The classics may be classics for a reason, but sometimes, the last thing you want to see is another guy wearing the same watch as you. That’s where we come in. We’ve pulled together a list of some of our very favorite under-the-radar watch brands, ranging from vintage-inspired makers doing tough, affordable tool watches to out-there companies making timepieces that look like something conjured up in Wonka’s workshop. Whether you’re looking for a daily driver or an unexpected piece to add to your collection, you don’t want to miss it.
— Jonathan Evans, style director
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Whether you’re in the market for something with a vintage feel or a watch design you didn’t even know existed, start with this list.
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If you dread the thought of having the same thing on your wrist as someone else in the room, you’ve come to the right place. Not that there’s anything wrong with yearning for a Submariner or a Seamaster—we’re just as guilty as any watch fan—but sometimes it pays to do things a little differently. And though the juggernauts of the watch world tend to dominate the conversation, there are so, so many other players out there that are well deserving of your attention.
We’re talking about watchmakers with penchants for vintage good looks but price tags that don’t require a bank loan. Brands with unexpected sources of inspiration (coffee, anyone?). And companies that take the “just have fun with it” ethos more seriously than you might expect. They tend to be grouped under the somewhat generic “microbrand” label. While that’s not exactly wrong when you compare them with the big guys, there’s a ton of variety and nuance to explore within that space.
Which is exactly why we pulled together this list of five under-the-radar watch brands we think you need to know right now. It’s not exhaustive—in fact, we’ve already got a sequel to this story planned for the near future—but it is essential, if you ask us. So, without any further ado, let’s get into it.
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The easy answer is one you already know: A record is reassuringly not the insubstantial electromagnetic waves that emanate from your phone and travel to your AirPods in streaming; a record is a physical manifestation of music. Going through the stacks, getting the tactile feel of each album, the physical sensation, building the anticipation about what you might find next: These are experiences a streaming service simply can’t give you.
Yet this is no mere nostalgia I’m talking about here; it’s much deeper than that, imbued with maybe even more melancholy. I believe I speak for a large portion of my generation when I say that we yearn for a pre-Internet age we never got to live through, an age when loving music meant collecting your favorite albums, clutching the lyric sheets and reading them over and over, poring over the liner notes to swallow each word whole, to see the stanzas stacked up and wonder how so few words could make you feel so deeply. When music wasn’t just listening—it was learning, studying, holding.
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Catch me on the right day and I’ll tell you I’d give up all the traveling I’ve done in my life, all the visits to all the globally significant cities, to spend my time down south. I love those southern towns where a younger, artsy, and progressive population sits in a rural sea of red, and instead of being at loggerheads, there’s a real osmosis between the two. Something about these blue-dot towns turns them into creative hotbeds that birth great chefs, artists, and musicians.
I used to take all this for granted, probably because I grew up in Georgia in two of the best: Macon (home of Little Richard, Otis Redding, and the Allman Brothers), and Athens (R.E.M., the B-52s, and the Drive-By Truckers). But also because, for most of my life, I’ve been making regular visits to Asheville, North Carolina, which I think of as the Blue Dot City on a Hill. As far as I’m concerned, Asheville is one of the best eating and drinking cities in America.
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