businesstraveller.com APRIL 2020
61PICTURED:
Longines’
DolceVitaXLMore generally, however, square watches have
been marketed more assiduously to women, often in
diminutive cases powered by quartz movements. Look
across the market, from Patek Philippe to Hermes,
and that’s what you’ll find. Until this year, that was
also true for Longines’ Dolce Vita, which was first
launched in 1997, but now the Swiss brand has added
a larger case size to the range for the first time, and
intends to position the Dolce Vita “XL” (£1,050) as a
men’s watch. It has got an automatic movement, which
is a key point because it appeals to a male audience.GOINGMAINSTREAM
Itdoesmakeonewonderwhether we are due a
resurgencefor“mainstream”square watches aimed
atmen– thatis tosay,models that sell themselves
purelyontheirshapeanddesign, rather than with the
assistanceofa butchnarrative about motorsports or
aviation(asis thecasewithBell and Ross’s square-cased
pilot’swatches,forinstance).
Foronething,wearereaching the centenary of the
artdecomovementthatsoheavily influenced many of
thefirstgenerationofwristwatches: look at the Dolce
Vita’scase,withonelongline from end to end and the
parallelextrudedsectionsoneach side. Look at the
elegant,thinhourmarkers,and the contrast between
theirsilveredfinishandthedeep blue dial, glittering
likea starrynight.Thisis a watch plucked straight from
oneofJayGatsby’sparties.As our art and culture look
torecapturethespiritoftheroaring twenties, I expect
demandforthiskindofwatch to increase.
Traditionally,menaresteered towards square
watchesforblacktiefunctions and formal events, for
thegeometricharmonybetween watch case and shirt
cuff,andthat’sdefinitelythebest place for this Dolce
Vita,butintime,otherlessflamboyant dial designs will
followthatwillbebettersuited to everyday wear.
TheotherreasonI thinkoblong shapes might now
begettingmoreofa look-inon our wrists is firmly
rootedinthepresentday.I’ll grant that the jury is still
outoverthelong-terminfluence of the Apple watch on
thetraditionalwatchindustry (it seems conclusive that
it hasdealta blowtosub-£500 offerings, but whether
today’syoungApplecustomers will “graduate” into
mechanicalwatchesovertime, as many predict, is yet
tobeseen).Still,I thinkthetech giant’s decision to use
a rectangularwatchshapecould yet be significant.
Itwasinterestingtonotethat when Switzerland’s
brandsattemptedtorespond to the rise of the
smartwatch– thinkTagHeuer’s Connected or
Montblanc’sSummit– theydid so in the form of round
watches.Circulartimepiecesmay be the most logical
shapefortimekeeping,butthey are fundamentally
compromisedintheageofthe screen; now that
rectanglesarethedominantform factor for conveying
information,is it toomuchof a stretch to think that
thatmighthaveaninfluencewhen we go shopping for
old-fashionedwatches?BTThis is a watch plucked
straight from one of
Jay Gatsby’s parties