Commit TV Yagi Column: Which luxury watch should you buy for the first time? 4 recommended watch brands with the best value for money

Good evening everyone!

Cost performance is an indispensable factor when choosing a luxury watch. Everyone wants to buy something cheap and good! This is especially important for first-time buyers.

So, this time, we will introduce 4 of the best value watch brands for your first luxury watch. Please enjoy reading until the end.

The 4 best value for money options

① [Tudor]

Tudor is known as a sister brand of Rolex. It was established in the 1930s as a "diffusion brand" of Rolex with the aim of expanding the market in the UK. In Japan, it has been familiar to many people as Tudor for many years, but it was once discontinued as an official dealer in Japan, and in 2018 it changed its name to Tudor and re-entered Japan (opening the first official store in Japan).

Tudor has the watch technology of Rolex, but offers its watches to users at a much lower price by using generic movements. Diffusion brands often end up being cheap versions because it is difficult to differentiate them from the original brand. However, they have evolved in their own way , developing novel models that use copper as the case material and movements that are completely made in-house . They have also established branding by using high-quality designs that capture trends and former professional soccer player David Beckham as their image character.

Compared to Rolex, there are some aspects such as the materials and movement that are slightly inferior, but because they are made with high performance to begin with, they offer an incomparable feel to use while being priced affordably, making them the best value for money.

*Main model regular retail price range: Approximately 400,000 to 700,000 yen

② [Grand Seiko]

Grand Seiko reigns supreme as the top domestic watch brand.

It originally started its history as a model in the top collection of [Seiko]. Since the birth of the first "Grand Seiko" model in 1960, it has led the brand for a long time, and in 2017 it became an independent brand. It can be said that its origins are the exact opposite of [Rolex] and [Tudor].

Grand Seiko is well known as one of the few brands in the world to have realized a manufacture, and its technical capabilities are said to surpass those of Swiss luxury watch brands, and it has improved the durability of parts and reduced weight using a technology called MEMS . In 2020 , it also released the "Cal. 9SA5" movement, which vibrates at 36,000 vibrations per hour, attracting attention from around the world. Of course, that's not all . It has also established its own "Seiko style" that is conscious of the "harmony of light and shadow," and each model shines with an unparalleled beauty.

This is a brand that I would especially recommend to anyone who wants to experience high technical skills and unique Japanese beauty.

*Main model regular retail price range: Approximately 600,000 to 1.2 million yen

③【Omega】

OMEGA is extremely popular and well-known around the world. When it was first established, watches were made by hand by craftsmen, but the company expanded its production scale by establishing a new production system that included mechanization and division of labor for each part. In 1965, NASA selected the Speedmaster as the official watch for astronauts, and in 1969, the astronauts of the Apollo 11 wore the watch for the first time on the moon, which brought the watch into the spotlight. From then on, it was often used in public places, and its name recognition increased dramatically.

There are many models with high reputations and attractive designs in the lineup, such as the "Speedmaster" mentioned above and the "Seamaster", famous as the watch worn by James Bond, the main character of the movie 007 , but what is noteworthy is their technical capabilities. The movement with the unique "coaxial mechanism" is excellent in that it only needs to be overhauled once every 5 to 8 years, whereas normally it needs to be overhauled once every 3 to 5 years. The fact that the maintenance costs for luxury watches, which are said to cost tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yen each time, can be reduced is an especially important point when you assume that you will use it for a long time.

This is a brand that I would recommend to those who want to keep watch maintenance costs down and those who want to wear a prestigious watch.

*Main model regular retail price range: Approximately 800,000 to 1.3 million yen

④【Rolex】

Rolex is synonymous with luxury watches. Its history began as a watch trading company founded in the UK in 1905. It attracted attention by developing high-performance movements and creating what are known as the three greatest inventions: the Oyster Case, the Perpetual, and the Datejust. In the 1950s, it released the Explorer, Submariner, and GMT Master, which are so popular that everyone knows them today, and its position became unshakable.

You may be wondering, "Huh? Rolex is expensive, so is it good value for money?" However, the strength of this brand is its high resale value. It is a brand that has a high probability of selling for almost the same price or more than the purchase price, making it very cost-effective when considering the actual cost. By the way, the longer you use it, the higher the resale value tends to be, so you can experience this for yourself.

Among them, Rolex, which is no longer in production, has a limited number of watches, so the price is unlikely to fall in the long term, and in fact tends to rise, so it can be said to be a very cost-effective watch in the future. Of course, the current model is also very popular due to its cool design, so it is definitely recommended. As a result, all models are recommended. (lol)

*Main model regular retail price range: Approximately 900,000 to 2,000,000 yen

summary

Tudor is a sister brand of Rolex that has evolved in its own way, Grand Seiko is a world-renowned Japanese watch with exquisite craftsmanship, Omega is well-known and has outstanding technical skills that allow it to keep maintenance costs low, and Rolex has an overwhelming resale value. Each has its own appeal, and cost performance does not simply mean cheap and good, but also has various features. If you are purchasing a luxury watch for the first time, why not use the information in this article as a reference when making your selection.

Once again , I hope that by reading this column, even one more person will become interested in luxury watches!

See you soon!