Bites: WatchCrunch would be better if we all flexed a little harder.

Hello fellow Crunchers,

It took me a long while to write this week’s Bites. It got re-written so many times.

Firstly, I tried to talk about narcissists… but why bother when by their very nature they aren’t going to care what I think.

Then I decided to rant about flexers, but when I sat back and re-read what I’d typed I thought to myself “Why have I even bothered writing this?”. Flexers gonna flex, and I just sounded like a miserable hater….

And then, the more I thought about it, the more I got to thinking…

“Are the flexers actually on to something??”

Anyway, first things first. You guys have been a properly chatty bunch this week, so the 'Hot Post's' section is heaving. Catch up on everything that's been going on and then meet me at the bottom for my thoughts.

Three quick bites from WC this week for those in a rush…

Get an insight into what’s going on in fellow Crunchers heads in @TheSharperTheBetter’s post: “What watches live rent free in your head?”.

Keep uptodate with all the fun and games @Aurelian is subjecting this years contestants to: “The end may be a mercy: First 1WC update”

Get yourself to @Hotwatchchick69’s meetup for free food, drink and chat with a special guest!

New members:

New members who I’ve seen posting this week… @supperhey, @blowik, @AndyB00, @nevan_s, @Harveymushman, @7SEVEN7, @ykwong, @fernando_ar, @Trapvision3d, @georgeallancox, @louies.

Welcome everyone!

Hot Posts:

This weeks topics that got the community talking…

“Could you ever turn into a 3 watch collector?” – @TheJoker007”

“What’s the best watch collecting advice you’ve heard?” – @BillableHours

“Popularity issue” – @rodeenski

“What are some stealth wealth watches?” – @bulgarian

“Father to daughter watch” – @jqadomi

“I want old things but new” – @88MilesPerHour

“Rules are made to be broken” – @Matt84

“Watch worn in accident” – @Ceabiscuit

“What do you look for in a microbrand?” – @garythegreat

“It’s the year 1976. What watch would you be wearing?” – @wittnauerpolara76

“What has been your watch journey this past 12 months?” – @Kunga69

“Is there such a thing as a summer watch?” – @awatchtowear

“Sleep with watch on or off?” – @Mr.Santana

“Moonswatch: Worth it as a first jump from Timex or Casio?” – @Christianmiller

“Keep, Sell, Trade” – @BraedenCounts

“Post the latest watch in your collection” – @Mr.Santana

Meetups and Events:

1st June – Bremont Royal Exchange London Meetup – London

3rd June – So Cal meetup: free drinks, free-food and a special guest! – San Diego

10th June – London Brunch Meetup – London

12th June – The first 100 years of Patek Philippe – Online talk and meetup

20th June – Watch Meetup Solely for Ladies - London

14th – 16th July - Windup Watch Fair 2023 - Chicago

20th – 22nd October - Windup Watch Fair 2023 – New York

Big thanks to @Ichibunz for setting last weeks photography theme of ‘Watermelon’. His winner this week was @Bayl61 with this awesome composition….

Come see the runner up and find out the chosen theme for this weeks photos here, which has been kindly set by this weeks guest judge @GasWorks.

My picks from this past weeks watch releases.

Top row, left to right: Nivada Grechen, Singer, Maurice Lacroix.

Bottom row: Behrens, Naoya Hida, Tag Heurer, Ulysse Nardin.

I decided it would be good to have a section for updates from the YouTubers, Podcasters and brandowners in our community.

“Two stitch straps: A story of passiona nd craftsmanship” – @twostitchwatchstraps

“Olto 8 infinity - Review” – @Honestwatchreviews

“Handmade leather straps” – @linhnghiem

“New design progress: Model sn0116g San Martin” – @Vergil

“What’s your thoughts on Baltic” – @PeterKotsa “How to tell a watch is high quality” – @Max

Longer posts from the knowledgeable and creative writers amongst the WC family….

“Simple things” – @Catskinner

“Glycine vs Invicta: Is there even a contest?” – @Chronoguy

“SOS for small wristers: Part 1 – Looking for a GMT” – @Hakki501

“Lip: The most underrated watch brand” – @Illuminatingwatches

“Righties vs Lefties” – @Case_and_dial

WatchCrunch would be better if we all flexed a little harder.

