5 Most Improved Luxury Watch Brands of the Past 15 Years

Powerfunk Saturday, August 3rd, 2024 10 min. read
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At times, in the world of luxury watches, it can feel like each year’s new releases are iterative and familiar. Quick, revolutionary changes are rare in this industry, and the leading brands tend to stick with their familiar winning aesthetics. But if we zoom out, we can see that the landscape of fine watchmaking has actually changed a lot in the past 15 years. Here’s our list of the five most improved luxury watch brands since 2009.

Tudor

Tudor is probably the most obvious pick to make a list of most improved watch brands. It’s largely because they’re doing great stuff nowadays, but it’s also partly because, well, they were in a pretty dark place in 2009. Tudors weren’t even sold in the US then. That was still during the Tudor Hydronaut era, before the Tudor Heritage Chrono or Black Bay had been released. At the time, the loud early-2000’s vibe was just starting to overstay its welcome.

Tudor Chronautic
Tudor Chronautic ref. 79380 circa 2007

Every Tudor used to be assembled at Rolex headquarters in Geneva, but that work now takes place at Tudor’s own factory in Le Locle. Until the late 1990’s, Tudor watches were mostly just affordable equivalents of Rolex designs–not that there’s anything wrong with that–but they were clearly struggling to establish an aesthetic identity in the early 2000’s. Now Tudor has firmly established a coherent “sporty modern take on a clean vintage classic” vibe.

  • Heritage Chrono from Tudor, one of the most improved luxury watch brands
  • BLack Bay Chrono from Tudor, one of the most improved luxury watch brands
  • Black Bay GMT's from Tudor, one of the most improved luxury watch brands

Today, Tudor’s lineup includes multiple Master Chronometers, which are guaranteed to run between 0-5 seconds fast per day and resist magnetic fields up to 15,000 gauss. It’s not even a particularly hot take to say that they’re going after Omega‘s market share at this point. With multiple popular variants of two hot product lines–the Black Bay and the Pelagos–Tudor watches often even have waitlists, which would’ve been a laughable thought not too long ago. Congrats to Tudor on being one of the most improved watch brands in terms of sales as well as design.

More on Tudor:
Tudor vs. Rolex: How Do They Stack Up Now?
Tudor Pelagos Collector’s Guide
How to Sell a Tudor Watch
Everything You Need to Know About Tudor Military Watches

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Cartier

Cartier is one of the top luxury watch brands in the world, and that’s not exactly a new development. They have a long history of notable watchmaking contributions–the Cartier Tank, for instance, was so influential that almost any rectangular watch is now generically called a “tank watch.” And the Santos, which is a very popular watch these days, was the first wristwatch openly marketed to men. So it may seem odd to see Cartier on a list of most improved watch brands, but their ascension to the #2 spot in the luxury watch world was not a foregone conclusion.

Tank Louis Cartier, from one of the most improved watch brands in recent history
Cartier Tank Louis Cartier, large size in yellow gold

Cartier wasn’t exactly smoking hot with watch enthusiasts in 2009. It wasn’t hated, either–knowledgeable watch geeks generally spoke highly of their quality. That was right around the time when the in-house movement craze began, and Cartier’s automatic Caliber 1904 MC debuted in 2010, which was a significant step for them. Cartier’s reputation has only grown as a legitimate watch house since then.

Cartier Santos Skeleton
Cartier ref. WHSA0028

The Cartier watch catalog has evolved to have more complications and fewer quartz movements, and they’ve nailed some subtle aesthetic tweaks as well. The revamped Santos de Cartier lineup that debuted in 2018 has been a smash hit for them, and their skeleton watches have very strong demand as well. I never saw budding watch enthusiasts ask “should I get a Rolex or Cartier?” 15 years ago, but that’s a common question now. Cartier is right up there in people’s minds.

More on Cartier:
Cartier Women’s Watch Guide
The Most Expensive Cartier Watches
Cartier 2024 Releases
Who Owns Cartier?

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Breitling

Breitling was barely in the top 20 Swiss watchmakers by sales in 2017, but by 2023, they were in the top ten according to LuxeConsult and Morgan Stanley. That’s not surprising, because 2017 is when seasoned luxury watch veteran Georges Kern took over as CEO, and he’s been making good decisions ever since. Breitling was arguably already on an upswing since 2009, when they first introduced their now-beloved in-house B01 chronograph movement.

Breitling is one of the most improved watch brands of the past 15 years
Breitling Navitimer B04 GMT Chronograph

The Kern era has toned down the huge in-your-face Breitling aesthetic just a tad. But not too much–chunky options like the Superocean 46 are still on the menu, although 48mm options seem to be getting discontinued and Breitling is starting to pay way more attention to 36mm models (and other sizes wearable by women).

