These models offer such unique attributes, sometimes at such killer values, that at least one of them just may end up in my collection one day (spoiler: one of them already has!), and if you are far enough along in your watch journey to ignore the “fashion watches = trash” trope, you may find yourself wanting to add at least one to your own collection.

I sometimes wonder just how much of a broken record I sound like on these Audicles, because the same themes keep popping up over and over, and I’m back again to say that while I understand how and why the luxury watch industry is going in this direction, my hypothesis is that this is detrimental to the long-term health of the business.

In my professional life I’ve tried to train myself to remember that insights alone aren’t worth nearly as much as those associated with implications and possible courses of action. With that in mind, in this Audicle I’m going to outline (with some help from a watch industry legend…) what I think various watch industry stakeholders could do if they believe, like I do, that the lights have been turned on and it’s time to leave the party that’s been happening since 2020.

Going forward, I do believe that the watch industry will face a contraction. However, this does not mean the luxury watch industry is going away, but rather that brands will have to be hyper-focused on the return of their marketing spend.

It seems to me that WRC is an untapped market and presents a favorable test-bed for the development of new markets and customers.

For those who only came into watches during the pandemic, it can be hard to believe that the watch industry would behave in any other way than a rocket ship upwards, but actually the intensity of the market’s recent surge has been nothing short of remarkable.

I’m a huge Omega fan and have previously given a pass to their larger sizes, but the diameters and thicknesses that seem to feature in every new model announcement are leading some in the watch community to ask if Omega is paying attention to what the market actually wants

I have not tried all of the world’s hobbies, but I have a hard time thinking that many of them could be more addictive and bottomless than watch collecting; one day you’re thinking “I’m looking for a nice watch, that’s all I’ll need”, and the next you’re weighing out different GMT options because you’re driving over to your in-laws’ place for the weekend.

The Ralph Lauren brand set up its watch portfolio in the worlds of motoring, equestrian, and safari-style watches for their collection, but me describing them this way does no justice to the beauty and uniqueness of how some of these watches turned out.

In my opinion, the mismanagement of the mainline Fifty Fathoms (not the Bathyscaphe line) exceeds even the baffling decision by IWC to wait until late last year to join the integrated bracelet sports watch crowd with its own icon, the Ingenieur, and I’m shocked that Blancpain continues to stumble forward with such an important piece of watch history.

The truth is that if you love watches, you love, well, watches plural, and it will be very hard to commit to just one watch for the rest of your life. Like Jason (and probably every one of you reading this), I’ve tried many, many times to commit to just the idea of one watch, and every time I’ve failed miserably.

A common theme in my writing is a frustration at “zombie opinions”, views that are widely shared, stated almost reflexively, without much thought, and that keep stumbling along despite tangible evidence to the contrary.

The view that Hublot produces nothing but horological trash, undeserving of any respect, is one such opinion. It needs to go from “undead” to fully dead, and there is plenty to work with to make that case.

Luxury watches have an undeniable appeal that goes beyond their mere functionality, and that appeal has only grown with the rise of social media and its associated “flex culture”. Supply and demand considerations aside, the inherent qualities of craftsmanship and timelessness mean that the price tags that accompany them often make them seem out of reach. Fortunately, purchasing a luxury watch pre-owned can be a smart alternative that offers several advantages over buying new.

Even if your “to buy” list of watches is relatively short, don’t you still have a ton of other watches kicking around in your head?

Some may belong to the “if I won the lottery I’d buy this” list, others are perhaps on the “yea this looks beautiful but I live in sweatpants now” list, and others maybe you just think about because they’re interesting.

That’s what I want to cover today: in no particular order, with no sponsorship dollars behind any of the entries, here are several watches that I can’t get out of my head.

If you have a moment and these seem interesting, I’d be very grateful if you could please check these out - or any of the other projects - and share your thoughts and feedback if you have any. You can reach me at contact@davidvaucher.com, or find me on The Real Time Show!

If you’re looking for something different, please do give The Real Time Show a listen (or two!). If you take the time to do that, I can almost guarantee that you will learn something, and you might even find yourself refreshed by the honest, open thoughts that Alon and Rob share with each other.

Unlike the dive watch, the pilot’s watch has not become ubiquitous in the public view, and when a company like IWC tries to sell a Big Pilot based on how authentically designed and functional it is, I feel as if I’m being sold a costume accessory.

If you’re still unconvinced, consider that I also like to wear aviator sunglasses and Schott bomber jackets. These are two items that, like dive watches, have shed almost completely their military origins, but would I ever wear them together?

The One Watch is the endpoint somewhere off in the distance of a journey that is highly personal, but for me, I think I've gotten as close as I may ever get with the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 600 m in 39.5 mm sizing, with a black dial (reference number 215.30.40.20.01.001).

Tudor DID do everything right with its North Flag, and yet this is a model that went nowhere. I’d go so far as to say that there is Tudor “pre-North Flag”, and Tudor “post-North Flag”, and the current trajectory that Tudor is on is almost entirely due to this model not taking off, when in fact it objectively had everything going for it.

In the decade-plus that I’ve been into watches, I’ve noticed that there is a very, very small handful of watches that are universal. And when I say universal, I mean that with as much certainty as I can glean without a formal data set. These are watches that pretty much everyone likes and that any watch collector who’s not simply looking to flex will enjoy. In fact, these watches are well-known to be as appreciated by collectors as are their Pateks and Rolexes.

Saying the Rolex Datejust is a “nice” watch is a take so obvious as to be basically useless, so in this article I’m going to take my time to unpack my own experiences with the Rolex Datejust 36 mm, and try my best to lay out why this watch is as good or bad, exciting or boring, as you want it to be.