It's About Time

Women watch collectors are having a moment. Showing off their stacked wrists on social media, taking up space in a historically male-dominated industry-and inspiring a new generation along the way.

- EMMA CHILDS

Watches aren’t like other accessories. While wonderful, a handbag or a pair of shoes doesn’t have a beat. But a watch—being the mini machine it is, tick-ticking to its own little rhythm—does. They’re not quite alive, but almost. Top-tier timepieces may even outlive their owners: Luxury watch house Patek Philippe’s long-time ad slogan reads, “You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation.”

Timepieces are fascinating, complex gadgets with a centuries-old history. But unless you’re the industry’s conventional consumer (see: a man with deep pockets), the watch world doesn’t always abide by an open-door policy. On the design front, women consumers are rarely given the same well-rounded consideration as their male counterparts. Men have their pick of “sports,” “dress,” and “dive;” while women are often left to choose from the “shrink it and pink it” section: dainty-ified male silhouettes offered in “girlish” color palettes.

But times are changing. Women watch connoisseurs are increasingly gaining visibility and making their passions, preferences, and buying power known. They’re finally being recognized, proving that the days of a watch being a boys-only toy are no more.

Which is why we spoke to some of the coolest collectors in the space. Here, they show off their wrists, share the grail finds of their dreams, and offer advice for how to get in the game.

MOJDEH CUTTER

Currently wearing: Must de Cartier 21 from the ’90s