Breitling Premier chronographs
Breitling Premier chronographs

2017 was also the year that CVC Capital Partners bought a majority stake in Breitling, and although private equity firms don’t have the best track record of improving the quality of watch brands they buy, this is absolutely a success story. In 2022, Partners Equity became the majority shareholder, but CVC is still involved and Kern is still at the helm. Breitling doubled their turnover from 2022-2024 and if they keep making classy releases like the Premier while retaining the design DNA that got them famous, there’s no reason to believe that success won’t continue.

More on Breitling:
2024 Breitling Watch Releases
A Collector’s Guide to the Breitling Emergency
The Best Entry-Level Breitling Watches
Who is Universal Genève and Why Did Breitling Buy Them?

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Bulgari

When the average person thinks of luxury watch brands, they tend to think of Rolex, TAG Heuer, and Omega–maybe Cartier or Patek Philippe. Bulgari isn’t typically the first brand on a luxury watch buyer’s tongue. Unless, however, the topic is the thinnest watches in the world. That’s a realm that Bulgari has been absolutely dominating ever since their Octo Finissimo debuted in 2014. The entire Octo line, which was first launched under the Gerald Genta brand in 2008, has been strong for Bulgari.

The Octo has led Bulgari to be one of the most improved watch brands in recent times
Two Octo Finissimo models: 10th Anniversary Chronograph GMT (left) and Ceramic Skeleton (right)

Bulgari watch prices tend to be quite favorable for buyers, particularly on the pre-owned market. Octo Finissimo models hold their value well, but standard Octo models are often overlooked and are a great value in the sub-$5,000 used luxury watch world. The Bvlgari Bvlgari and Bvlgari Aluminium collections, which were pretty big in the 1990’s, are still chugging along. But it’s really the Octo that has made Bulgari relevant to modern watch enthusiasts.

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TAG Heuer

TAG Heuer has been making a concerted effort in recent years to appeal more to hardcore luxury watch enthusiasts and rise above its perceived “beginner fancy watch” status. While they haven’t entirely abandoned quartz fashion-centric ventures (like the Kith Heuer collaboration), they’ve paid a lot of attention to the Monaco and Carrera lines.

That’s a smart move in my opinion, because those are the two most historically beloved Heuer collections among enthusiasts–although the Autavia is probably a close third. The Carrera chronographs with glassbox crystals–which cover the entire dial and require only a barely-there bezel– are particularly appealing.

TAG Heuer is one of the most improved watch brands since 2009
TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph with glassbox design. Photo: TAG Heuer

The current-generation Aquaracer looks more balanced than older ones, too. Plus, TAG Heuer now exclusively uses in-house movements for their chronographs. And their spectacular $138,000 split-seconds chronographs aren’t bad for their reputation, either. All in all, TAG Heuer has definitely done a lot to improve their position in the past 15 years.

More on TAG Heuer:
The Best TAG Heuer Watches
Tag Heuer, Hublot, and Zenith 2024 Releases
Long-Term Review: TAG Heuer Monaco Calibre 12 Final Edition

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Honorable Mentions

While those are (arguably) the five most improved luxury watch brands of the past 15 years, there are certainly some other brands that deserve some credit. Grand Seiko didn’t even enter the US market until 2010, and now they’re crushing it–they’re one of the most frequently praised brands among internet watch nerds. Although GS is certainly one of the most improved watch brands in terms of sales and brand recognition, I didn’t put them on the list because their products haven’t really changed too much.

Grand Seiko is arguably one of the most improved luxury watch brands in recent history
Grand Seiko “Shunbun” Spring Drive ref. SBGA413

Grand Seiko was already making spectacularly finished watches that punched well above their weight 15 years ago; now it’s just common knowledge. Although I’ve made snarky remarks about Grand Seiko’s marketing before, I can at least appreciate that they’ve leaned into the “interesting textured dial” thing in recent years–which is what their fans, largely, want from them.

I also think Oris and Longines both deserve credit for raising the bar in the $3,000ish price bracket. I think improvements from brands like that have pushed more upmarket brands to stay on their toes. With “affordable luxury” brands offering machined clasps with micro-adjustment functionality, for instance, pricier brands are being driven to do the same.

I should also mention that several famous fashion houses–namely Hermès, Chanel, Ralph Lauren, and Louis Vuitton–have all transitioned from “afterthought quartz fashion watches” to “legitimate high-end watchmaking” in recent years. I expect I’ll be writing more about all of those brands. Given all the advancements that have happened in the past 15 years of high-end watchmaking, it will be exciting to see what the next 15 years will bring. I can only how imagine how many axes tourbillons will be spinning on in 2039.

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