The watch community has its fair proportion of flexers.

We get the steering wheel shots. We get the “I just popped into my AD for a cuppa and a custard cream and accidentally bought 3 Rolex.” posts. And we even have our own flavour of flexing-anti-flexer in the form of enthusiasts who mock those who would spend money on luxury watches when their casio tells better time.

But what we don’t seem to have many of, are the selfie-takers.

There is a distinct lack of selfies in the watch community, and I wonder if it may be our undoing.

It's strange, given that watch culture is a magnet to social media flexers, that watch photography seems to be mostly limited to wrists, steering wheels and coffee beans. Occasionally we see the odd crotch or body shot, but that's it.

So, what gives?

Are we all just shy? Hideously ugly? Secretly all ladies?

Or are there other reasons the selfie isn't 'what we do'.

There can be a perception of the selfie as the domain of pouting gen-z's. Giving off an air of self-absorbed narcissism, with a highly filtered view of a fantasy life.

This is very far from what the majority of watch enthusiasts want from social media, and getting away from this is one of the reasons WatchCrunch was created, to provide a home for watch nerds away from all the flexing and gatekeeping.

Why would WC even need selfies?

We're just here for the watches, why does it even matter whose wearing them?

Well, I’m starting to think it’s this view that is doing our community a disservice.

Putting a face to a name helps humanise us. It shows a degree of transparency and vulnerability by giving up some of our internet anonymity, and by doing so helps build more of a connection and trust with people.

"Does that really matter? I'm just here to look at watches, not find a life partner."

It matters because building more of a connection and understanding in the watch community makes for better watch conversations.

Someone who I think knows this well is Andrew Morgan. When he created his new channel, I think the move from "The Talking Hands" to the talking... head... was a smart one, and I would guess not done by accident.

Humans like faces. It's in our genetics, our psychology. YouTube thumbnail pictures that include a face are more likely to get clicks than those that don't. Pictures of people on Instagram perform better than pictures of landscapes.

You see it on WC too. Posts which include an actual person in the main picture tend to get more likes.

We just like seeing other humans.

"Most of us aren't YouTubers though, so why does it matter? If I want to see another human I have my husband/wife, or, if I'm really desperate, my kids."

Seeing the full human being behind the wrist shot can change our perceptions and influence our conversations.

We are not just a bunch of walking wrist shots.

It's easy to forget that there is a full outfit, personality and life going on behind the scenes of the wrist shot. Most Crunchers tend not to include anything other than a little arm hair or flash of crotch in their wrist pics.

We only see a small snapshot of each other’s personalities on WC, and it’s a shame, because that’s where the real interesting part of each of us lies.

Because all we see is wrist shots of each other, we have to fill in the rest of the blanks with our imagination.

So, this means when someone posts of a wrist shot of their Speedmaster everyone who sees it is going to interpret it in a different way, drawing their own conclusions of who that person is and colouring their view of the conversation.

For example, each of these people is wearing Speedmaster…

… but your perception of each of them will be different, now we see more than a wrist. Selfies will also help those of us who strive to be different.

I’ve spoken about this before, and I’ve seen others post about the fact that a watch being popular or hyped is a big turn off, because we enjoy being different and unique. What we need to remember is what has been said many times before…

It’s the wearer, not the watch.

If your watch is the most important or interesting thing about you, you have problems. If we all posted selfies rather than wristies we would appreciate that we don’t have to find our uniqueness in watches.

Looking again at the pictures above… all Speedmasters…. all different vibes… all unique. And this would go for any watch.

People can sometimes feel reluctant or intimidated about posting their affordable watches on WC or the WRUW… but again… It’s the wearer, not the watch.

If you change Buzz Aldrins two Speedies….

… to two casios….

Still cool.

Because he’s Buzz Aldrin.

The watch doesn’t matter. And it doesn’t matter for you either. You’re a watch nerd, so you’re freaking awesome regardless of which watch you wear.

***

Take care everyone, be cool to each other, and I’ll be super impressed of anyone who is brave enough to drop a selfie in the comments.

Kaysia