Ce n'est pas une watch

Been seeing some discourse on here about the fabled Moonswatch, arguably the most polarizing watch in recent memory, and thought I might share a few thoughts. I was one of the people who got some strong coffee and donuts and welcomed daybreak standing in line outside a Swatch store on March 26.

The thing I remember most from that day wasn't getting the watch itself — by the time I actually handed over my credit card, over six hours after getting in line, I was far too tired to be truly excited. What I remember is the community that formed among the people standing in line, talking about our collecting journeys and ribbing on what such and such brand might release next, sending folks out for more provisions.

This is, needless to say, far from the standard watch buying experience, where a detached store clerk makes small talk while trying to upsell you (or, in the case of a Rolex boutique, scoffs at the peasants who try to, you know, actually purchase the product they're ostensibly selling).

Now, I know that not everyone had this experience, and the lines elsewhere were often marred by thousands of people's disappointment, predatory scalpers salivating over the eBay prices, and even violence in some cases, which is of course an absurd thing to happen in a line to buy a "bioceramic" (read: plastic) watch. My point is that it changed conversations around watch collecting and the industry for the better, in my view. It sort of shattered that priggish veneer, where the "real" watchmakers are those putting out grand complications that you'd need to win the lottery to afford.

I commend Omega for having the nerve to put their brand on this collaboration, signaling that, yes, you can have fun, yes, you can produce luxury horology and let your iconic designs be enjoyed by regular people. I'm also of the opinion that Swatch and Omega weren't really trying to pull a Rolex and have their product impossible to buy so much as they way miscalculated the hype, and while they certainly made some significant mistakes, I don't think that negates what they were trying to do here.

At this point, you may have noticed I have barely referenced the actual watch, and that's because, well, it's fine. It's not a fantastic watch, though it is very pretty, and I've mainly used it while cycling (now on this Marine Nationale strap, which is much better than the conceptually interesting but practically intolerable velcro original). The watch itself is almost beyond the point, because for me this is about an abstraction, a tone shift in the industry. The watch is a stand-in for that. Whether you think that's true or a valid perspective or outweighs the frustrations around the drop is up to you. That's what this community is about, after all!