Gen Z is absolutely obsessed with vintage, so is Gen X, but perhaps for somewhat different reasons. Gen X might have an ironic wink going for an Omega Ploprof, whereas the digitally nursed Gen Z seems to have a genuine longing for nostalgia, for something that meant something, something from a time before a marketing plan became the be-all-and-end-all.
Vintage can be a cost-effictive way of entering the watch world. But seeing how the lust seems to increase in a way that outdoes the raising costs of vintage, as seen at the various auction houses, I don’t think it has got anything to do with price anymore. Going vintage is a way of being unique, a way of being able to have something that you can’t buy no matter the size of the wallet. And it is also one of the oldest stylist tricks in the book: If you want to create an interesting look, you mix different eras and different levels. Like a Hermès scarf with a pair of well-worn jeans, along with that ring you inherited from you grandma and a pocket watch. Or why not a Yamamoto coat, a pair of baggy 90s jeans, a pair of Blundstones, and a 1950s Omega Seafarer?
The same kind of thinking is also what makes an interesting watch - when you dare to mix materials, finishes, shapes, and forms from different eras. Look at the new Breguet Tradition: 1700s set-up in new materials, qualities and measurements. Look at the whole Bvlgari Octo Finissimo phenomenon: Clear geometrical shapes that would make an early 1900s constructivist, or László Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946) proud. The latter was the artist who developed the style as a Bauhaus professor – if you don’t know his work, check him out! But Bvlgari has stacked these shapes in a new way and made the watch in, for instance, titanium. All in a manner that simply screams contemporary. Yet the Finissimo is timeless enough for us all to be witnessing an icon in the making.
So yes, Octo will outlive us all. Even the young Gen Z collectors who just gawked at one for the first time. But what other things will become vintage from our era, in which we are so incredibly stuck with replicating vintage? Of course there are a lot of amazing new products, and as always, it is difficult to be both aware of what is new and what will have longevity for generations to come. What do you think will outlive us all? If I can choose from three brands, judging from some of the latest drops, I would put my money on Hermès H08, H. Moser & Cie Streamliner, and Vacheron Constantin Overseas. What are your thoughts?
