What Makes a Fashion Watch

NOTE - THESE ARE MY SPEAKING NOTES FOR A VLOG IVE DONE - HERE

THEREFORE THESE ARE JUST BULLET POINTS I USED AS PROMPTS - THEY ARENT CAREFULLY CONSTRUCTED SENTANCES AND A LOT OF CONTENT IS MISSING - GO WATCH THE VIDEO FOR A COMPLETE STORY.

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FIRST - THANKS TO ONE OF MY COMMENTORS FOR SUGGESTING THIS TOPIC.

NOW IF YOU’VE STUMBLED ONTO THIS AND ARENT A WATCH NERD

PERHAPS YOU’RE A BIG ALPHA M FAN AND YOURE CURIOUS ABOUT ALL THE FUSS REGARDING HIS CLAIM MVMT WATCHES ARE BETTER THAN ROLEXES

BEING LABELLED A FASHION WATCH IS A VERY, VERY BAD THING - IN THE WATCH COMMUNITY MY FEELING IS THAT BEING LABELLED A ‘FASHION’ WATCH WAY WORSE THAN BEING A KNOCK-OFF ONLY SLIGHTLY BETTER THAN BEING A COUNTERFEIT.

NOW - IS THIS EVEN A THING:

It's a term used by purist and snob wannabes.

OFF THE BAT I HAVE SOME SYMPATHY. WITH THIS VIEW - IM WARY OF SNOBBERY IN THE WATCH COMMUNITY: IM INTO ODD LITTLE OFF BROADWAY BRANDS AND SO GET PRICKLY ABOUT THE WHOLE SHITTER THING…….

BUT

NO - I DON'T ACCEPT ITS A SNOBBERY THING - IF YOU ARE INTO THIS AS A HOBBY AND CARE ABOUT WATCHES.

WHY - BECAUSE - AND MORE DETAIL ON THIS LATTER - IF YOU CARE ABOUT WATCHES YOU PROBABLY SHOULDNT INDULGE BRANDS THAT DON'T.

AND FASHION WATCHES ARE - ULTIMATELY - THOSE WATCHES MADE BY BRANDS THAT DON'T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THE WATCH.

THERE YOU GO - DONE, DEFINED, LET GO GRAB A COFFEE………….

ACTUALLY PROBABLY NOT THAT HELPFUL

NEED SOME GUIDELINES…TO IDENTIFY WHEN THE BRAND DOES CARE

SEARCH THE NET FOR 10 SECONDS AND YOU’LL FIND LOTS OF RULES

A WATCH PRODUCED BY A MANUFACTURER (OR RELEASED BY A BRAND, RATHER) THAT DOES NOT MAKE A MAJORITY OF THEIR SALES ON WATCHES EVERY YEAR.

OK - SO THATS CLEAR - SO OBVIOUSLY DW ISNT A FASHION WATCH THEN….OK, LETS TRY THAT AGAIN.

IF A BRAND PUTS SIGNIFICANT THOUGHT INTO THE DESIGN, AND PLACES A GENERIC MOVEMENT INTO THE PIECE, THEN BY THIS DEFINITION, IT WOULD BE A FASHION WATCH.

RIGHT - GOT IT - SO CARTIER/SINN/FORTIS/PARMAGINI ETC ARE FASHION WATCHES BUT FOSSIL IS COOL SINCE THEY’VE NOW BOUGHT A MOVEMENT MAKER - OK?…. NO THAT DOESNT FEEL QUITE RIGHT.

OK, COULD KEEP DOING THIS BUT I DON'T THINK ITS GOING TO WORK - DON'T THINK I CAN GOOGLE MY WAY OUT OF THIS.

LETS PICK A COUPLE OF WATCHES I RECKON TEST OUR BOUNDARIES A LITTLE BY BEING SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT.

MVMT/DW/MOVADO/GUCCI/FOSSIL/VINCERO





ALSO - AND THIS MIGHT BE A CHEAT - IM STICKING WITH MENS/UNISEX WATCHES.

