Every respectable watch fan would probably go crazy if you use the phrase “fashion watch.” The internet is rife with arguments and conversations regarding them, particularly watch forums. But is that justifiable, and if so, why?
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I’ll define fashion watches in this post and go over what to anticipate from them.
The Customary Situation
A watch bearing the name of a non-watch-specializing corporation is referred to as a “fashion watch.” This often refers to the name of a fashion house.
I’ve also come across the phrase “undie watch.” This alludes to the fashion trend when a portion of the boxer shorts protrudes above the trousers. That is the area where the company name is often found.
To a certain extent, the negative feeling makes sense. I mean, wearing a watch that matches someone’s underpants isn’t that attractive. As a result, a lot of individuals have strong feelings against seeing watches with brands like Calvin Klein, Armani, or Boss on the dial.
In the Past
It is not unusual for outfitters or retail chains to place their logo on a watch manufactured by another party.
Harrods used to buy timepieces made by Cyma and Longines. Heuer and other firms supplied Abercrombie & Fitch with timepieces. Jewelry retailers without a history in watchmaking, such as Turler and Tiffany, purchased entire timepieces from manufacturers spanning a wide price range; ultimately, Tiffany bought timepieces from Vacheron Constantin and Patek Philippe that were autographed by them.
This was largely due to the fact that consumers were frequently more loyal to the store than to the company that made the product.
But Who Creates The Items of Modern Fashion?
These timepieces are not manufactured by fashion or garment companies. They don’t intend to make their own watches and don’t have the capabilities for such. They are often produced by specialist holdings.
The Movado Group makes the timepieces worn by Tommy Hilfiger and Hugo Boss. There is no need to introduce Movado.
Armani? The Fossil Group, who also owns Zodiac and the STP ebaucherie, is the manufacturer of them.
How do they seem?
Most of the time, we deal with Miyota quartz movements that have a mineral crystal housed in steel casings. Some employ Seiko ebauches as well. American apparel brand Kenneth Cole depends on Chinese movements made by Sea-Gull (Tianjin Watch Factory). Naturally, this is not limited to Chinese and Japanese movements. Calvin Klein, for instance, uses ETA and Ronda quartz movements to create its timepieces in Switzerland.
If the watch has a plating, it is often IP coating, which is significantly less resilient than PVD. Thus, caution is advised for anyone purchasing one with a black, gray, or gold covering. Of course, this is less important if the watch isn’t going to be used every day.
The band design is the one aspect of these watches that doesn’t really shout excellence. A mesh is quite acceptable as they are often made of good quality. However, the typical three-link bracelets are a whole other thing.
To be fair, the cotter-pin design isn’t that awful, and it isn’t too difficult to modify. However, the clasps are often made using cheap materials by the maker. While most still employ a friction-fit spring with a friction-fit security latch, some also use twin-trigger release clasps. These clasps typically lack microregulation and have a cheap feel to the finishing. Not even a spring bar with a couple of places for adjustability. Adding or removing links is the sole option to modify a link bracelet in these kinds of situations.
The usefulness of a fashion watch is typically restricted by its movements. Usually, it’s a day-date with a fictitious chronograph arrangement and a worthless 24-hour indication. And that’s frequently seasoned with a tachymeter scale, which is worthless in the absence of a chronograph. These are not horrible motions, mind you. After all, Citizen owns Miyota, and Citizen can be relied upon. Overall, the quality isn’t poor; rather, the watch falls short of what the design promises.
These timepieces aren’t going to be your go-to holiday beaters. They typically have a 30 m WR rating. seen some that are rated at 50m, but they are not common.
So, what exactly are you paying for?
The trademark. However, I wouldn’t condemn that as a universal sin of fashion firms. Numerous watch firms raise their prices repeatedly without providing any additional features above what they did before to the price rise.
In addition, a lot of individuals are primarily concerned with the style and brand tag of their preferred clothing brand. As long as there is demand, there must also be supply.
What about those that cost more than a few thousand dollars?
By now, companies like Hermes and Chanel have their own watch departments.
Hermes has only ever had timepieces customized for them in the past. Chanel was never particularly into timepieces in the first place, preferring to concentrate on perfumes and womenswear. These businesses are outfitters and fashion firms.
Hermes was the only company that ever dealt with timepieces more extensively, being a major reseller of watches. They have made significant investments in growing their watch sections in the past several years. A few of them move really well. At least they use ebauches from companies like Vaucher or Technotime if they aren’t created from scratch for them.
To place them in the same league as Armani, for instance, would be unfair. Although they technically meet the definition of a fashion watch, they go too far beyond what is often associated with the name.
Concluding remarks
The target market for fashion watches is considerably different from that of WIS. The target client is unlikely to utilize a fashion watch’s GMT function, even if it is included by the manufacturer. Simply said, the dial’s design ought to be eye-catching and draw attention to the designer’s label.
Not a terrible watch, either. There are, of course, exceptions. I’m not surprised by a fashion watch that seems like it may break any moment. However, they’re not the ones that are advertised on TV shopping channels and are infamous for leaking or having pieces come loose—that’s the domain of Invicta.
Fashion watch manufacturers provide very little, if any, guarantees. They don’t need to be very durable or have good water resistance because they aren’t intended to be field or dive watches. All they need to do is make an impression and go well with an ensemble.
