Citat:The Watch Snob is in.

IWC Watches
I’ll admit, I’m a sucker for advertising. So I’ve fallen hard for IWC’s “Engineered for Men” campaign and the design of its watches, which really appeal to my inner pilot, diver and sailor. In looking at your past columns, I’ve noticed that you seem to not like IWC in general. Yet it seems to meet most of your criteria for a good brand: in-house movements, long history, etc. So why don’t you like IWC? Are there any of its watches you like?

Here’s the thing about IWC: I have tried to like it, and it isn’t doing a lot of things right. But it is a confused brand. On the one hand, it wants to be taken seriously and indeed has put out some fine innovations and movements, such as its eight-day hand-wound, its Pellaton auto-winding system and the 89360 chronograph calibre.

This year, it’s dipped a toe in the exclusive waters of ultra-complicated movements with its Portuguese Sidérale Scafusia. So why does it continue to dabble in overpriced fashion pieces such as its cartoonish Aquatimer and the gussied-up Portofino? I have a theory: IWC is like that awkward girl in school who slept with all the boys just to be considered popular. Sure, she got a lot of attention but not exactly the kind she could be proud of. Then, like the girl who matured into an elegant woman but never developed the self-esteem to accompany her charms, IWC can’t shake off its desire to stay popular with the wrong crowd.

If I’ve lost you in my metaphor, let me illuminate. IWC was a once-proud watch company, like so many were, before the so-called quartz crisis of the 1970s. But then it entered that awkward phase when it became desperate for attention and turned out some forgettable pieces just to stay afloat. When it finally found its footing again, it had developed, shall we say, a reputation with the wannabe Village People like you (the diver, the pilot, the sailor). Rather than return fully to glory, IWC is afraid to step away from the boys that snuggled up to it. I hold out hope that we’ll see a day when IWC trickles down its in-house calibres to all its references and again becomes the brand it once was. It seems to be on the right path.