Watches A to Z: Movado

Movado detractors deride the brand for being a commonplace watch choice among upscale American consumers.  But, the company is no upstart.  It has a long and storied history.  

Photo by Sumiemyra, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

The firm was founded in Switzerland by watchmaker Achilles Ditesheim in 1881.  Three Ditesheim brothers (Leopold, Isadore, and Achilles) combined their independent watchmaking concerns in 1892 to found L.A. & I. Ditesheim, Fabricants. It was one of the first modern factories in the watchmaking town of La Chaux-de-Fonds.  In 1905, the company was renamed Movado--which means "always in motion" in the international language Esperanto.

A circa 1950 Movado watch. Photo by - Bachelot Pierre J-P, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

As a watch company, Movado introduced many innovations. For example, in 1912, they introduced the Polyplan watch.  It was a tanker-style watch that curved to the wrist and had a movement that was angled  on 3 separate plans to allow the watch design to follow the contour. The original Movado Polyplan watch command thousands of dollars on auction sites.  But, this Peugeot Men's Classic Vintage Curved Watch (below), captures the essence of the design in an affordable quartz format.

Peugeot Men's Classic Vintage Curved Watch (Amazon photo)

In 1926, they introduced an art deco pocket watch called the Ermeto chronometer with a clever movement that wound the watch whenever the case was opened.

1928 Ermeto photo by Jafd88, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

In 1947, Nathan George Horwitt designed the Museum Dial watch that has become synonymous with Movado over the years.  This modern quartz version shows the variety within the concept with a black sunburst radiating from the classic golden dot.  You can find this Museum Classic with a Swiss Quartz movement here on Amazon.

According to the Movado Group website, Cuban refugee, Gedalio Grinberg founded North American Watch Corporation in 1965. That company acquired Movado in 1983. The company then evolved into Movado Group, Inc. In recent years, the company has built an impressive portfolio of watch brands including Ebel, Burton, and MVMT. It has also licensed brands such as Coach, Tommy Hilfiger, Hugo Boss, LaCoste and Scuderia Ferrari.

Movado history keeps moving forward. A vintage watch from Movado recently made headlines. According to a recent article in the Robb Report, Winston Churchill's 1946 Movado Calendrograf watch will soon be auctioned off with an asking price of a cool $192,500.

With a rich history of over a hundred years, it is clear that Movado has a bright future ahead as a luxury watch brand.

Watch Wearing Wednesday: Izod Quartz Sport Watch

For this watch wearing Wednesday, my Izod Quartz Sport Watch got the call. I like the way this quick snapshot turned out with a local skyscraper and office building complex in the background and clouds reflected off the crystal of this watch.

An Izod Quartz Sports Watch with a skyscraper in the background

I like the black and red combination in this Izod watch.  Black and Red are almost the official sports colors here in Atlanta.  The Georgia Bulldogs (College Football), Atlanta Falcons (NFL Football), and Atlanta United (MLS Soccer) all use combinations of black and red.  The Atlanta Dream (WNBA Basketball) and Atlanta Braves (MLB Baseball) often use lots of red in their uniforms as well. 

Sunlight plays across the case and dial of my Izod

I got this watch for about $20 at Burlington Coat Factory.  Izod is one of the nicer watch brands that I find in their stores.  Since parting ways with LaCoste in the 1990s, Izod has positioned itself to offer goods at lower prices to a broader variety of people, but the brand still has a strong sense of style and identity. Here are some other Izod watches that I've come across over the years.

TGIF: Affordable Alternatives to the Rolex Explorer

We've been programmed to want them: the elite European watches. "They" put watches like the Rolex Submariner and Explorer on the back cover of National Geographic and on the big turns of every race track. Our movie heroes wore them.  Our favorite musicians wore them. Advertising and product placements fueled our desire. The watch lust became a part of us. Some succeeded in attaining that dream Rolex watch. God bless their energy, education, drive, and good fortune. But, many others among us found out that the world had other more sinister plans to move that dream further and further away.

A Rolex Explorer II (Rolex Explorer 2.JPG: TheMonster17derivative work: Pittigrilli, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

We learned that some watch makers will buy back models that don't sell well so that they can be destroyed rather than be liquidated at a discount.  You will never luck out and find a Rolex at a Ross Dress for Less store. If you're a western worker in technology, you'll undoubtedly feel downward wage pressure from low cost offshore competition and a vast pool of guest worker contract labor. Add in inflation usurping your purchasing power and the game becomes more challenging. Fortunately, there are ways to stop playing the game by their rules.  In this post, we'll look at affordable alternatives to the Rolex Explorer.  There are many great alternatives to that vaunted timepiece that won't break our bank accounts or divert money from other important financial goals.

