Since the Apple Watch came out last week, there have been many articles about whether or not Apple will make it as a luxury brand. Most of the articles question if Apple will be able to enter the upper echelons of society with its jaw dropping $10,000 Apple Watch Edition or if the gadget will ever be considered chic, especially after Google failed to do so with its (in)famous Glass. What few of these articles have mentioned is the fact that Apple is already a luxury brand. Its products are already used by the upper tiers of society over its competitors; luxury fashion designers already create accessories for Apple products and design few to none for Android equivalents. Apple’s attention to detail is what keeps Apple a favorite among those who value aesthetics and quality. In fact, the Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was the favorite luxury brand in China, beating classic brands like Louis Vuitton and Chanel for both men and women. Apple has even hired big time fashion executives like Angela Ahrendts from Burberry and Paul Deneve from Yves Saint Laurent. So really the question isn’t if Apple can maintain a luxury clientele, but if Apple can infiltrate the luxury watch industry. All of the other products (phone, tablet, laptop, mp3 player) have easily gotten traction internationally, the difference here is that Apple and Android smartwatches are trying to infiltrate an already entrenched industry with many followers.
First, let’s give some context with a quick history lesson on watches. The mechanical watch was invented in 1275 in England and quickly spread throughout Europe. In 1541, Reformer John Calvin of Geneva banned all jewelry making in Switzerland, forcing any jewelry makers to find a new craft - watchmaking; this is what sparked the famed Swiss watch industry. Innovations to the industry are sprinkled throughout history with improvements on precise timekeeping and size of these mechanisms. The wristwatch, however, didn’t come into fruition until, like many products, it was required by the military. The first wristwatch was invented after an officer in the German Imperial Navy reportedly complained that operating a pocket watch was difficult when timing a bombardment. Soon after, many watchmakers from Switzerland were sent to Berlin to create wristwatches for the military. The wristwatch really took hold when the founder of Cartier, Louis Cartier, designed the Tank Watch. It’s said to have been conceived after Cartier returned from WWI and is designed based on the aerial view of a tank with the rectangular shape and lateral tracks. The original piece is on display at the Paris Air Museum. The Tank has been worn by Angelina Jolie, Princess Diana, John F. Kennedy and more. The watch design still survives today and ranges from $2,000 to $150,000+. By the end of World War I, wearing a wristwatch became the preferable form of timekeeping. Charles Lindbergh completed the first transatlantic solo flight, from New York to Paris, in 1927 while wearing a wristwatch by Longines.
Wristwatches quickly became required for men trying to succeed in the professional world. While they were originally worn for purely utilitarian purposes, they became a status symbol as men tried to obtain the most complex watches that were the most precise, minimized bulk, and now include multiple time zones or stopwatches. Watches have generally been optional for women and worn mainly as jewelry though many still appreciate the quality in their construction and the convenience of quickly checking the time of day. Many people even invest in wristwatches that have innovations in timekeeping or limited edition designs.
Chances are that even if you don’t invest in rare watches, your watch will still be worth roughly the same amount years later. This is not true for smartwatches. Smartwatches do not have centuries of refined craftsmanship behind them (though Apple tried to convince people of this in their design videos) and they don’t have enduring value. Most people upgrade their phones every couple years but not their watches. Yes, luxury clients are willing to spend thousands of dollars on watches or handbags but that is usually with the assumption that it will last a matter of decades, not months. On the other hand, many younger people have stopped wearing watches altogether because their phone serves the purpose. Smartwatches have a multifold problem in front of them: how do you convince young people who don’t wear watches to buy them? Will the group of people drawn to the craftsmanship and status of classic wristwatches budge? And how do you justify an accessory gadget to be replaced every few years? How can the smartwatch distinguish itself from smart phones or activity trackers? It will be interesting to see how smartwatches develop and solve these problems.