Over a century ago, the pocket watch was ubiquitous. People set their watches based on town clocks, jewelry store clocks, or telegraphed times. Time governed everyday life, including railroad routing, communication, industry, and science. Thus, quality watches were essential.

Watches were mostly mechanical until the 1970s, when quartz watches emerged as a threat due to their improved accuracy and affordability. Instead of losing a few seconds each day like the best mechanical watches, quartz watches lost a few seconds per month. Instead of costing $1,000–$2,000 like the most accurate mechanical watches, quartz watches cost about $20. Despite the serious threat quartz watches posed, mechanical watches, particularly luxury Swiss ones, ultimately survived. While it’s hard to cite any single reason, one could point to a desire for craftsmanship, heritage, status, taste, or permanence. Indeed, mechanical watches were often marketed as heirlooms, while quartz watches were and still are often discarded.

The Resurgence of Luxury Mechanical Watches

Having barely survived the first threat, mechanical watches faced a second threat and possible extinction due to cell phones. After all, why wear an outdated timekeeper displaying imperfect time when an electronic device in the pocket always tells perfect time?  While the previous desires still apply, there may be something deeper and more durable driving watch usage and collecting today and, oddly enough, it could have to do with the same technology that makes mechanical watches seemingly obsolete.

Specifically, the majority of watch consumers have now grown up with the internet, cell phones, and social media. The average person picks up his phone 50–200 times per day. Our devices constantly notify, ping, and otherwise demand our attention. One has to constantly check his email lest the dreaded unread email notification remain. Social media unrelentingly suggests the life we could have or the political argument we’re missing out on. And, more recently, AI has introduced a baseline angst that seems to pervade our everyday lives. It’s in those anxious moments that some seek refuge in a disconnected state. What better device than a mechanical watch that, like a heart, beats and beats and beats without needing interaction?  For some, watching the hands of a mechanical watch sweep across a dial can bring presentness and stillness. You may admire the large gears working together to slowly move the hands. You may appreciate handmade finishing like Côtes de Genève or mirrored anglage. You may get lost in the deepness of an enamel dial. You may even call it zen.

The Evolution of Mechanical Watch Technology and Innovation

However, despite the seemingly straightforward design of mechanical watches in comparison to the complex technological devices in our pockets, mechanical watches have undergone centuries of continued innovation:

• Circa 1275–1300: The first all-mechanical clocks appeared in Europe. They were tower clocks driven by weights, and they implemented the first form of a mechanical escapement, which provided for the controlled release of energy.
• Circa 1430: The mainspring provided power in a reduced form factor compared to lead weights and other forms of power, allowing for smaller spring-driven desk and wall clocks.
• 1656: Christiaan Huygens devised a pendulum clock, which reduced clock error from about 15 minutes a day to about 15 seconds a day.
• 1675: Huygens introduced the balance spring, though Robert Hooke claimed an earlier invention of it. The balance spring offered regular oscillation.
• 1790s: Abraham-Louis Breguet developed the tourbillon, which constantly rotated to average out position-dependent timing errors. Breguet received a French patent for the tourbillon in 1801.
• 1816: Louis Moinet’s chronograph functioned as a stopwatch and measured time at an unparalleled 1/60 of a second.
• 1842: Jean Adrien Philippe’s crown wound the mainspring and set the hands without a key.
• 1904: Louis Cartier designed the Santos, the first modern men’s wristwatch, for the aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont.
• 1923: John Harwood devised a weight and bumper system that wound the watch without manual input.
• 1926: Rolex introduced the Oyster case, which was waterproof and dustproof.
• 1931: Like Harwood’s system, Rolex’s rotor automatically wound watches, but it provided more efficient winding while eliminating internal impacts and thus wear.
• 1955: IWC’s Ingenieur delivered anti-magnetism to a civilian everyday watch.

While some may think the story of mechanical watch innovation ended in the 20^th century, they would be surprised by the sustained innovation today, not only for accuracy and complications, but also for durability, longer service intervals, magnetic resistance, power reserve, and thinness. Some highlights include:

• 2001: Ulysse Nardin’s Freak introduced silicon escapement parts. Silicon is lighter, needs little or no lubrication, and is immune to magnetism, all of which improve accuracy and service intervals.
• 2006: Patek Philippe’s Spiromax brought silicon to the hairspring.
• 2011: Swatch Group’s Powermatic 80 movement boasted 80 hours of power reserve.
• 2013: Omega’s Aqua Terra achieved resistance to magnetic fields exceeding 15,000 gauss.
• 2017: IWC’s Ceratanium material combined the strength of titanium with the scratch resistance of ceramic.
• 2017: Zenith’s Defy Lab oscillator replaced a 30-part balance, hairspring, and lever assembly with a single monolithic silicon piece.
• 2024: Bulgari’s Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC achieved a thinness of just 1.70 millimeters.

Patent Protection and Innovation in the Luxury Watch Industry

Patent application filings bear this out. Over the last 10 years, the top mechanical watch patent application filers have filed thousands of patent applications. The Swatch Group has led the charge, filing around 75–100 patent applications in the US each year.

The drive to invent isn’t surprising when considering the revenues and margins associated with mechanical watches. Over the last 10 years, Swiss mechanical watch exports alone totaled $15–$22 billion, with a healthy increase most years. Some maisons, including Patek Philippe and Rolex, are estimated to have margins of 30%–50%.

And the future looks bright. Though mechanical watches may be associated with old men at an even older country club, the most prominent demographic is men aged 25–44. In addition, the Gen Z cohort, now aged 14–29, is the fastest-growing demographic. And markets in South Asia and the Middle East are growing quickly, while the North America and Europe remain stable.

Over a century ago, one could sit at a train station, gaze around, and see others reading the newspaper, checking a pocket watch, or just sitting in silence. Now, when two people stand in the vicinity of each other for more than a few seconds, each feels compelled to check his phone, lest it become “awkward.”  Thus, the train station scene is likely forever gone, but the resurgence of wristwatches may be signaling a desire to claw back some of that simplicity.

From intricate mechanical movements to innovative materials and distinctive designs, protecting intellectual property is essential to preserving the craftsmanship and innovation behind today’s luxury timepieces. Conley Rose helps watchmakers, manufacturers, and innovators protect their inventions, designs, and brands through comprehensive patent, trademark, and intellectual property strategies. Contact Conley Rose to learn how we can help protect your innovations and competitive advantage.