Rolex Explorer I - Photo by Thierry Mostra-store, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

First, let's take a look at homage watches.  Homage watches have styles that are obviously inspired by iconic watches.  Sometimes the watch is an almost exact copy that differs only in the logo on the dial, some materials used, and the internal mechanism that drives the watch. Pagani Design offers affordable alternatives to several common Rolex models.  Take a look at their Rolex Explorer 2 GMT Alternative:

Pagani Design Automatic GMT Watch (Amazon Photo)

You can find the Pagani Design GMT Automatic here on Amazon for about 1/10 of the price of a Rolex Explorer II.  That's over $10,000 that could be used for investments or other purposes.

The Rolex Explorer 1 is a tall order for most middle class watch enthusiasts, but a company called AddiesDive has a wonderful quartz homage for a fraction of the cost.

AddiesDive VH31 (Amazon Photo)

The AddiesDive 36mm Small Dial VH31 Stainless Steel Quartz Watch is available here on Amazon for a pittance.

Of course, sometimes an homage watch can seem like it is trying too hard to be an exact replica of the inspiration watch.  If you don't want to look like a "wannabe," take a step back and look at what people value about the original watches. Setting aside rarity and prestige branding, people are drawn to the practicality of the Rolex Explorer series. The watch is readable, simple, and of a comfortable size. There are literally thousands of watches that fit that criteria. You might simply choose a sensible Seiko to meet that need. You can get this one with a brilliant sun ray blue dial for a sensible price here on Amazon.  It's romantically called the Model SZSB013.

Seiko Men's Automatic Watch (Model SZSB013)

If you let yourself breathe a little and look away from the unobtainable brands, you may find plenty of watches from companies like Seiko, Citizen, Bulova, Orient, Tissot, Timex, and Wenger that fit the bill.  All of these companies have long, rich, proud histories of their own.  You can arrive at the readable, practical, watch that fits your budget and has its own heritage. Ultimately, you can define your own prestige watch.

Watch Deal Alert: Bulova Archive Series - Military A-15 Pilot

I don't usually post more than once per day, but today I came across an excellent deal on a Bulova military-inspired field watch.  The watch is an automatic with a hack feature. It's listed on Amazon here as the Bulova Archive Series: Military and it's an amazing 51% off. A little research on the Bulova site reveals this watch to be the Bulova A-15 Pilot. It looks like a field watch, but has aviation-inspired features.

The Bulova Archive Series - Military A-15 Pilot watch

The Bulova A-15 is an automatic watch with an unusual feature: two rotating discs within the dial.  One disc sits appears to be the minute track, but works like the unidirectional bezel of a dive watch to record elapsed time. The other disc just inboard of the first one  provides hour markings and can be set to provide the time in another timezone.  These unexpected features make this watch a big leap above baseline field watches and make this a watch collectors should consider. There is no telling how long these Amazon Deals last.  The savings is over $300 so, if you like this watch, it may be time to make a purchase here.

Watch Wearing Wednesday: My Chase Durer and Haunted Halloween Fun

Step right up ladies and gentlemen, it's almost Halloween and time for the scariest show on Earth!  Can you survive?  Perhaps if you escape in the nick of time!  As we confront the ringmaster, we need to have the right timepiece.

A Giant Ringmaster Challenges Us!

Tonight, we wear the my Chase Durer Stainless Steel Quartz Chronograph.  It's a stout watch inspired by the rigors of aviation.  Is it stout enough to confront the enraged circus bear?  The brand's slogan is a "Squadron for the Daring!"

The Angry Bear Threatens!

 It's the fiercest creature under the big top and tonight it dances angrily!  If you play the video, be prepared for a roar that will send you running!

Next is a dash by horrors unknown.  As the circus lights grow dim, there are horrors that we cannot comprehend!  While the Chase Durer Chronograph has 200 meters of water resistance, it might not be able to fortify your soul!

It's just a scarecrow right? Right? Guys? Guys!!!

The crowd is closing in!  And the unidirectional bezel on this watch won't spin fast enough to separate them from their heads! But, with a 50mm case, this watch is stout and strong.  It is well-suited for showering, swimming, or snorkeling, but not for wading through fiends!