THE INHERENT SEXISM AND RESULTING HYPERFEMINITY OF TRAD WOMENS WATCHES FROM EVERY BRAND MAKES THIS KIND OF MEANINGLESS - BUT THATS A WHOLE OTHER VIDEO IM NOT SURE IM QUALIFIED TO GO DOWN - LOOKING TO SEE TWO KATS AT TENN AND TWO TACKLE THAT.

NOT - NONE OF THIS IS A SLAM DUNK - GUIDE TO A JUDGEMENT

DESIGN

CURIOUSLY IT BEGINS WITH DESIGN - GENERALLY GENERIC/ROUTINELY COPIES/OFTEN RESEMBLE (OR ARE) CATALOGUE DESIGNS




WHERE THERE IS SOME NEW DESIGN ITS ABOUT THE BRAND NOT THE WATCH







OR TOTALLY RIDICULOUS





MOVEMENTS

DEFINITELY NO HARD RULES HERE - YOU ARE LOOKING FOR TRENDS ACROSS THE BRAND

GENERALLY PREDOMINATELY CHEAP QUARTZ - THIS ISNT ABOUT BASHING QUARTZ - HAS A TIME AND PLACE - PROVIDES SOME FUNCTIONALITY MECH CANT AND CAN BE WELL USED.

IN A FASHION BRAND HOWEVER QUARTZ IS SIMPLY A CHEAP DEFAULT.


ANOTHER INTERESTING CHARACTERISTIC - WHEN THERE’S A MECHANICAL MOVEMENT A FASHION WATCH WONT WASTE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TELL YOU

MATERIALS

PERHAPS PARADOXICALLY RARELY IF EVER IN ACTUAL PRECIOUS METALS:

FESTIVAL OF PLATING AND MORE RECENTLY PVD

MARKETING

ALMOST NEVER TALK ABOUT THE WATCH - ITS ABOUT YOU!

WATCH DETAILS WILL USUALLY BE PRETTY SCARCE

ALMOST NOTHING THAT CONNECT THE WATCH TO ANYTHING OTHER THAN ITS LOOKS







NO HISTORY, NO ATTACHMENTS TO FOUNDERS, NO STORY


PRICE

USUALLY OVERLY EXPENSIVE FOR WHAT IT IS














SO LETS RUIN THROUGH THIS

DESIGN - COPIES/GENERIC/DELIBERATELY GROSS AND ATTENTION SEEKING

MOVEMENT - CHEAP OR PREDOMINATELY FOR A DISPLAY

MATERIALS - CHEAP - HEAVY EMPHASIS ON APPEARANCE AND FAUX

MARKETING - SCANT INFORMATION, DISCONNECTED FROM HISTORY, DISCONNECTED FROM THE CREATORS, WATCHES SEEM UNATTACHED TO ANYTHING OTHER THAN AN EPHEMERAL LOOK

PRICE - USUALLY FAR HIGHER THAN YOUD EXPECT GIVEN THE BASE.

NOT ALL ALL THE TIME BUT MOST MOST OF THE TIME.

ESSENTIALLY A LACK OF INTEGRITY - OR RETRUNING TO THE EXESTIALISM IVE DISCUSSED BEFORE - A LACK OF AUTHENTICITY

SOME ‘REAL’ WATCHES WILL HAVE SOME OF THESE TOO. HUBLOT/TAG/JACOB AND CO NOTE HOW THESE ARE ‘REAL’ BRANDS WITH DODGY FEELINGS

GOES TO SHOW - ITS NOT A BINARY ITS A SPECTRUM AND A JUDGEMENT CALL - DON'T LOOK FOR A SLAM DUNK, A SIMPLE RULE.

LOOK AT THE TOTALITY OF THE BRAND AT THE DESIGNS/MATERIALS/MARKETING/MOVEMENTS/PRICING AND ASK YOURSELF

DO I SEE INTEGRITY - DO I SEE AUTHENTICITY - IF IN THE MAIN THE ANSWER IS NO THEN YOU ARE LOOKING AT A FASHION WATCH.