German watch manufacturers

In my continuing curiosity about how many mechanical watches are produced in Europe, I have started to look at the German market.

It turns out that a large amount comes from a "big six" (Nomos, Sinn, Glasshuette Original, Meistersinger, A.Lange, Stowa) of manufacturers.

I am missing many German companies (like Nivrel, Schaumburg Watch, UTS, Damasko, Guinand, Tutima, Ickler, Alexander Shorokoff, Junghans, Junkers, Zeppelin, etc.) but these 6 have manufacturing numbers (somewhat) available and have established their brand names outside their home market.

Here is a chart with my first estimates of the amount of watches manufactured by the "big six" and comparing the size of the output ... any comments are very welcome..

Swiss Luxury Watch Manufacturers, units and market share, part 2.

I have looked at this again and now corrected some numbers and added some major manufacturers that I had forgotten (click on the graph for a larger view).

Swiss Luxury Watch manufacturers units and market share

Having been in marketing and strategy for many many years, I thought I could use the skills to look at the Swiss watch industry. The industry is very secretive, so most of the numbers are based on educated guesses and estimates... I still think I will be quite close to reality on most. I hope someone else than me finds this interesting.

European Watch Fairs and Events September 2011

September 2011 European Auctions Calendar

Buying a Submariner: date or no date?

The Submariner is an excellent first choice as a first "good" watch.

The date version was first produced as reference 1680 in the mid-sixties so it's hard to say if it’s more "classic" or not. Certainly Sean Connery in the Bond movies was wearing without date, but then again the first movie with a Rolex was Dr.No that came out in 1962.

I personally would prefer a new Rolex (or any watch) with a date function and especially with Rolex, the "Cyclops" date magnification is a unique look. Having said that, in my experience they scratch more easily because of course the glass sticks out (although today sapphire crystals are so hard that it's almost impossible to do).

The Sub Reference 14060M "No Date" was almost discontinued this year but Rolex decided to keep it alive. You won't find it on their official website though..It also doesn't have the Ceramic bezel which the new Rolex Submariner 116610LN with date has.

Whatever you choose, make sure you get the last reference numbers and not some older models..


In terms of "sensible price" - I'd say grab one quick, as the Swiss Frank is very strong... I haven't bought a Rolex for a while, but I would say that you should be able to get up to 10% if the dealer is keen and you can pay cash, there won't be much more "room" and in fact Rolex won't actually officially let them give any discounts or they'll lose the right to represent them.

Rolex is more available at various shops so there will be a lot of possible sources..I personally like Wempe on Bond Street. By the way, Rolex has opened their own Flagship store at One Hyde Park, might be worth a try as they may be more flexible on the price. Online you could try http://www.bankslyon.co.uk.