There are pretty much countless different watch types produced by just as many different watch brands. With so many choices and options to choose from, you may be wondering what makes a good watch brand? How, exactly, does one distinguish a good watch brand, from a not so good one?
Well, fortunately there are really 3 main factors that you need to look at in a watch brand. These are the build quality, design, and pricing. A balance of these 3 components is what makes for a good watch brand.
A good watch brand makes watches of exceptional quality with stylish designs, at affordable prices. Any brand that achieves this is going to largely be successful among consumers. So, now that we know this, we can take a closer look at these 3 categories, and later show examples of brands that balance these factors quite well.
Qualities of A Good Watch Brand
Build Quality
We’ll start with this one. This is going to be an important factor when it comes to watches. You are going to want a watch that lasts. A watch that can stand the test of time. This is usually achieved through the use of quality components. What you need to look at when it comes to build quality is the materials used, as well as the water resistance.
Most watches have cases made of stainless steel. This material is good against corrosion, and therefore lasts for a very long time. Now there are different grades of stainless steel, depending on the type of watch. Luxury watches commonly use higher grades of stainless steel than others.
Next, is water resistance. Obviously, a watch that can withstand water is going to last much longer than a watch that doesn’t. There are different levels of water resistance as well. The levels of water resistance are going to range from watches that can handle a few splashes, all the way up to watches that can be taken deep diving.
Design & Style
Design and style are a couple of factors that can make or break a brand. After all, a watch could be the best watch in the world, but if it is ugly, then that is going to make it less desirable.
There are an innumerable number of styles that watches can come in, and they vary depending on the type of watch you are dealing with.
Fashion watches, for instance, are going to be focused more on current and popular trends. Luxury watches, on the other hand, are going to have styles that appeal more to classical sensibilities.
Then, of course you have your outdoor and sports watches, which will have to have more durable constructions, while at the same time maintaining a more dynamic aesthetic.
Any way you look at it though, style is going to be important. This can sometimes be tricky for a brand to pull off, because style and fashion can be very much subjective. However, a good way to balance this out is for a brand to try to stand out in their own way, while at the same time not going too overboard as far as flashiness goes.
Pricing
Pricing can be a deal breaker for a brand. Understandably, a company must make profits, and ideally maximize those profits. This is going to be one of those areas that you have to look at on a brand by brand basis.
Take fashion watches, for example. In general, fashion watches usually use lesser quality materials to manufacture their watches. However, they are still able to charge a premium based on the name of the brand and its popularity. In this case, it comes down to how well the brand can keep up with trends, as well as the extent of their marketing efforts.
With luxury watches, on the other hand, you have watches that are made of high quality materials. In addition to that many luxury Swiss mechanical watches are hand crafted to fine precision. These types of factors can lead to extremely high priced watches. Add name brands that have longstanding reputations, and you will find some of the highest priced watches on the market.
Finally, you have your tool watches, which are watches designed for specific purposes. These can include sports watches, smartwatches, dive watches, etc. In these scenarios, a lot of times the prices increase with the amount of functionality and features the watch contains.
That pretty much covers the 3 major factors to look at when it comes to determining what watch brands are good brands. In the next part we will briefly describe a few examples of good watch brands.
Notable Good Watch Brands
Casio
Casio is a well known Japanese watch manufacturer. What makes them good is the amount of styles they have. They produce some very durable and well made watches at Incredibly low prices at times. They are the company responsible for the ever popular G-Shocks.
Seiko
Seiko is another popular name when it comes to Japanese watch manufacturers. This company has had a major impact on the entire industry as they introduced Japanese quartz watches into the market. Their watches and styles have always impressed.
Tissot
What makes Tissot so great is that, as an entry level Swiss luxury brand, it brings fashion and elegance at a more affordable price. For people who want to experience the quality and style of Swiss watches, but not spend an arm and a leg, Tissot has much to offer in this area.
These are just a few examples of brands strike a great balance between quality style, and pricing. There are many others, but this is a good starting point.
Conclusion
Deciding on a good watch brand can sometimes seem like a daunting task. However, by following these simple guidelines, you can start to narrow your search down a bit.
That’s it for this dissection into watch brands. Hopefully the information provided in this article has helped you out a bit. For more interesting facts about watches, you can check out our Info section here
