Christopher Ward - thoughts
 

What's the general opinion of Christopher Ward?

Personally I find it hard to get past the name. My understanding is that it is the name of a co-founder, who long ago left the company, and isn't even a watch maker, just a businessman/investor.

I know names like Omega/Rolex/Tudor are essentially meaningless but i find it highly peculiar to be a full name of an actual person, who is essentially irrelevant to watches??

I don't know.

Also. As much as it is nice to see new references. They seem to be chucking out new models like the worlds ending which kind of devalues them a little in my eye.

And why do I even post this/moan? Well I guess I sort of want to get one of their watches. But feel like I shouldn't because the whole package just seems a bit, i dont know, naff??

The very first thing that came into my mind was "the name"

I can't get past that either so they are a hard pass for me

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They're probably a decent department store watch. As for the name lots of companies use the name of the owner/founder so I guess it's no big deal.

The question is do you like the style, and the price. If the name on the dial bothers you, move on and buy something else. Lots of watch companies out there.

Here's a lit of watch companies, many with someone's name on the dial....https://www.ablogtowatch.com/brands/

yeah fair point; lots of them

i think its a little snooty to dismiss them as a department store watch. I think being fair, and to their credit i think most would agree they are a decent microbrand and have a bit more prestige than that.

Louis-François Cartier
Coco Chanel
Richard Mille
Antoni Patek and Adrien Philippe

To name but a few...sometimes, the name, is everything.

They're basically a internet watch company I think.

I don't think they are in retail locations. My comment was that they are like many of the watches you could buy in departments stores. Nothing wrong with that. Lots of great watches were/are available in department stores.

Correct, I believe they're D2C with the exception of a single flagship store, which is very new. Between the two "upstart English watch brands," I'd take a look at Bremont over CW. CW, with the exception of their latest moonphase watch, seems... I dunno... very "meh" to me. Some are neat, but not spend my own money on them neat.

They are pushing the boundary of what you sort of technology you can get for a sub 5k watch. If you’re buying a watch for the name on it…. you are buying it for the wrong reason.

hate the name. hate the branding.

latest moonphase and the Bel Canto are fantastic looking pieces, though. the Bel Canto especially...blows my mind that this thing is available...well, sorta...at that pricepoint.

And yet, here we all are with the name Rolex on our watches.

Christopher Ward - thoughts
 

I think they’re pretty decent. There are several models I like. Their new moon phase watch is pretty hot, but it’s in that category of: “I like it, but not enough to buy it.”

However, if you compare them to Farer, I think CW “borrows” a lot from Rolex, Omega and other brands in terms of design. I think Farer is much more original. Between the two, I think I’d get a Farer instead.

My 2 cents…


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I have no hangups over the name, and devaluation is moot for me. I just buy what appeals to me with zero thought about what it'll be worth tomorrow.

IMHO they make fantastic watches in their various price points.

Just bought a Twelve-36 last month, and my Bel Canto is scheduled for delivery in late Spring 2024.

i'll let you know ... once they finally deliver.

I had a couple of watches, Frederique Constant and Jean Richard which I think are close to the same price point and were fun watches.

Exactly my first thought too. I can't get past the name.

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They're doing many things right, including getting rid of the name on the dials. I think they should just change it to "Ward".

Not for me. So many brands in the range of what they are doing they get lost.

Really, can you name one producing an aventurine dial and a sonnerie au passage at a similar price point as I would love to check them out. :cheers:

Do you lust after a Vauxhall Cavalier? What about a Chevy Malibu? Don't ask who said that. About sums it up I think.

I remember lusting after a Vauxhall Lotus Carlton.

I know the one. Black, Lotus engine, leather and other goodies. Fair comment. :thumbsup:

Great value for what you pay. My favorites from their line are the latest gen C60 Trident Pro 300, The Twelve, and Bel Canto.

What I like is they seem to take customer feedback and make incremental improvements to their product as they go. Check out their latest C60 Trident, it's an impressive $1000 dive watch.

Not sure why many seem bothered by the name? It's not on the dial so you don't have to worry about it after you buy one. There are plenty of stupid watch names out there. Rolex was just created because it was easy to say and market. CW make excellent watches at a very good price. Since they sell online only, they can keep the prices lower than a lot of competitors. I've owned several over the years (two currently) and they punch way above their pricepoint. And the department store comment is just ridiculous. CW is not a fashion brand. They make excellent swiss made timepieces. They just approached the watch business differently than other companies by going online-only. This bronze driver with chrometer certified movement has been a pleasure to own and set my back <$1,200 to my door. I'd put this head-to-head with watchs 3-4x the price.
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Maybe it is trivial to worry about a name…..

but I can’t disassociate Christopher Ward with Daniel Wellington…..

they used to have the full name on the dial….so maybe even they realise it was not such a smart move.

No arguments about vfm though….

Awful branding, awful marketing. The sort of thing you will put on eBay once you get the watch you really want..

:thinking::thinking::thumbsdow

Some of these responses feel shockingly dismissive for an exciting affordable brand. The name isn’t great and I’m not surprised people on “The Rolex Forums” care about names.

Lumping them in with Daniel Wellington is downright laughable and uninformed.

Their new Moonphase, the Twelve and the Bel Canto indicate attempts to move upmarket. The designs can feel derivative (Arnold & Son, Czapek, MB&F respectively) but that also represents a major improvement from the army of Oyster Perpetual and Explorer II clones at the $1-3k price point.

I would say your last word nails it, ‘naff’ indeed.

If there C1 Moonphase was a tad larger, I would buy one, wear it, and never care what any haters thought.

That’s nice too!