But it's a first for me, since I don't lurk or post on watch forums. ^^
That being said, you're quite right, GS: this is an old topic we could probably argue about for ages... Let's not bore or downright annoy our fellow GAFers.
Ahah, I was mainly kidding, I should have added a few smileys here and there
Talking about watches means talking about those classic subjects at least once... First watch in space (Seiko vs Vostok vs Omega Moon) / Smith vs Rolex for the Everest / ALS vs Nomos vs Stowa vs GO for who invented the bauhaus design / the infamous 'Steve McQueen is associated with Tag because of the movie, but he was really a Rolly guy, never leaving his 5513' / Are homages just replicas? / why should you buy a diver when you never dive? / why are gshocks revered even by the high end crowd? / why is in-house so cool and so expensive? etc.
After dwelling into these infinite debates, one can get a bit jaded, hence my reaction, but at the end of the day those discussion are crucial to define who you are in the horological world.
Just quickly on the subject:
There are 2 perception of the Everest thingy, the one that considers that Rolex was really capitalizing on something external to the brand, and those who believe (like I do) that Rolex had an authentic and relevant partnership with the expedition, and really deserves the association much more than Smith.
(let's not forget Edmund was British, and REALLY insisted to have a watch partner from the UK (Smith Deluxe were enterily in-house and made in the UK in the 50s) Rolex was mainly trying to run tests, like they will do again with the Sub 15 years after with COMEX in the North Sea).
Generally speaking, I really believe that Rolex marketing is the strongest because it's not really marketing, but meaningful partnerships creating relevant anecdotes for the future generations. (and just FYI, marketing is my job
).
If you say so. I guess that's because Seiko enthusiasts tend to be more discerning, and certainly less tolerant regarding the utterly pompous, hyperbolic, and often mendacious advertising used by many Swiss manufacturers.
;p
That's actually very true (well, at least in my experience on forums). But there is also something else than just disregard for marketing treachery, there is also a strong sense of classicism and traditions - that only Seiko, JLC and Patek really cater to.
- which explains why (and it may be different for you) Seiko fans usually like JLC and Patek, and usually loathe Rolex and Omega
(again, I am vastly generalizing here, I am sure there are counter examples, it's just a trend I experienced...).
