It’s Microbrands’ Time To Shine
When it comes to luxury watches, time is money. Long-established brands like Rolex, Cartier, Omega, and Patek Philippe all have stellar reputations for craftsmanship, style, and precision, but those pedigrees often come with steep price tags. And that has left space for cheaper, smaller-scale microbrands to build their own followings, tick by tick.
The horological hustle: Legacy brands often charge thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars for their timepieces. And prices have been getting higher: Rolex’s retail prices jumped 18% in the past two years, according to pre-owned watch marketplace Bob’s Watches. Meanwhile, independent microbrand companies—like Baltic, Serica, Formex, and Traska—tend to price their watches in the hundreds and low thousands.
It’s not just about the price tag
Bigger watch companies typically stick to variations on classic designs that made them a success. But microbrands have more freedom to get a little weirder and explore what a luxury watch can really look like:
- Studio Underd0g has a whole line of food-themed watches.
- Mr Jones Watches offers timepieces featuring an alien abduction and robots playing pinball.
- This model from Japanese watchmaker Ōtsuka Lōtec manages to look both old-school and futuristic.
Legacy brands still have a big advantage: Their time-tested watches can be highly collectible, whereas microbrands have a steeper uphill climb in that area. But industry analysts expect the microbrand watch market to grow 25% over the next five years, according to Illinois-based Sangamon Watches.—BC
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