Jewelry Brands

[lorsban]

Hey guys,

In the past, I used to think of Cartier, Chopard and Bulgari as mere jewelry brands, their watches being either jewelry for women or sort of fad-watches. And back then, it was more or less the case. Their watches were (are) very popular with women, my wife, mom and sisters love their Cartiers and Bulgaris and I always found their watches for men a bit gimmicky or oddly styled - with Cartier, I saw their men's line to be merely oversized women's watches.

Today though, it seems they're making waves with their gent's watches. Chopard for example came up with their Mille Miglia line of watches. Bulgari has their professional line and Cartier has their XL models and now the new Calibre de Cartier - their first watch with an in-house movement. Bulgari also has in-house movements as well but I'm not sure about Chopard, with their prices, I'm thinking they have them as well.

Prior to this, I always saw them as "pretty" case-makers. Now, they're full blown manufacturers. Their cases are still excellent though as I find their finishes to be even better than Omega and Breitling. I would even say that they're pretty much par with Rolex (speaking of their higher end models of course). I guess a lot of their jewelry making techniques are being used and it shows.

It's true that they have their roots in jewelry but seeing how they're progressing now, I'm more inclined to give them a closer look. I've got my eye on a Calibre de Cartier, which I think looks really good. Different and more masculine looking. Same thing with Chopard's Mille Miglia.

I know most of you guys are more about Rolex, Breitling, Patek, Omega, AP etc...But, how do you guys feel about the "jewelry" brands these days?

regards,

lorsban

[unknown]

Like you said, the once WERE more famous for their jewelery than their watches.

That changed

About the Chopard, take a look at their inhouse L.U.C. movements ... it's almost haute horlogerie.
And a lot more interesting than Breitling, Omega or Rolex !

They are for sure worth looking at

Years ago Cartier had 3 different kind of watches

Must de Cartier = sorry to say but crap
Carteir = good ( rolex , Breitling ... level)
Collection Priveé = that was top !

For some reason they don't call their topwatches 'collection privée' anymore but they still do make some very well finished complicated watches ( tourbillons, minute repeaters)

[kilyung]

I think they've made tremendous progress with movements and complications in the last few years but I think most of them are still immature from a design perspective with a few exceptions.

[Starwalker]

I completely agree with you. However, I do find bvlgari pricing their watches in a bracket that they're gonna unsuccessfully compete in.

Chopard has growing following, their LUC movements are stunning.

I've been paying close attention to the brand for the last 8 years.

I wished that they put the LUC movements in the Mille Miglia.

Here's a pic of my Mille Miglia GMT Chronograph - used the same pic for the Rolex + Belt + Wallet thread.

The attention to detail that they've put into this watch is amazing: cyclops beneath the crystal, vanilla scent strap, bright lume, great finishing of the case, display case back.

[lorsban]

Originally Posted by kilyung

I think they've made tremendous progress with movements and complications in the last few years but I think most of them are still immature from a design perspective with a few exceptions.

When it comes to Cartier, I think they have the most "street cred" in terms of design because two of their most famous watches were made in the early 1900's (Tank, Santos). Though today, they seem to be venturing out towards newer things with their Calibre line.

Chopard, in my opinion, is quite traditional or conservative with their designs.

Bvlgari on the other hand is probably the only brand among the three that's trying new things in terms of design. But, I honestly find their designs a bit hit or miss. I really like some of their Diagono Professionals but not so much their Assioma and Ergon watches.

[lorsban]

However, I do find bvlgari pricing their watches in a bracket that they're gonna unsuccessfully compete in.

For the most part, I agree. That's why it's still their lower-end watches that are really selling well. You can find Bulgari watches going for as low as $2,300 new. And for a while, I remember seeing their rubber strapped Diagono's on a lot of people's wrists.

For their watches under Genta/Roth, I think these are still Haute Horlogerie and should be priced that level.

What I think they're having trouble competing in is in the $4,000-8,000 bracket, stomping ground of Rolex, where you can also find some JLC, Glashutte Original, IWC. It's a tough-a$$ bracket to be playing in no matter how good your watches are.

[towernick]

I don't consider Cartier a jewelry brand. Cartier has been a pretty serious watch maker for a long time, they just happen to also make very nice, expensive jewelry but there is a clear history of watch making there. Brands like Hermes, Channel, etc are more jewelry brands that sell expensive watches.

[Rsvrider]

Loved, LOVED this line:
Their watches were (are) very popular with women, my wife, mom and sisters love their Cartiers and Bulgaris and I always found their watches for men a bit gimmicky or oddly styled - with Cartier, I saw their men's line to be merely oversized women's watches.

No offense to the owners of either brand, personally I like the new Santos XL gold black, but that is an amazing funny statement. Can't wait to make that comment to some guys I know to own Pasha's or Bvlgari Diagono hehe.

[jolimont]

Can't go past the good old cartier santos, the original wristwatch

[lorsban]

Originally Posted by Rsvrider

Loved, LOVED this line:
Their watches were (are) very popular with women, my wife, mom and sisters love their Cartiers and Bulgaris and I always found their watches for men a bit gimmicky or oddly styled - with Cartier, I saw their men's line to be merely oversized women's watches.

No offense to the owners of either brand, personally I like the new Santos XL gold black, but that is an amazing funny statement. Can't wait to make that comment to some guys I know to own Pasha's or Bvlgari Diagono hehe.

Haha! I think I should clarify though that that's simply what I thought before mainly because I would normally see their watches on women. What's actually funnier is that the watches women like from Cartier like the Pasha, Santos, Tank, Roadster were actually originally for men but since the trend was for women to start wearing larger watches, these became popular as women's watches.

So, naturally, they started making XL versions for us guys.

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