Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in Volume II of B.H. Magazine. For access to future issues, subscribe here.
Evolving taste in the watch world might move glacially compared to the relentlessness of fashion, but it would be a mistake to assume things don’t change at all.
If you’d asked a watch collector what their grail timepiece was a few years ago, they would have almost certainly replied: “A Paul Newman Rolex Daytona.” Today, their answer would be very different.
While the collecting cognoscenti have obsessed over stainless-steel sports watches for the past decade or more, now, individuality is the name of the game. No longer do collectors dream of tracking down a Rolex Submariner 5513 Comex or an early Longines 13ZN chronograph. Instead, unique forms and rare materials are the most desirable qualities of a timepiece.
But when did this shift in taste begin, and does it have the momentum to endure in the same way steel sports watches did?
Image credit: Sotheby’s
One of the world’s most well-known collectors of shaped watches, Roni Madhvani, believes the increased attention towards design-focused watches began during the pandemic years and was accelerated by the relaunch of the Dalí-esqueCrash watch by Cartier.
“The role of certain celebrities in endorsing the Crash and the hype on social media around this created a general awakening towards unusual watches,” explains Madhvani.
Enthusiasm for Cartier has played a huge role in the lust for shaped watches, and much of the swell began in 2019, when Cartier entered the mainstream zeitgeist through Kanye and Tyler, the Creator. More recently, Cartier has relaunched the model and opened a piece unique program for its VIP clients, allowing collectors to design their very own Cartier Crash.
“As discernment grows with the maturing collector, they will have a greater appreciation for design-genre watches.”
In vintage collecting, unusually shaped timepieces from the likes of Cartier, Piaget, and Patek Philippe have never been more popular, inspiring new watch brands to launch with design strength as their point of difference. Former chief product officer at Breitling, Sylvain Berneron, launched his eponymous brand in 2023, with his debut watch, the Mirage, offering a twisted take on the classic dress watch.
“I have spent many years designing watches for brands like IWC and Breitling where, as a designer, I do not disrupt the brand with my design, but rather evolve it carefully with attention to the brand’s DNA,” says Berneron.
“Yet, I always wanted to design a watch where I am absolutely free and unrestricted in the creative process. That’s why I decided to found Berneron and design my very own watches, with the philosophy of form following function.”
Berneron adds, “The supremacy of sports watches over the last ten years has slowly come to an end and people are starting to take a look at what they could wear and collect next.”
For CHF 55,000, Berneron’s Mirage is aimed at collectors who have already bought and sold plenty, but the more affordable end of the market is seeing a similar change.
Another newcomer to the design-focused watch landscape is Anoma, founded by Matteo Violet-Vianello in 2024. His debut watch is the A1 (£1,300), inspired by a triangular table from the 1950s designed by French architect Charlotte Perriand.
“I started Anoma because I noticed a gap in the market for more experimental and daring watch designs,” says Violet-Vianello.
“I wanted to break away from conventional watch design and infuse bold creativity from other fields into the world of horology.”
He believes that design-focused watches are compelling to collectors because “they offer a fresh perspective and allow for personal expression.”
You’d be forgiven for thinking more recently launched design-focused brands were born to meet the demand of this emerging market, but as Toledano & Chan co-founder Phil Toledano explains, watch brands are years in the making.
“Alfred [the brand’s other co-founder] and I started actively working on the brand around three and a half years ago, which at the time was a totally stupid idea. The watch-collecting landscape was very different — it was still a Daytona frenzy. But now, by total accident, we look like geniuses,” says Toledano.
“We asked ourselves, ‘Why isn’t someone making a beautiful sculptural watch you can wear like they did in the ’60s and ’70s; why is that not happening?’ We both just loved those watches and we loved brutalist architecture, so we started working on the B/1,” adds Toledano.
The B/1 (US$4,000) is another timepiece with an unlikely source of inspiration — an asymmetric window on the facade of the Marcel Breuer-designed Whitney Museum in New York.
Both Anoma’s A1 and the Toledano & Chan B/1 sold out in record time (all 175 pieces of the B/1 sold out in 45 minutes), confirming the market for such timepieces. Buyers are looking beyond ambassadors and brand stories, seeking watches with diverse and fascinating inspiration. The roaring collector appetite speaks to a broader shift in collectors’ raison d’etre.
Taste has evolved beyond the safety of the herd, with collectors now seeking out pieces that are unique or at least rare enough that two examples are unlikely to ever be spotted together.
In a conversation with a well-respected auction house dealer, he explains that collectors aren’t interested in seeing a watch they own on the wrist of the person next to them. Taste has evolved beyond the safety of the herd, with collectors now seeking out pieces that are unique or at least rare enough that two examples are unlikely to ever be spotted together.
“Collectors are putting a higher value on individuality and considered taste over conformity,” says Violet-Vianello of Anoma.
“I believe that the era of owning the same few iconic models as a status symbol is giving way to a more nuanced appreciation for unique and thoughtfully designed timepieces, which now serve as the new markers of a discerning collector.”
Madhvani has a slightly different perspective. “Iconic watches, like those from the Rolex stable, the Nautilus, or the Royal Oak, will always remain top of the aspirational list for most,” but also believes, “as discernment grows with the maturing collector, they will have a greater appreciation for design-genre watches.”
Berneron has the most refreshing take, however: “It has gone from impressing others, to finally impressing yourself.”
While classic mid-century designs remain a strong source of inspiration for many younger, more affordable brands, suchas Baltic, Furlan Marri, and Serica, their youth allows them the flexibility to explore beyond the classics. As knowledge grows and taste develops within the community, the watches peoplewant to buy and wear are likely to get more specific with time.
“For a young brand like mine, the lack of deep archives or tradition is actually liberating,” says Violet-Vianello.
“It allows for greater creative freedom and the opportunity to define our own identity without being bound by past conventions. While trends may evolve, the appreciation for innovative design is likely to remain constant.”
With individuality now an established part of the game, the future for design-focused watches sparkles like a Clous de Parisbezel in the midday sun.
If you’ve enjoyed this feature story, consider a few of our other favourites from the pages of B.H. Magazine:
Nick Kenyon is the Editor of Boss Hunting, joining the team after working as the Deputy Editor of luxury watch magazine Time+Tide. He has a passion for watches, with other interests across style, sports and more. Get in touch at nick (at) luxity.com.au
