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Following the pandemic, the watch industry’s biggest players have made a number of acquisitions that show there are already significant strategic retail/real estate changes happening.

Ro acquired Bucherer in August 2023 — here’s the official press release, and here’s our editorial take on that acquisition — which is news that sent shockwaves through the watch industry.

Immediately following the Bucherer acquisition both Swatch Group AG, which owns Ro’s biggest brand rival OMG, and Watches of Switzerland, which similarly is Bucherer’s biggest retail rival — both publicly traded companies — felt the need to issue official statements (as reported by WatchPro and JCKOnline, respectively) suggesting business would continue as usual. Both statements mimicked Ro’s official statement and were seemingly made to quell any sell-off of each company’s respective, London and Swiss stock market shares.

Following the initial news, the Swatch Group CEO, Nick Hayek Jr., has further stated that the amount of business that the Swatch Group AG does in Bucherer boutiques is relatively small compared to the Swatch Group AG’s total annual revenue, which suggests perhaps there may be more to the Bucherer acquisition than meets the eye. “After it became known that Ro was taking over the watch and jewelry retailer Bucherer, a financial blog described how bad that would be for the Swatch Group — because we would make a billion francs in sales with Bucherer. In fact, our 2022 sales with the Bucherer Group worldwide were just 30 million francs or 0.4 percent of our sales,” stated Hayek when speaking to Handelszeitung.

Interestingly, just this month, Swatch Group AG acquired a property on London’s prestigious New Bond Street, which currently houses Harry Winston and is over 6,000 square feet. In the same announcement, Swatch Group also mentioned that they acquired a space on Old Bond Street (which is 3 minutes away on foot), that exceeds 14,000 square feet. It’s unclear what the larger location is intended to be used for, though, considering the size, and that Ro is opening its biggest store in Europe next door, an OMG or a multi-brand boutique would make sense. Additionally, Swatch also mentioned the acquisition of a third building, from earlier in the year, at the prestigious Champs-Elysées in Paris. Further adding fuel to the idea that a retail/real estate war of sorts is brewing.

Fast forward to today, and multiple news sites (Bloomberg, Perpetual Passion, MoneyWeb, Livemint) have reported that Ro, via a separate entity (Marconi Investment SA), has acquired the building in Geneva’s most expensive shopping district (Rue du Rhone) for CHF 120 million (approximately $133 million) — which houses rival OMG’s largest brand boutique. Meaning, that Ro will now be collecting rent from OMG, and at some point could raise the rate or terminate the lease.

This means, that Ro now profits from the lease at OMG’s largest watch boutique, and is also profiting from all OMG sales, (as well as other Swatch Group brand sales) within the Bucherer retail network.

It’s unclear if any of these acquisitions are strategic moves against primary rivals, or whether they were investments made by cash-rich companies based on opportunities that were too hard to pass up — but the more acquisitions that happen, the more it looks like the playing field is being reconfigured by the luxury watch industry’s two largest players (and longstanding rivals).

Best Minimalist Watches

Hey everyone, today we’re going to be taking a look at the top 100 best minimalist watches for men. This features a huge selection of watches that have a focus on minimal design.

Obviously, there are bound to be some disagreements about which watches should or shouldn’t be included in this list, if you think we missed any out that deserve to be in here then definitely have your say in the comments section, over time we update the list and they may get included in the next run through.

I hope you enjoy our top 100 best minimalist watches for men, let me know your favourite in the comments section below. To view an up to date price and details of any model just follow the relevant link provided

100 Best Minimalist Watches

1. Daniel Wellington Minimalist Unisex Watch (Affordable)

 This first watch on our look at the 100 best minimalist watches available is this neat unisex edition from Daniel Wellington. As you’d expect from a Unisex watch, this model has a smaller 36mm casing diameter. The Classic Black Sheffield has this great blend of black and PVD rose gold plating that gives it that smart finish. It’s powered by a Japanese quartz movement and has a genuine leather strap.

2. Skagen Men’s Hagen Minimal Watch (Affordable)

This handsome gents timepiece has an ion-plated stainless steel casing and is fitted with a quartz movement. The large white dial combined with the slim hands and hour markers give the watch this great simple minimal style.

3. Mondaine Men’s Quartz Swiss Minimalist Watch (Mid range)

Mondaine are a popular affordable Swiss watch brand that are known for the elegant dial design that represents the Swiss railway station clock on your wrist. It features this instantly recognisable design with a hint of colour on the seconds hand. As you’d expect, this model runs on a Swiss quartz movement and has a domed mineral crystal glass.

4. SekfordType 1A PVD Gold Plated Stainless Steel And Leather Watch (Mid Range – High end)

The next men’s minimalist watch we’re featuring is this beautiful timepiece from Sekford. The Sekford Type 1A is designed with this clever domed mineral crystal lens that makes the dial appear brighter and open, a look inspired by vintage pocket watches. It’s a pricey Swiss made minimal men’s watch that I would definitely be considering.

 5. Braun Men’s Quartz Fashional Minimalist Watch (Affordable)

Next up we have a Braun simplistic watch with a dash of colour in the form of a thing yellow seconds hand. It’s a fashionable timepiece with a bare bones finish to the dial. Braun are a well-recognised brand for their love of design.

6. Movado Museum Men’s Leather Strap Watch (Mid-range)

Movado are an iconic brand known for their love of Bauhaus design, drawing on the ethos of simplicity and function. The Movado Museum features the signature dot and hands on the dial. It’s powered by a Swiss quartz movement and has a sapphire crystal glass for excellent scratch resistance. A truly beautiful Swiss made minimalist watch.

7. Larsson & Jennings Lugano 40mm in Black (Mid range)

The Lugano 40mm redefines minimal luxury with a black on black design and a black Italian calf leather strap. This minimalist watch drops the seconds hand and runs on a Swiss quartz Ronda movement.

8. Bering Men’s Classic Chronograph Watch (Affordable – mid range)

Here we have a minimalistic chronograph watch from Bering, another brand that are likely to make a few appearances on today’s list of the best 100 minimalist watches. This classic timepiece features a beautiful yet simple chronograph display, removing the outlines and avoiding the use of numerals on the outer dial. Like many other minimal watches, they’ve opted for a tiny splash of colour with the seconds hand.

9. Raymond Weil Freelancer Automatic Watch (Luxury minimalist watch)

This is the first luxury automatic minimalistic watch that we’re featuring. I’d say it more hints on minimal design than staying completely true to it. The semi-exposed dial is a beautiful edition though, showcasing the automatic movement at work. This watch features an exhibition caseback too, one of my favourite features on an automatic watch.

10. Swatch Unisex White Rebel Watch (Affordable)

Next up we have a plain watch from Swatch with an all white minimal design. This unisex Swatch timepiece has a 40mm casing diameter with a slim 11mm thickness. It actually runs on a Swiss quartz movement which isn’t something you often find in this price range.