The popularity of GMTs and Dive Watches

Robustness, durability.

Divers have a certain level of anti-magnetism, are more solidly built , obviously waterproof way beyond what we need & personally I like the bezel as it offers more protection for the crystal.

Just more suited to modern times imho.

Bigger, for me, because as I'm getting older my eyes are rapidly deteriorating so a nice legible and well lumed dial is pretty critical.

Guess it's the same for a dive style GMT, although I've no use or interest in them myself.

Plus, James Bond 😂

Kind of how men's day to day dress went from suits and top hats to khaki's/jeans and a Polo or t-shirt.

Bezels for timing.

Tho I have no issues with a field/sports watch.

Only deal breaker is lume and legibility, which means no fancier stuff for the most part.

It makes no sense, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. A 36mm Datejust has the same movement, same dial size, magnified date and (practically) overkill water resistance as a Submariner. Functionally they are equivalent because nobody dives with them. The 36mm watch is infinitely more comfortable.

Flying style GMTs, especially if you have more watches, suck. They take ages to set the date. There pretty much is no reason to own one except for the "pop of color". Caller style would do just fine. I would prefer call style even if I crossed time zones 3 times per week because I think the time it takes to set the date every once in a while outweighs the benefit of the jump hour even if you use it every day.

Perhaps divers look "manlier", I don't know. It sure as shit has absolutely nothing to do with functionality why there is this amount of mass apeal.

I loved dress/sporty style watches back in the day. Even these days I gock at dress watches and love seeing them in pictures. I use to wear a lot of suits especially 3 piece suits so it fit. But now I dress more business casual to sporty fits. So the dive and GMT is a better choice comb.

The missing Asian from Color Me Badd LOL

My understanding (as someone who was not alive at the time) is that we are living in the shadow of the late 50's-early 60's which randomly had the convergence of:

1. Watchmaking technological advances

2. The Space Race

3. Sudden popularity of recreational diving

4. Cultural fascination with pilots / air travel

So - fast forward 60 years, when watches are no longer a necessary part of life, we look back in time for our cues of nostalgia. Right now, at least, the nostalgia is focused on this era, and so you end up with the current lineup.

I think if anything the trend is back towards smaller watches

I think there are a few very simple reasons for it in no particular order:

1. Aspirational purchase- Men buy rugged things all the time, because they aspire to be more rugged themselves. There are lots of 4x4 trucks and SUVs in driveways around the world that see dirt maybe once a year. The owners likely aspire to do more "off-roading", but never get around to it. Watches are similar, people want to be more outdoorsy, so they buy the watch that is the most outdoorsy.

2. Wrist presence- You don't hear it mentioned as much these days, but even a few years ago people talked a lot about the "wrist presence" of watches. A dive bezel adds size and visual interest to the watch.

3. Timing bezel- The timing bezel on a watch is a super handy and quick way to time everyday things like laundry, cooking, parking, etc... I don't need a chronograph to know it's roughly time to switch my clothes from the washer to the dryer.

4. Groupthink- Influencers push particular things they like, and then it gets pushed from there to the next influencer, and so on. Dive and GMT watches are popular, so they become even more popular due to groupthink.

5. Changing fashion trends- fashion has become more casual, so the need/desire for understated dressy watches is reduced. There is also the fact that through the late '90s into the early '20s there was trend for large watches. A 45mm DJ would look rather silly, but a 45mm diver with a big chunky bezel looks more reasonable.

6. Watches are mostly jewellery- There are still some of us who require watches, but many people buy them as a fashion accessory. Because they are fashion accessories, people want variety and colour, and those are easiest to get from a watch with a bezel. Also ties into point 2, you want people to notice your watch, so bigger and more colourful works best.

I'm sure there are more factors, but those are the ones that come to me immediately when I think about this.

I got into dive watches during my misspent youth. I used to work on a parasail boat and guided jet skiers at the beach. Now, my work requires me to be mindful of time zones in Asia, so I love a good GMT.

I also think people’s attitude towards how and what you wear a certain type of watch with and for has shifted. My father told me you’re never to wear a watch with formal attire, because you’re not supposed to be aware of the passage of time at a formal event. Enter James Bond in his tuxedo and Submariner…

The world got more casual. Fewer men wear suits, so less need of a dress watch. And people care a whole lot less, so a dive watch with a suit became acceptable.

And the narrative of the last few years is that watches have gotten smaller. Big watches were a product of the brash, ostentatious 90s. Then the trend reversed. 40mm became "average," and more and more watches were smaller than 40mm, down to about 36mm. I've heard some say that the small watch trend is bottoming out. They're not going to go below about 36mm (for watches not explicitly "ladies watches", and 36s tend to be labeled "unisex"), and fewer small watches are being released. We shall see.

And I'll be a bit provocative and say that the dive watch thing also points to a certain sort of (verging on toxic) masculine self-perception. They want to see themselves as manly men who wear tool watches, rather than toffs who wear dress watches. So they wear their 1000m dive watch to their desk job in an office. They say they "need" hundreds of meters of water resistance, and in the next breath say that they never let their watch get wet (I've seen this so many times IRL).

I, for one, enjoy the evolution / amalgamation that has gotten us here.

For me these days like to see the watch match the outfit/situation. So if it's a suit then a dress or GADA, if it's summer shorts and t-shirt then it's a diver. I looked at my old photos and see myself at christings rocking a SKX but now I only wear my diver when paddleboarding.

For me 36 - 39mm are the right size for my 7” wrist. I like the diver’s timing bezel a lot but other than that Divers don’t do a whole lot for me. I like field watches but at this time my favorites are GADA or not too dressy dress watches with something unique to differentiate from the pack. I don’t get GMTs unless there are a whole more people flying around the world than I realize.

Supply and demand is there, now more than ever. Companies can source movements starting with Seiko sharing their 4r movement, then Miyoga next with their 8 and 9 series. Simply put, microbrand and overseas mass producers can use them and theres a good number of sales that are available at margins agreeable to make a profit. More availability means more product offerings and more marketing around what sells. The whole 'What u see is what u buy' mentality. Hannibal Lecter said it best, "you covet what u see everyday"- ha!! That is why as a company, you VALUE marketing. To create a demand. (Any smart watch business owner: "Ive got a bunch of big ass watches, guess what Im selling").

It’s us all pretending these things are even necessary at all. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad we all do. It’s all about what you want to look at in your wrist. Modern 36mm dj arr just as anti magnetic and robust as these watches. Buy what you like and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

I guess it’s because we don’t dress up so often as we used to.

Also the diameter of the watch doesn’t necessarily show how the watch looks on your wrist. For example, 40mm dress watch with thin bezel looks far bigger than a diver or GMT of the same size but with rotating bezel.

I’m in consulting and I used to wear suit and tie every day to work. Then it was casual Fridays. Then “you can wear whatever the f*% you want” Fridays. Today, you can wear sport casual every day. My dress watch (yes, I only have one) is getting almost no love. I say almost because I’m starting a new trend to wear any watch with any clothing, no matter how informal the watch or the clothing might be. Keeping it weird, like the Austin TX motto! 🤙🏼