Recently I found out that in 1978 I bought myself a reward for a lifetime's hard work. As I was only 29 years old at the time you might think that it was a little premature, a bit like a popstar's autobiography at 21: "My Life and Struggles To Make It".
What was the reward? A Rolex Explorer watch, £275 secondhand. At the time I didn't think of it as a reward, I just wanted a good watch that would tell the time accurately and that would last me. I soon discovered that, being mechanical and despite being labelled "Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified" on the dial, a Casio quartz for £1.50 from the petrol station was more accurate. Well I still have my watch, it has always been accurate enough, and most quartz watches from the 70s are now landfill.
Imagine my shock when one of my pension plans paid out a small lump sum recently and I decided to reward myself for a lifetime's hard work only to discover that the reward I was considering - another secondhand Rolex, this time with a date display - would swallow a good chunk of the aforementioned lump sum.
What's happened since innocent me bought himself a good watch in 1978 is that, under pressure from the mass of cheap and accurate quartz watches, the likes of Rolex have abandoned the watch business and moved into the super-luxury business. Now If you buy a Rolex you are employing, amongst others, Roger Federer, Tiger Woods and Ana Ivanovic, and you are sponsoring Wimbledon and the Le Mans 24 Hours.
Not only that but the world is full of watch aficionados and collectors amongst whom is John Mayer the guitarist, who writes a column for Hodinkee, "one of the most widely read wristwatch publications in the world". They seem to be on a mission to ramp up the perceived value of Rolex and other luxury brands. The "man on the Clapham omnibus" is being squeezed out, even if he wants a secondhand model.
There is one way to get a "Rolex" for not much money. The world is full of fakes. It's good business, all the prestige without the cost, until somebody looks closely. The question you are most likely to be asked if you wear a Rolex: "is it a real one?" Somehow the prestige evaporates.
The upshot is that through no fault of my own, I am walking around with a millionaire's watch on my wrist. I fear for my hand.
In the end I rewarded myself for a lifetime of hard work with a Timex. It reminded me of being a teenager.
What was the reward? A Rolex Explorer watch, £275 secondhand. At the time I didn't think of it as a reward, I just wanted a good watch that would tell the time accurately and that would last me. I soon discovered that, being mechanical and despite being labelled "Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified" on the dial, a Casio quartz for £1.50 from the petrol station was more accurate. Well I still have my watch, it has always been accurate enough, and most quartz watches from the 70s are now landfill.
Imagine my shock when one of my pension plans paid out a small lump sum recently and I decided to reward myself for a lifetime's hard work only to discover that the reward I was considering - another secondhand Rolex, this time with a date display - would swallow a good chunk of the aforementioned lump sum.
What's happened since innocent me bought himself a good watch in 1978 is that, under pressure from the mass of cheap and accurate quartz watches, the likes of Rolex have abandoned the watch business and moved into the super-luxury business. Now If you buy a Rolex you are employing, amongst others, Roger Federer, Tiger Woods and Ana Ivanovic, and you are sponsoring Wimbledon and the Le Mans 24 Hours.
Not only that but the world is full of watch aficionados and collectors amongst whom is John Mayer the guitarist, who writes a column for Hodinkee, "one of the most widely read wristwatch publications in the world". They seem to be on a mission to ramp up the perceived value of Rolex and other luxury brands. The "man on the Clapham omnibus" is being squeezed out, even if he wants a secondhand model.
There is one way to get a "Rolex" for not much money. The world is full of fakes. It's good business, all the prestige without the cost, until somebody looks closely. The question you are most likely to be asked if you wear a Rolex: "is it a real one?" Somehow the prestige evaporates.
The upshot is that through no fault of my own, I am walking around with a millionaire's watch on my wrist. I fear for my hand.
In the end I rewarded myself for a lifetime of hard work with a Timex. It reminded me of being a teenager.
