assert their opinions and those that have dogmatic ideologies. These are gatekeepers, those that seek to retain the exclusivity of this community and peddle the view that watch collecting is only for the rich or ‘true’ enthusiasts.
Gatekeepers of the Watch Community
- Swiss Made is prime
Sure, the Swiss are the most illustrious in horology and are known for their high quality and craftsmanship, but one should not get too caught up with this label. Watchmakers like Seiko, Nomos or Sinn produce watches that rival the quality of Swiss manufacturers and are perhaps more innovative and unique in some cases.
The mark of “Swiss Made” entails more (or less) than you think. To earn this label, watches are required to have their movements assembled, cased-up and inspected in Switzerland and at least 60% of manufacturing costs must be based in Switzerland. These definitions sounded a little grey when so I went to research more. (If you’re interested, here’s the link). The clause that intrigued me most was this:
So what constitutes ‘manufacturing costs’ seems to be largely labour, machinery & R&D costs since it excludes raw materials that cannot be produced or found in Switzerland (correct me if I’m wrong), and only 60% of these are required to be based domestically. Ergo, you can have quite a bit of components and assembly outsourced. Make of it what you will, but these definitions sound rather tenuous to me.
So, in truth, while “Swiss Made” is a mark of quality, it is simply a status symbol. Watchmaking has progressed over time and watchmakers from different origins are able to deliver similarly high-quality watches. Besides, they bring diversity to the watch market, which benefits us as consumers.
- Disdaining mass-produced movements
The sign of a watch snob is probably one that cares about in-house movements and scoffs at ETA, Miyota or Sellita and the likes of other mass-produced movements. Mass-produced movements make watches more accessible in price and allow for the existence of many smaller or independent watchmakers or microbrands. And it is untrue to say that mass-produced movements lack the quality or craftsmanship of in-house.
For more expensive watches that use mass-produced movements, chances are the movements have been extensively modified. Their price tags could also be justified by the finishing or the use of high-quality materials in the construction.
- Only appreciating ‘grail’ watches or swearing by big names
The Holy Trinity (Patek, AP and Vacheron) or Rolex. These are some of the biggest names in watchmaking and are what most watch enthusiasts aspire to own and collect. While these watchmakers are respected for their haute horlogerie and technical mastery, they are not the final word in watchmaking. If all watchmakers aspired to emulate these brands, we’d end up with uninspiring and soulless watches.
In fact, the more niche your collection or style, the more serious an enthusiast you probably are. And I think this is what earns you credit among the watch community — having something different or a watch that has its own story rather than a popular watch.
- Quartz watches aren’t enthusiast watches
Yes, quartz watches have a more mass-market appeal because of their inherent inexpensiveness and replaceability. What comes to mind when someone mentions a quartz watch? Some run-off-the-mill $30 watch? Probably. But quartz deserve an equal amount of respect. It quite nearly sunk the mechanical and Swiss watch industry when it was introduced and revolutionised and reshaped the entire industry. When even Rolex & AP had to develop their own quartz movements, you know that the quartz movement was legitimate.
3 Rules
These are three principles that will help you to find more satisfaction out of watch collecting and not fuel the toxic culture.
#1: Go with your own taste
This seems pretty commonsensical, but is often disregarded or distorted. With all these watch gurus and enthusiasts on Instagram and YouTube, it’s easy to get influenced into liking certain watches for reasons other than your own liking of it. You might start to care about resale value or brand appeal or a ‘safer choice’ instead of going for the one you really like. To me, watches should foster a personal attachment. You don’t need someone else’s validation. Although ironically, I find a lot of thrill and satisfaction when someone else shares the same taste and we can geek out about it, but that’s a good kind of validation.
#2: Don’t diss the tastes of others
The absolute worst of the watch snobs are those that show contempt towards others for their preferences. Why can’t people like what they like? G-Shocks or Tags are just as cool as Royal Oaks and Submariners. Ceramic or rubber are both great. Respect the tastes of others and just share this appreciation of watches together. Maybe it might make you consider a brand you never knew about previously. Caveat: unless they are truly poorly-constructed watches or are just outright a rip-off; we all dislike these too.
#3: There are no requirements for a collection
Don’t buy a piece because you want to fill some void in your collection. There are people who aspire to collect watches of every type — dive, pilot, dress, field, tool watch, grail watch, etc. and that is fine. However, it should really be up to your own preference, needs and purchasing power. Just because someone owns 50 pieces doesn't make their opinions more valid than others.
We should just enjoy watches for their heritage and technicality, it isn’t a competition.
