Now a core part of the watch collecting landscape, collaborations come in all shapes, sizes and levels of… ‘oh, they really went for it?’ Horology is — famously — a pretty slow moving beast, but in recent years a much-discussed and, ideally, hard-to-acquire new collaboration is 101 when it comes to building hype and reaching new wrists. You need a rapper, a blockbuster, or a cartoon frog to play the game these days.
Below we’ve counted down some of our favourite watch collaborations of all time. The rare pizza Rolex, the most coveted collab in the world, and a three-way meeting of design genius.
Up there as one of the more incongruous luxury watch partnerships, back in the 80’s, Tom Managhan, the founder of Domino’s Pizza, began dishing out Rolex Air Kings and Oyster Perpetuals to franchise managers who were bringing in the dough (sorry) on a regular basis, an incentive that became the stuff of legend in watch collecting circles. These were legitimate Rolex factory produced models, which were a big thing amongst corporate circles celebrating a promotion, retirement, or just selling loads of pizza. At chrono24.co.uk
Given their aviation credentials, it makes sense that IWC would go after the training school that inspired a certain all action, towel-whipping, volleyball-spiking mega franchise. Since 2007, IWC have partnered with the real-life Navy Fighter Weapons School, AKA, TOPGUN, on watches built to withstand the insane pressures placed on a figher pilot. There’s even a special chronograph that is only available to graduates of the Navy Fighter Weapons School… although you can buy your own, similar version too, of course. £14,900. At watches-of-switzerland.co.uk
G-Shock is notorious for killer collabs – looking at you, Nigo’s A Bathing Ape that goes back to 1998 – showing that the brand sees the value in joining forces with others. It has its own cult ‘take’ on a Rolex and the ongoing G-Shock releases with muso/watch nerd John Mayer continues to throw up some gems. This 6900-PT1 is the third time the two have had some horological fun together. Inspired by the ‘Your Body is a Wonderland’ singer's love of the Casiotone SK-5 keyboard, it's a winner. And this year, Ed Sheeran jumped abroad the collab train with these two, too. At chrono24.co.uk
RM doesn’t do things by halves, so when, in 2021, it was announced they’d be partnering with the prancing horse, you know it was at least going to be interesting. At just 1.75mm thick, the RM UP-01 Ferrari took 6,000 hours of lab testing to develop, creating an ultra flat manual winding movement and — for RM’s wild standards — an elegant case in grade 5 titanium (the really strong stuff). Limited to just 150 pieces, you’ve probably got more chance of winning Le Mans, but it’s nice to look at, isn’t it? At richardmille.com
Another interesting development in watch collaborations is the subverting of traditional price models. Omega is a luxury brand, Swatch — while iconic — isn’t, but that didn’t stop 2022’s ‘Moonswatch’ launch becoming one of the most fevered drops in a long time. There were queues, there were viral videos of people getting into scuffles, there were scalpers and prospectors, but overall there was a really great watch that, according to reports, has already sold more than a million units and doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon. Now does anyone have a plug? £228. At swatch.com
Two American classics, a decades-spanning legacy of working together to make watches that are fun, collectible, useful, and not stupidly expensive. The first Snoopy dial Timex was produced in 1969 and still pops up regularly to this day, appearing on everything from Camper and Expedition models to the automatic Marlin. Yes, we’d definitely like a Tiffany Dial Nautilus (more on that later), but a Peanuts Timex should have a spot in every collection. £209. At timex.co.uk
How do you build on a Gérald Genta icon and one of the most recognisable watch designs in history? Stick an MCU character on one, of course. AP and Marvel linked up in 2021 with a Black Panther and this year dropped a rad Spiderman edition. But who do we have to thank for this unlikely-but-totally-makes-sense collab? Don Cheadle of all people – the actor who plays James Rhodes in the Marvel Universe – after CEO François-Henry Bennahmias had made numerous attempts to begin the conversation. POA. At audemarspiguet.com
While TAG Heuer and Porsche have been having lots of fun with their Carrera collabs, it's the Swiss brand's legendary Formula 1 model that's having the most fun. If there is one computer game everyone has knowledge of, it is Mario Kart, which must be why TAG and Nintendo slapped the iconic Italian plumber onto a watch dial. It's a chronograph, there’s stainless steel, red accents, and it's 44mm so what’s not to love? £3,750. At tagheuer.com
“Virgil got that Patek on my wrist goin' nuts” sings Drake in ‘Life is Good’. He'd be correct – this Patek Philippe Nautilus 5726 encrusted to the max with green emeralds is insane in the membrane. Modern era's most creative icon Virgil Abloh worked with serial customisers Mad Paris to put this together, so while it might not technically qualify as a collab, we're including it anyway. Since this piece, Patek and Tiffany has given us the Tiffany blue Nautilus, with the likes of Di Caprio, Jay-Z and Lebron James spotted in them. But in our eyes, it doesn't come close Virgil's beauty.
What do you get when you cross the legacy and attention to detail of Seiko with Giorgetto Giugiaro, the man and myth behind the designs of the De Lorean DMC 12, the Fiat Panda and the Maserati Ghibli… as well as cameras for Nikon and his own pasta shape. Well, you get the Seiko Speedmaster, a lesser-spotted digital beauty that’s not to be confused with a fairly well known Omega line of the same name. Seiko and Guigaro’s partnership goes back to the '80s when their watches appeared in the Alien films. This pleasingly wonky asymmetrical LCD watch was relaunched in 2018, with a Sci-Fi-ready design. The originals were built for motorcycle riding with the dial rotated to 15 degrees for legibility while riding. The originals were favourites of drivers, including Ayrton Senna. They’re stainless steel with 1/100 second stop watch function, a tachymeter, lap counter and alarm. A design classic that you can pick up for a couple of hundred quid. At grail-watch.com
Here he is, the frog! One of the best-executed ‘cartoon’ collabs to have been released in recent years, our friends over in Hölstein connected with a fairly famous amphibian for an edition of its signature ProPilot dive watch. A 39mm titanium case with a loud green dial. While it might be hard to call it subtle, there isn’t any overt branding — colour aside — except for a small nod to the frog down by the date display. We’re waiting for the Oscar the Grouch edition next. £3,700. At oris.ch
When the founder of A COLD WALL Samuel Ross is involved you know you’re going to be getting a piece of design that is meticulous, expansive and a little bit out of the ordinary. Applying his unique design language to Hublot’s Big Bang Tourbillon, with a bold, 44m microblasted titanium case, vivd green on a smooth rubber strap and a highly technical honeycomb layout that shows the full workings of the watch’s interior, aligning with Ross’ sparse, industrial approach to design. POA. At hublot.com
Brad Pitt wears Breitling watches and rides Triumph motorbikes, so we'd expect to see some love for this collab from the Hollywood A-lister. He's not the only person who's into motorbikes and watches, so dropping a watch that comes with a Triumph sounds like a triumph in itself to all who celebrate (those two luxuries). Breitling's Top Time range has quickly become one of its most popular collections and this is the best. £6,250. At breitling.com
