American watchmaker Timex has hit a nostalgic sweet spot with the re-release of the iconic Q Timex range. MAXIM chats with their design director GIORGIO GALLI to talk Americana, the ’70s and Presidential watches…
From the runway to the wrist, the 1970s are back, baby. Indeed, no-one is riding this nostalgia wave quite like American watchmaker Timex. “In the ’70s, there was incredible freedom of design,” says Giorgio Galli, the brand’s design director. He’s chatting to us via Zoom from his offices in Milan, Italy. As we talk, Galli and Team Timex are celebrating the success of the Q Timex reissue, which has injected the centuries-old company with newfound street cred.
Since its founding in 1854 as Waterbury Watch Company, Timex has consistently found a symbolic place on the wrist of American history. Bill Clinton wearing the brand’s plastic Ironman watch is as iconic as JFK’s Omega or LBJ’s Patek Philippe. Although derided by critics as aesthetically displeasing and downright un-Presidential, it was the perfect utilitarian statement for a President who connected with working class voters. “Even Bush wore a Timex!” Galli reminds us. “It’s kind of proof it’s a brand that’s a habit for the American people. It’s very true American. The fact that the brand has such broad appeal is important to our DNA.” Mining that DNA has been crucial to Galli’s success at Timex. “After 160 years, there are so many ups and downs. It’s an affordable brand. The central business of Timex is still the affordable watch. [We] just needed to refresh the image and go back to the history and the archive and give the right status to a brand that had been neglected.”
By 1962, the company estimated they were responsible for a third all watches sold. Waterbury became Timex corporation in 1969, a time when the company flourished filling big defence orders for the US military. Quartz movements, which utilise a small electronic oscillator, revolutionised the centuries-old mechanical watchmaking industry in the late ’60s. Suddenly, watches could be made quickly, accurately and inexpensively, rattling mechanical watchmakers in Europe and North America. Upon release in 1979, the Q Timex was one of the first widely-popular, affordable quartz watches. That it looked like a high-end dive watch without the price tag only sweetened the deal. “I think the ’70s was a great period of time for watches,” Giorgio muses. “The Q Timex really calls back that period of time in watch design [and] it’s aged extremely well. It not only brings nostalgia, but there’s a lot of points of interest in terms of design.”
Now it’s back, right down to the coin-slot battery hatch, giving a whole new generation of watch lovers the opportunity to add this iconic dive to their collections. Even better, the Q Timex reissue starts at a budget-friendly $295, an accessible price point at a time when millions are feeling the pinch of recession. Since re-debuting in late 2019 (it quickly sold out), Timex has expanded the Q range by adding new colour combinations. The success of the relaunch has also garnered the attention of influential watch website Hodinkee, or as Giorgio dubs it, “the Rolls Royce of the watch world.” It’s a seal of approval from the watch community for a brand which just a few short years ago was in danger of dropping off the radar. “The fact that we’re on Hodinkee means we’ve been able to do a great job with brand perception” explains Galli.
Hodinkee is now offering a special edition of the Q Timex, as well as a curated selection of other Timex models for sale. “It’s a great satisfaction” Giorgio beams. “It gives you more fuel to do more. To keep working. I don’t think everything we’ve done was extremely good, I think we made some mistakes.” Perhaps he’s referring to the brand’s wilderness years, when Timex struggled to stand out in the crowded fashion watch market. Despite a heritage that rivals even the most prestigious Swiss watchmakers, Timex once languished on the shelf. It was the arrival of Galli as head of design in the mid-2000s that sparked the beginning of many inspired collaborations and the path to being cool again.
“It’s so important to maintain and polish your history to keep it alive,” he says. “If you look at the high-end brands they all do the same thing. I think it is important to take good care of the history of a brand.” Under Galli, Timex has more consciously leaned in to this nostalgia factor, albeit while retaining the brand’s accessible price point. “It’s still a mass market product. That’s fine. I like it actually.” Still, “cheap doesn’t mean it has to be ugly.”
Despite the successful relaunch of the sentimental Q watch, it would be untrue to suggest that Timex ticks along merely on nostalgia. Recently, Galli achieved one of his greatest professional and creative triumphs, the S1 Automatic watch. “It really takes inspiration out of my career in watch design. I never wanted to do my own brand and Timex is such a great brand I don’t need to!” The premise behind the watch was simple, essential. “I wanted to design something that had nothing to do with rules, total freedom.” The S1 Automatic is also a testament to the trust between director and brand, especially when Galli told the company’s CEO that he wouldn’t show him the watch until it was done.
As well as architecture, Galli, who’s also a talented photographer, particularly takes inspiration from “the visual language of photographs.” The result feels sleek and light. Where the Q Timex is clearly a nostalgia piece, right down to the Pepsi- and Sprite-coloured bezels, the design of the S1 isn’t clearly from any particular period. “I wanted to make something that was thoughtful in design but wasn’t too loud. It represents my personality and the Timex DNA.” From the simple lines to the delicate red sapphire on the dial, it’s truly one of the most elegant automatic dress watches created outside Switzerland.
Galli is also responsible for a stable of brands who’ve licensed their watch arm to Timex, including Versace, Salvatore Ferragamo and Nautica. “We get a lot of input from Versace” says Giorgio. “They give us words, they give us a direction of what they’re doing. We get inspiration from that [and] put together all this information.”
Balancing the design inclinations of his team with the clearly-defined motifs of a fashion house can be a challenge. Due to a trademark issue, the Ferragamo watches he designs are unable to include the brand’s iconic Gancini logo. How does one create a signature watch when you can’t use a brand’s most well-known symbol? Turns out, this is Galli’s knack. “We can’t use the Gancini in the design because it looks like an Omega. So we created a Gancini design that was different from the original. I think we’ve found a compromise and a good direction.”
Speaking of direction, with successful collaborations, blockbuster relaunches and new classics like the S1, Timex is looking firmly ahead. Asked where the brand may be in 10, 20 or 50 years however, and Giorgio is characteristically balanced. “Success is pretty unpredictable. Once you find the right path, it will be a natural evolution of the brand. I don’t think it’ll be too far from where it is now.” ■
Timex watches are available at authorised retailers and Timex.com
By REILLY SULLIVAN
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