“Why the Seventies Are Back in Style in the Watch Industry!”
Many luxury watch enthusiasts favor models whose design draws on the trends of particular past decades or that revive the signature features of famous watch icons. Right now, retro watches in the style of the 1970s are especially in demand. Several manufacturers have added such models to their collections, and in this article we present a few examples.
Why the 1970s of All Decades?
The reasons for choosing a watch in 1970s style may vary widely from person to person. Still, there are at least a few clues as to why this particular era is so popular with watch buyers right now.
For one thing, the trend toward seventies design isn't limited to the watch industry; it is mirrored by similar developments in fashion and in product design across other industries. For another, the period from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s is often associated with a certain attitude toward life that has lost none of its fascination to this day and takes on quite different forms.
For some, it was the era of the hippie movement. For others, it was the time when humankind conquered space and the digital age began. Either way, it was an era whose influence is still felt in many ways today.
What Defines 1970s Design?
In the watch industry, the seventies were above all the era of the first digital watches. By the end of the decade at the latest, a watch with a digital LCD display was considered the height of cool. Digital displays even threatened to push analog ones further and further aside. At the same time, analog watches continued to be produced, and in some cases manufacturers combined analog and digital displays in one and the same watch.
When it came to case shapes, the distinctive cushion-shaped lines were especially popular. At the same time, watches from this era often looked fairly clean and modern – particularly in the design of their dials, hands, and indices, as well as the typography of the numerals.
Junghans 1972 – Retro Watches with High-Tech Inside
One of the most beautiful lines of retro watches in 1970s design is currently offered by Junghans. The watches are called Junghans 1972, a nod to the year the Olympic Games were held in Munich. Back in 1972, the renowned German watchmaker – already boasting more than 100 years of tradition at the time – served as official timekeeper for the Olympic competitions. With the retro collection, the company now revives the atmosphere of those years, offering its customers a hand-picked selection of watches that have clearly been lovingly designed in 1970s style down to the last detail. Yet even though the design is inspired by an era nearly half a century ago, the watches of the Junghans 1972 collection are technically state of the art.
Thanks to the radio control of the high-quality quartz movement, the wearer can rely on the time displayed being absolutely precise. The solar technology means there's no need to worry about replacing the battery in time, winding the watch regularly, or buying a watch winder for the periods when the watch isn't being worn.
Instead, the watch draws enough energy from incoming light to keep running for up to 21 months afterward, even without further exposure to light. The dial features orange and blue color accents – depending on the version, for example on the rehaut or on the chronograph subdials, and in some cases on the straps as well. They give the watches a fresh, sporty look.
Girard-Perregaux Also Reissues a '70s Icon
In 1975, Girard-Perregaux watches from the Laureato collection made their debut on the world stage, with a bold octagonal bezel and a waffle-pattern guilloché dial. To mark the manufacture's 225th anniversary, the model is making a comeback. Today's successor, of course, comes across as more modern and considerably more purist – octagon and all. While quartz seemed to be the future of luxury watches a good 40 years ago, Girard-Perregaux has treated the reissue to an automatic caliber. What remains, however, is the predominantly metallic look and the waffle texture of the dial – even if it now comes in radiant blue.
With this watch, released in a strictly limited edition, more retro watches in the style of the 1970s are making a comeback – even if Girard-Perregaux is producing only 225 pieces in total.
Glashütte Original – Not an Original from the 1970s
In 1970s East Germany, the Party and the military had entirely different requirements for watches than private users did. Even so, watches from VEB Glashütter Uhrenbetriebe from the '60s and '70s are now regarded as collector's pieces with particularly appealing looks. Its successor, the Glashütte Original manufacture, took this as an opportunity to reinterpret these watches.
And successfully so – the Seventies Panorama Date is a textbook example of well-executed, reissued seventies design: a cushion-shaped stainless steel case, a generously sized date display, and a robust automatic movement – that's how the East German watch scored points in the 1970s, and it still does today. Many watchmaking ateliers are currently following the lead of '70s design.
Other retro watches in the style of the 1970s include the Longines Heritage 1973, the Mido Commander, and Hamilton's Pan Europe.
