Tampa Bay Buccaneers winger and recent underdog IWC ambassador Tom Brady has been a watch collector during his time as an NFL quarterback (read: a very long time), this gives him plenty of perspective to see how this hobby has changed in recent years. “I think watches are really having time in their lives right now,” he told GQ. “This is a great time to enter the world of watchmaking.”
He’s not wrong. In 2022, it looks like watchmakers are having more fun than they’ve had in quite some time. Color is the first thing you notice when scan for new puzzle pieces coming soon from Watches & Wonders, The annual watch trade show where brands launch the majority of their new products of the year. Purple Sapphire Syrupy is the main show at Hublot, Blue and green sapphires make the new Patek Phillipes shineand Oris is all about pastels. Tiffany blue dial continue to be hottest thing in the watch collection. IWC, meanwhile, has broken into bolder colors this year with a pair of green (“Woodland”) ceramic watches and Brady’s favorite, all-white (“Lake Tahoe”).
Like the watches mentioned above, the new pair of IWC watches are further proof that heavy-duty watches crammed with highly technical complications no longer need to be dull. Striking colors aren’t overshadowing a lack of substance – they’re working together in pursuit of greatness. Early ceramic watches were prized for their durability: these pieces were capable of winning a war with a table or floor and disappearing unscathed. Now, IWC is looking to turn monochrome matte ceramics into an aesthetic signature. These two watches follow Sand Mojave Released in 2021. The fact that Brady’s often-business IWCs now fit in a crowded NFL locker room with flash lights says it all. “It’s hard to compete in the dressing room because guys just buy the best watches all the time,” Brady said. “I can wear [the “Lake Tahoe”] to work, and people will always really look at it and get hooked on it. ” Plus, he says, it can easily handle morning chores: walking the dog, making breakfast, and taking the kids to school. (“My wife usually does most of all of that, ‘ he said. ‘But she’s really gone this week.’)
To get the colors on these watches just right, IWC worked with Pantone to develop the shades. The partnership isn’t just about IWC stamping its name on several colors. Patented shades ensure that all parts are made in the same, uniform tone, giving the watch a monochromatic look. Green might be the biggest thing in the watch world for two years running, but what other brand can say it has its own shade?
