bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Andrea Pawlyna

Intercontinental travel, globalisation and the necessity to be in touch with different markets around the world increases the popularity of watches offering multiple time complications
Time travellers they are not, but rather travellers who need to know what time it is in distant lands. In a simpler age, travellers actually reset their watches when crossing time zones. But for more than three-quarters of a century, another option has been available - watches which feature time zone complications.
A complication refers to additional functions on a watch beyond the simple act of telling time.
It was in 1884,  at the International Meridian Conference in Washington, DC,  that the world was first carved up into 24 time zones. That decision set the stage for competition among watchmakers wanting to offer time zone complications.
The debut of master watchmaker Patek Philippe's  World Time  wristwatch in 1930 displayed all 24 time zones and set the standard for watches. The company kept producing the now collectable World Time watches through the 1960s.
In 2000, the company's line of watches reached new heights when a single button mechanism was developed to advance all displays collectively when moving from one time zone to another.
Intercontinental travel continues to give new impetus to time zone watches.
'People have been aware of time zone functions for many years but it is the increase in travel, especially very short trips abroad of only one or two days, that has brought about a renewed interest in watches that keep different time zones,' said Thierry Dubois,  managing director of the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH)  for the Asia-Pacific.
The globalisation of commerce and 'the necessity to always be in touch with different markets in different time zones around the world have made this type of watch very practical', he said.
Today, many companies that make mechanical, quartz and LCD (liquid crystal display) watches incorporate multiple time zone features into their timepieces.
Jaeger LeCoultre's Master Geographic  mechanical watches follow in the 24-hour time zone tradition. The model displays the local time and can display the time anywhere else by repositioning a disc that indicates the time in 24 world cities. The pink gold version sells for HK$142,000.
The Master World Geographic  goes a step further by displaying the local time and all 24 time zones, in addition to the precise time in another selected time zone, simultaneously. The stainless steel model sells for HK$102,000.
World Time watches are only one variation on the multiple time zone theme. Dual time, three-zone, four-zone and five-zone watches each have their admirers.
'For us, dual time is the most popular because the watch is smaller. Generally, you need a separate movement for each time zone dial so the watch gets bigger. Also, the more time zones you have, the more expensive the watch,' said Stanley Lau Chin-ho,  managing director of Renley Watch.
'Our customers tend to be frequent travellers or people who work for airlines. Or they may be people who are going on a vacation and want a dual time watch. But time zone watches are not the kind of watch that people use for everyday wear.'
The company's time zone watches under its Swiss-made Jean D'Eve  brand range from HK$5,850 to HK$23,400. The newest addition is the eye-catching Luna  collection, with watches featuring a round stainless steel case and bracelet, with a 24-hour counter located at the 12 o'clock position.
Time zone watches tend to be favoured by adult wearers, said Mr Lau. 'Our target is people who are 22 years old and over.'
At Sweda,  company chairman Paul So Wing-keung  said Hong Kong manufacturers were adept at producing time zone watches with quartz movements, but that mechanical movements remained largely the preserve of the Swiss.
'Hong Kong doesn't produce mechanical movements,' although he said the territory was looking into the possibility of doing so. Mechanical movements with two time zones were difficult to produce, he added, so Hong Kong bought them instead.
Sales of time zone watches at his firm are steady but not spectacular. 'It's a niche market. People mainly buy the watches for the design, not necessarily the time zone complication,' Mr So said.
A different approach to time zone watches was pioneered by Sweda nearly a decade ago. The company's popular ana-digit watches feature an analogue and a digital display. Each can be set for a different time zone.
Unlike other time zone watches that require separate movements, the ana-digit is fitted with a combined analogue-digital movement and sells for HK$2,150.



Shenzhen watchmaker: How a self-taught man learned to make $80,000 watches

The Shanghai watch, China’s first mechanical watch, is still a total steal

Three wildly wonderful watches - check out the bad boys of the watch world

Nintendo? Donald Trump? What’s making our watch columnist giddy this week

Luxury Watches

In time with the world