Holiday Wrist Candy

👋 Hey Watch Lovers…

We’re back — and I’ll be honest, I missed this.

The quiet stretch wasn’t “radio silence,” though. It was the behind-the-scenes kind of busy: a future Watch Word marketplace, a mobile app, and a premium community where collectors, insiders, and the people shaping the industry can actually talk without the noise.

For now, we’re doing what we do best: great stories, clean insights, zero fluff.

If you know someone who’d love this, forward it. That’s how momentum starts.

Let’s wind this thing up again. 🕰️

Fatih

🕒 The Movement*

* The numbers above represent trends in the secondhand watch market. The "Price" column shows the average secondhand price for the top 30 watches—source: Watch Charts.

⏱️ First Tick

THE WATCHFATHER

Coppola's 'FFC' sells for $10.755 million, the most expensive F.P. Journe ever sold.

ROOT BEER FOR US

Seiko's new Prospex LX GMT "Root Beer" features a Spring Drive GMT and is only available in the US.

BRIGHTEN UP!

Here are 14 of the best lume dial watches that'll blind you in the dark.

PERFECT ANGLE

A. Lange & Söhne's discreet jumps: Richard Lange Jumping Seconds ticks, and everything clicks!

⌚ Beyond the Dial

The “Gettable” Watch Gift Guide

If you've ever tried to buy a watch as a gift and somehow ended up negotiating like a real estate deal... same. So this year, I’m keeping it simple: picks by personality (not just price), plus a quick reality check on whether you can walk into a dealer and leave with something on your wrist.

Good news: the post-pandemic watch frenzy has cooled. Swiss watch exports slipped in 2025 (and the entry/mid-end took a bigger hit), which usually translates to more availability and less "sorry, nothing in the case." On the pre-owned side, a major 2025 market report shows pre-owned prices stabilizing (the "free fall" vibe is gone), and supply for the biggest brands looks better.

My quick gift picks (by human):

• For the first-job kids (or interview era): Tissot PR 100 — clean, grown-up, zero drama.

• Your "I want one good watch" friend: Hamilton Khaki Field Auto — rugged, iconic, and always wearable.

• The design snob (like me): Nomos Club Campus — Bauhaus vibes without the "look at me" energy.

• For the stylish mom who doesn't buy herself anything: Longines DolceVita — classic shape, instant upgrade.

• Sporty guys who are always "timing something": Tudor Black Bay 58 — the sweet spot of legit + wearable.

• Someone who wants understated-but-expensive: Cartier Tank Must — unfairly elegant on literally everyone.

• Here's iconic romance novel energy: Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch — history, gravitas, and actual heart.

• Wildcard who hates “the obvious choice “: look at independents (Baltic / Furlan Marri / Studio Underd0g-style drops) — the most compliments per dollar.

60-second "can I get it at retail?" rule: if you need it this week, aim for brands/models with steady inventory (Tissot, Hamilton, Longines, Nomos, many Tudors). Consider dial/bracelet flexibility if you're chasing the usual unicorn steel-sport suspects—and treat "relationship-building" as part of the hobby, not a glitch.

🕰️ Back in Time

Broken Heart Becomes Unbreakable Watch

G-SHOCK began not as a "cool watch." It began as a personal mission.

Early in the 1980s, Casio engineer Kikuo Ibe broke his father's sentimental watch and couldn't fix it, so he decided to build one that wouldn't die. It was pure obsession: two years, 200+ prototypes, and a dedicated crew called "Project Team Tough."

The breakthrough came from a surprisingly simple "aha": watching a kid bounce a rubber ball. Don't fight impact—absorb it. So Casio designed the watch like a capsule, with an inner module "floating" inside a shock-absorbing structure.

Their goal became the legendary "Triple 10" standard: survive a 10-meter drop, handle 10-bar water resistance, and run 10 years on a battery. The first model to carry that attitude? The DW-5000C, launched in 1983.

Now it's a fashion icon... but it all started with engineering, stubbornness, and gravity.

📖 Horolography

Glow-in-the-dark parts of a watch—usually the hands, hour markers, and sometimes the bezel. Charges under light (sunlight, a lamp, your phone flashlight...), then lights up so you don't have to do the classic "tilt-it-toward-any-light-source" dance. Lume used to be mostly radium (yes, radioactive!) and has mostly been replaced by less bright, but less toxic compounds.

Fun rule of thumb: great lume doesn't just glow bright... it stays bright even when the night gets long.

⏰ The Final Tick

If you enjoyed today’s issue, here’s the easiest way to keep Watch Word alive and growing:

• Forward it to one watch friend (you know the one).

• Hit reply and tell me your favorite part — I actually read them.

• If you want to support this project directly, a small tip/coffee helps a lot (it's how independent newsletters go).

I'll see you next time — and this time, a lot more often. 🫶🕰️

Fatih Taskiran
Founder & Chief Daydreamer at The Core