Duffymcpatzer
108
The Rodney Dangerfield brands - Hey I get no respect!
Hi gang,
Probably showing my age with that title reference, but thought I'd have a little discussion about quality yet underappreciated (by the masses) brands. As I am a fan of one of the most financially depreciable yet fantastic watch brands I'd love to hear some others. That said, buying these second hand almost always means you save a TON of money and get a great watch to boot.
- Breguet - The king of the Dangerfield's. A watch brand whose watches should be toe-to-toe with the likes of Patek, VC & AP not to mention Rolex. Breguet invented so many watch related things that it's ridiculous to even mention them. It's renaissance in the 70s under the helm of Francois Bodet and Daniel Roth was a gamble that paid off in spades. It now sits atop the Swatch Group pyramid and is still innovating (silicon hairsprings, anyone) and getting no respect. I suspect partly because it's viewed as an "old" brand by some, partly because their watch designs do not keep up with trends, and most likely do to shoddy marketing of the brand by Swatch itself. Is it a Cartier competitor or Patek? Those of us who appreciate hand turned guilloche and outstanding movements clearly get a great deal in secondary market. And as the fashion for dress watches continues to decline, I suspect even more deals are to be had.
- JLC - The pauper prince of Richemont! JLC supplied the movements to all the best for a looooong time. The JLC 920 Family (AP 1120, VC 2120, Patek 28-255) is God tier and they never used it. The Reverso is an Icon and vintage watches routinely sell for 4 digits instead of high 5s like they should. Such is the problem of the kingmaker, but all the better for those us in the know.
What do you think? Who else is out there that doesn't get the respect they deserve and by extension is a great buy? Let me know!
1931 Reverso
The immaculate reverse of the 3357