Watches

To forecast which watches will become ‘blue-chip classics’ in the future is almost impossible – but the key factors to look for include brand image, design, origin of the movement, number produced, and the number of parts made in-house. Timepieces that feature a new technical development or are backed by an interesting story are more likely to be embraced by the collector market. For example, IWC’s early-70s ‘Electronic’ uses a tuning fork whose vibrations are converted into rotational movement – and the watch can be found on the market today for around €2,000.

Porsche Design Worldtime by IWC

Warhol was famous for bringing everyday objects such as bananas, Coke cans and bean tins into the focal field of his works. But when he wasn’t glamorising daily objects, the pop art poster boy was known to indulge in the finer things in life. He treated watches as fashion pieces rather than practical timekeepers. Indeed, he once said of his Cartier Tank: “I don’t wear a Tank to tell the time. In fact I never wind it.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Tourbillon

A few years ago, however, Dupontreue abandoned the rag trade in order to pursue a long-standing dream to create a watch company, and Breva - which launched its first watch in 2013 - is the result.

The brand’s point of difference is that all its products have a connection to the environment - which is how the Breva Genie 01 came to be the first mechanical watch to contain a fully working aneroid barometer, and the 02 the first to feature an altimeter.

As the Porsche Design Chrono I was being introduced in 1972, the watch world was undergoing one of its biggest changes in history: the quartz revolution. While complicated movements were still desirable, they were no longer necessary and digital displays began to flood the market. Despite being born during these times of upheaval, the design of the Chrono I would prove timeless, even if some commentators at the time thought otherwise. “The Porsche Design chronograph is only suitable for a funeral… Porsche should concentrate on producing cars,” said one British journalist.

I’m convinced that a watch chooses the right arm, rather than the other way round. While looking for a within-budget Christmas present for myself earlier this week, I found numerous suitors – too many, in fact. But then I found a Rolex GMT Master in yellow gold from 1979, the year I was born. I’ve now made a pact with myself that, every Christmas, I’ll buy a watch from that year; many car collections are themed on a specific decade, and the idea works for watches, too.