Annette and Mark create a personal three watch collection with this healthy budget. The only rules are one vintage watch and you have to be able to buy thew watch in the US easily.

Listen to see what they pick and see who you think did a better job.

While Rolex dominates the luxury watch industry and has earned millions of fans both inside and outside collecting communities it has also found more than a few detractors.

We have traditionally been critical of the crown, but maybe a sit down on the fictional hodological therapy couch can change our opinion.

On this episode we list a few from both sides of the expectations game from Nomos, Omega, Moser, Oris, Maurice Lacroix and others.

The idea of calling the Sealander an homage to the Rolex Oyster Perpetual launched Annette into rant mode and uses this week's podcast to air her grievances. 

Sometimes we all need to yell into the void and we are sure many watch enthusiasts share our opinions on watch design, internet trolls, and a general appreciation for what Christopher Ward and the team over in England has been able to pull off in recent years.

We give our own opinion on the Swatch collaborations and some thoughts on how good and bad this latest collaboration of plastic timekeeping.

We talk about how amazing it is to see the growing love of watches in others and how it impacts our appreciation for our own journey.

But, these auctions also represent a chance to learn about rare one of ones, historically important watches, and the never before seen in public pieces. They are full of history and design that you cannot find anywhere else. They offer a chance to learn about the world of watches from the rare and unique.

Annette and Mark dive into the Monaco Legends Auction from April 25th and 26th to take a look at some interesting, rare, and museum worthy watches that help show why the world of watch auctions is worth your time and attention.

Mark also goes on a bit of a rant on watch journalism for clear factual errors on the Rolex reporting, and for once defends Rolex when doing so.

We go over a very brief history of the brand before diving into the entire lineup from Polerouter to Disco Volante Uni-Compax chronographs.

Not to ruin the surprise, but we think they did a hell of a good job and have a few on our wishlist.

We go over the NASA tests of Rolex, Omega, Longines, and Hamilton to see which watch would go to the Moon and how Omega won the fight.

A much less talked about fight from Bulova a to replace Omega a few years earlier leads to some interesting facts about American built Speedmasters.

Enjoy the conversation as we talk nerdy about watches in space!

NOMOS and Denison have a few new options but the other big talk of the week was the remodeled Longines Hydro Conquest. We talk about the challenges of designing dive watches, and how the new Longines stacks up.

Takeaways

• Watches and Wonders anticipation leads to a lull in new watch releases.
• The Christopher Ward C63 True GMT and the manufacturing facility of AP are discussed in detail.
• The introduction of the AI Dada watch by Swatch is explored, highlighting its unique features and limitations. Custom watch design process
• Appointment of new CEO at Tag Heuer

Watch brand names have historically been the last name of the founders with a few names of factory locations thrown in. More modern watch brands have created new words that were easy to say for marketing, think Rolex. The latest brands follow the lead of modern companies and create a name that is memorable over the idea of naming it for the founders.

Do these different approaches change the way you think of a brand? Does the difficult to pronounce older brands have a harder time marketing?

We talk it over on this weeks episode of Matties To Watches.

Formula 1 and watches have a long history together that goes back to the 1960s when Heuer became the first team watch sponsor. Today most teams have a watch sponsor along with TAG Heuer being the overall timing sponsor of Formula 1.

Mark and Annette take a look at each team and the watches made for them, along with the few teams who do not have a watch and what we think would be a good fit for them.

The conversation delves into the impact of marketing on watch brands, the shift in consumer preferences and market trends, and the ongoing debate between quality and marketing in the watch industry with an emphasizing the importance of quality and design. We explore brand performance, market trends, and the impact of brand revamps and design changes. The success of specific brands, the role of marketing, and the challenges and opportunities for Omega are also discussed, along with what we would do to fix Omega.

Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction and Morgan Stanley Watch Report
• 06:03 Role of Luxury Brands in Watch Market
• 16:01 Consumer Behavior in Watch Industry
• 21:22 The Impact of Marketing on Watch Brands
• 34:08 Quality vs. Marketing in Watch Brands
• 59:27 Innovative Product Strategies for Omega

Is your favorite microbrand watch mentioned?

She took her love of watches into the social media realm, like many of us, during lockdown under the name The Watchbox Diaries. The positive response from the community to her authenticity led her to start a YouTube channel under the same name and even eventually work in watches at Paulin, the sister brand to AnOrdain.

Lucy also takes on the Watch Questionnaire, a series of questions meant to get to who you are as a watch collector.

They also take the Watch Questionnaire to get to the heart of who they are as watch collectors.