In the late 1950s, Tudor began to focus on performance
watches, auspiciously creating a sports watch that
was suited to everyday wear. It is the arena where it
excels today. The current versions of 1970s Heritage
Chrono and Heritage Ranger designs retain classic
sporty appeal. Attempts at a sleeker, iner Tudor
ofering, such as this year’s unisex 1926, seem
unconvincing in comparison.
Tudor’s recent revival has been carefully engineered.
While the brand has maintained a steady presence
in France, Germany and Hong Kong, Tudor was
pulled from major US and UK markets at the end
of the 1990s as distributors focused on lashier
propositions. But, mirroring its founder’s earlier
response to more austere times, the brand was
relaunched in the US in 2010 and the UK in 2014.
Now, it is presciently in tune with the market.
Tudor watches are gaining traction with new
audiences, from younger buyers to those who eschew
conspicuous luxury for well-priced quality. And,
they are increasingly appearing on the international
watch auction circuit, which has traditionally been
the preserve of ‘iner’ brands.
Says Penny Morris, head of watches at Bonhams
Knightsbridge, ‘Tudor has a long history andrelaunching vintage-inspired models shows that it
recognises this strength. Buyers want to know that
what they are buying has a story. This drives young
collectors, who perhaps may not yet have the
disposable income to pursue watch icons, such as
the Valjoux-based Rolex Daytonas, to brands such
as Tudor, who are interesting in diferent ways.’
The ‘no-design’ approach of Tudor’s head designer
Anders Ugarte suits the brief to a T. ‘It looks easy
because you have a strong starting point,’ he says.
‘But vintage pieces have a strong personality, so you
have to ind the right contemporary progression.’
That could be a matter of altering a case diameter
and height to achieve a slimmer or bolder silhouette.
Matching the dial and bezel colours is another tricky
area because, as Ugarte says, ‘each material means
light and colour appear in diferent ways’.
This month, Tudor is launching a new watch.
The brand conirms that it is based on a heritage piece
but that it is not a Black Bay. Tudor collectors have
a sharp instinct for these things, but for the rest of us,
Ugarte only has this to say: ‘Whenever I look at the
archive, I quickly forget the details. It is only then
that I can start to build a new watch.’ ∂
tudorwatch.comCLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE,
A 2018 TUDOR BLACK BAY
FIFTY-EIGHT MODEL WITH
A JACQUARD FABRIC STRAP
BY JULIEN FAURE; THE
ARCHIVE REGISTRATION
LETTER SHOWING WILSDORF’S
ACQUISITION OF RIGHTS
TO USE THE TUDOR NAME;A HAND-MODELLED BLACK
BAY PROTOTYPE; AN EARLY
ADVERTISEMENT FEATURES
THE TUDOR ROSE EMBLEM,
WHICH APPEARED IN VARIOUS
ITERATIONS THROUGHOUT
THE BRAND’S EARLY HISTORY
UNTIL IT WAS REPLACED BY
A MEDIEVAL SHIELD IN 1969074 ∑