The Chase Durer Chronograph confronts ghouls!

It's a game you cannot win, unless you get very lucky when you spin the wheel!  But, tonight, you live!  The Invicta lords must be watching over you just as they watch over the Chase Durer brand under licensing and manufacturing agreements.  You can read more about the brand at the Chase Durer homepage.

The wheel of fates spins in your fortune!

This tortuous path of fear and panic was made possible by the fun products at my local Spirit Halloween Store.  It's a fun place to visit during the Halloween season.  They have everything you need for costume parties or for decorating your yard or home for Halloween fun.

If you want to get a watch like this, check out InvictaStores.com. For less than $100, this watch is a steal! You can find the watch at this link -

https://invictastores.com/chase-durer-men-s-watch-50mm-blue-cdw-0076

A Cemetery Walk in Smyrna, Georgia, with my Citizen Watch

A Stroll with my Citizen Stainless Steel Quartz Chronograph Watch

Watches have long been associated with adventures.  Mountain climbing, SCUBA diving, Formula 1 racing and various arctic and jungle expeditions have all been sponsored by watch companies. My local adventures are a little more low-key. As this is October and fall is upon us, some of my adventures have included walks in our local cemeteries. They are old and slightly spooky.  However, the fall leaves are beautiful and these cemeteries are tranquil places nestled in a very busy city.  Let's take an early October stroll through Smyrna Memorial Cemetery in the Atlanta suburbs.  It's a small angular cemetery that's about a block long.

The Smyrna Memorial Cemetery Gate is Open to All Who Venture

In early October, the leaves have really started to change, but they haven't peaked. My Citizen watch places us in the late Afternoon. The date reads '31' as I have forgotten that September only has 30 days.  With a 46mm case and a white dial, the watch is easy to read in the shadows and the edge of the shadow world.   

A Historical Marker for Smyrna Memorial Cemetery

I love the old tombstones that are sometimes nestled in family plots.  They tell the stories of families long departed.  Some are surrounded by intricate wrought iron fences.  When the inscriptions are readable, they chronicle love stories and tragedies.  Babies who died in the era of primitive medicine.  Couples who passed away within months of each other.  It's all there for those who care to pause and ponder.

A Family Plot surrounded by Wrought Iron

As the sun gets lower in the sky, I'm cognizant of the days growing shorter.  But, they provide a glow to the trees and changing leaves.

The Citizen Stainless Steel Quartz Chronograph

As I stroll, I hear the rustle of leaves.  Chipmunks and squirrels forage.  But, they are being watched--as am I.  I catch a glimpse of a hawk maneuvering in the tree tops and surveying the scene. The cycle of life plays out daily in this place.  It spans moments and centuries.

A hawk perches in a tree surveying the landscape

With my errands in the village done, it's time to depart.  The cycle of life must continue.  The hawk is hungry and so am I.

The full color of leaves in Smyrna Memorial Cemetery

I pause for a shot of the church that lies behind the cemetery.  The steeple is framed nicely by the trees. As I review the photos later, I see that an orb floats below the steeple and above a tombstone.  I'm sure, it's just a reflection. Right?

A mysterious orb appears to float above a tombstone.  Probably just an optical illusion.

I hope you've enjoyed my little adventure. I'm sorry it didn't involve sharks, crocodiles, extreme temperatures, and only the slimmest possibility of ghosts or spirit animals. But, it was a few minutes of meditation. If you'd like more information about the Citizen Stainless Steel Chronograph, you can read my review here on this blog.

Watch Wearing Wednesday: Timex Expedition Gallatin Out Among the Fall Foliage

 As fall progresses, I've taken my Timex Expedition Gallatin out for a drive among the turning leaves. I reviewed this watch before here on this blog.

Timex Expedition Gallatin

While the leaves haven't officially peaked in my area, the colors are certainly turning and turning fast. The 11.5mm thick case doesn't stand too tall on the wrist.

Timex Expedition Gallatin on a fall drive

But, with an easy to read with a 44mm diameter case, bold diver-style hour markings, and large well-marked hands, the Timex Expedition Gallatin is always to read in any environment.

Timex Expedition Gallatin Face and Bezel shown on a drive through fall color

The Timex Expedition Gallatin is available on Amazon in the Black Case/Green Strap combination (shown) or with a Black Case/Black Strap combination (for extra ninja-ness).  You can find the Gallatin here on Amazon. It's a fun and comfortable watch for daily wear.