…Comparing the two watches in this photo, both have external rotating bezels; both are waterproof to 200 meters; both are stainless steel, with the Kith being black-coated; both have rubber straps…
You already said you gave them all 0/10, so there's nothing more to deduct. 😉
Ok, following your criteria:
£135 or 90% cheaper.
External rotating bezel - check.
200m rating - check.
Stainless Steel PVD - check.
Rubber Strap - check.
I will add some more:
Not a TAG Heuer - check.
Unknown Fashion Brand - oops, fail! Most people have heard of this brand.
My point being, this is NOT a TAG Heuer, it’s a “Kith Heuer”, which is a major bugbear for any rational person who isn’t just trying to jump on the hype bandwagon for a product just to build favour with the brand or even get paid for the privilege.
Avant Garde is really about having the balls to put something out there with your OWN brand on it, knowing the potential risks but still doing it. NOT relying on hype from some other brand where you can call it a success colab if it goes down well or blame them if it doesn’t.
So here's my question -- If the lowest price in the TAG Heuer catalog is the Formula 1 (shown below with a Kith Formula 1), with that watch priced at $1,450, and the "entry level" Carrera and Aquaracer models are priced at over $2,000, how could anyone possibly expect the Kith to be priced below the $1,500 price? Comparing the two watches in this photo, both have external rotating bezels; both are waterproof to 200 meters; both are stainless steel, with the Kith being black-coated; both have rubber straps. The Kith has some "special" finishes (on the dial and case) and is a limited edition.
All this to say that the $1,500 price seems about right to me (and I doubt that we will ever see a TAG Heuer priced any lower).
Jeff
I can see your point Ben, but that does look like shit. Plus where is the 'heritage'? 😁
It’s pretty obvious that my example is deliberately cheap and nasty and I don’t believe it compares in quality or design, but it is honest and it has its own logo on it. Which is the point being made.
As to the heritage, the bezel is showing set to 39 to signify that it was really Armani that designed the first quartz wrist watch in 1939, but the blueprints were lost for 85 years and only recently got found when actual Armani brand ambassador, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, was looking for inspiration for the Met Gala.
This thing is going to explode when they finally confirm him as the new Bond…
The Formula 1 you posted as a comparison feels like a more substantial and serious watch to me.
I can see your point Ben, but that does look like shit. Plus where is the 'heritage'? 😁
Yes, I agree with this. I also envisioned this as a new 'entry level' F1, but actually it doesn't really make much sense there. We already know that newbies coming into the hobby are attracted to larger, quartz powered watches and only after time do they realise that small watches with mechanical movements are where the kudos really sits. So where do you put the classic F1? I would say about where it is. The 'entry level' TAG F1 is just a plain watch that someone buys because it's the one they can afford. It's most likely their only 'expensive' watch. The classic F1 is probably not going to be one that a newbie buys, but more an occasional watch for someone who already has several pieces.
I don't think these watches would have received anywhere near as much attention if it wasn't for the strong KITH brand. Lets face it, none of these watches are pretty and they look very outdated. If TAG would have released these, most people would have thought "what the hell is TAG thinking?". But now with the magical KITH branding and association, it makes sense for the non watch enthusiast majority 👍