The demise of the wristwatch is plotted herewith: it is on the timeline of the last graph "LIFE"- the last purple line on the right.

http://boingboing.net/2013/09/16/enormous-timescales-made-grasp.html

Cheers,
Marc

: This summer, a watch dealer in Amsterdam looked at my business
: card, which has a picture of a pocket watch on it, and said:

: “you still buy pocket watches? There is no money in it for me.
: Pocket watch collectors are like stamp collectors. They are all
: either dying or already dead.”

: I think there will always be a market for the great stuff, from the
: Upside-down Airplane stamp to the Patek perpetual calendar
: wristwatch to the grand complication pocket watch. But, what is
: going to happen to the not so grand goods?

: For a long time I just collected and dealt in pocket watches. The
: market always had its ups and downs but the interest/market was
: big enough so that the better part of the not so grand goods,
: like common high-grade railroad watches were still sought after.
: Right now, I think for the first time in my almost 40 years in
: the business, these watches are sort of getting to be like
: stamps. They have lost a tremendous amount of value and I doubt
: they will ever come back. A lot of the big collections are
: either just gathering dust or being sold at auction at cents on
: the dollar.

: Today, wristwatches are hot. Relatively common, jewelry store
: utility wrist watches like Speedmasters, Autavias, Universal
: Geneves etc…sort of the RR watches of the wristie side are
: selling for staggering prices relative to what they brought not
: too many years ago.

: The thing is, just as pocket watches were replaced, as useful
: technology, by new technology…the wristwatch, wristwatches, as
: useful technology, are being replaced by cell phones and other
: web connected devices.

: I know, I know…everybody here is going to tell me that the
: wristwatch is easy to wear and it is a status symbol and that
: there will always be the enthusiasts who need to have the cool
: little mechanical marvel on his wrist for whatever the reason. I
: am one of those enthusiasts so it is hard for me to argue. It is
: difficult for me to have a rational perspective, but I am seeing
: the interest in pocket watches wane, I think forever, and I am
: not so sure it can’t happen to the wrist watch too.

: I read with keen interest Rich’s recent “Heuer Market
: Update”. The following may have been the most interesting
: passage to me:

: “It is interesting to note that the old favourites, 1163T
: Autavia "Siffert" and the Std production 1133B
: "McQueen" whilst still being desirable, have seen
: slightly less demand of late. It is true to say that many other
: references (like the ones mentioned 5-6 lines above) are now
: being viewed with equal importance in the eyes of the serious
: collector.”

: Is part of the reason why this is happening with watches like the
: Siffert that the demand pushed the prices high enough so that
: enough examples came out of the woodwork to satisfy and cool the
: demand? This is what happened to “grail” RR watches several
: years ago.

: I am not saying that the wristwatch market is on the brink of a
: pocket watch like implosion but it will undoubtedly happen at
: some point. Just like RR watches, there were an awful lot of
: high grade but utilitarian wristwatches produced. There will
: always be a market for the true holy grails like the complicated
: Pateks and the grand complication pocket watches. There will
: probably continue to be a demand for for the uber condition
: examples of the high grade utility wristwatches. But, at some
: point a lot of people will move on and a lot of the middle of
: the road goods, which are in demand now…won’t be. How will
: we reach that point?

: JohnCote