Is Watch Collecting Actually A Hobby?

People will often say that watch collecting is just buying watches and that this is not a hobby.

If you think that this is all there is to watch collecting, you really have no idea about what this hobby actually is.

There is so much more than goes into watch collecting and it certainly is a hobby, which I will be going through below.

What Is A Hobby?

If we start by looking at what a hobby is, we will see that watch collecting definitely falls into the definition.

A hobby is just something you do for pleasure in your free time

People will try and say that you are just buying a watch. That is purchasing, which is true, but collecting watches is much more than just buying watches it is also about learning about everything around the watch, which is something we do in our free time, which we enjoy, so it’s a hobby.

Collecting Anything Is A Hobby

For some reason watch collecting is not seen as a hobby, but if you look around at countless other hobbies they are quite often some form of collecting, and no one has a problem calling these hobbies.

Just look at stamp collecting or coin collecting. These are the exact same as watch collecting. These collectors pay money for various coins or stamps. Some may be worth far more than others, for seemingly no reason and they might all look very similar, almost identical.

This is what happens in watches. Why is a Rolex more expensive than a Sekio and why does a Patek Philippe cost even more again? They all look similar and all do the same function, yet we want to have them all.

Watch collection, or any sort of collection is a hobby. It is simply our personal curation of a set of objects that we enjoy. We spend countless hours looking into what to buy and we do this solely for our pleasure.

Trying to curate our collections is so much more than just buying watches.

Watch Collecting Is More Than The Watch

While buying the watch is important, it’s not the main part of watch collecting. Anyone can buy a watch and that doesn’t make them a watch collector.

Watch collectors are also interested in everything around the watch.

The Hunt For The Watch

One of the biggest parts of watch collecting is the hunt. Collectors can spend month looking around for the perfect watch before buying one. This is really something that any one just buying a watch will not understand.

The hunt for a new watch is such a thrill and is what makes this hobby so enjoyable. We don’t need to buy watches all the time, we can simply spend month on end hunting through websites and shops trying to find exactly what we want.

(You can read more about – What Type Of People Collect Watches?)

The Love of Horology

Watch collectors are often interested in horology in general. They can enjoy how watches/clocks actually work and the history behind how they have developed over time to end up with what we have today. 

Brand History

There is then the history of the watch brand itself, which can be very fascinating to a watch collector and you will find they lean towards collecting brands that are of more interest to them.

The Craftsmanship That Has Gone Into The Watch

Collectors will appreciate the effort that has gone into the watch especially if they have been handmade.

However, even that is not always important. If we look at G-shocks, collectors love the work that has gone into these to make them so robust, even if they are mass produced cheap watches.

The Social Aspect Of Watch Collecting As A Hobby

Watch collectors love talking about watches. They love pointing out what they love and what they hate about certain watches and this makes watch collecting rather sociable. It’s not just buying a watch and hiding it up your sleeve.

There are huge social groups, especially online where collectors discuss everything about watches as well as compare their collections. 

The Cost

This is probably one area we should care about, but a lot of people just don’t. They buy the watches out of passion.  

While you should only buy watches you can afford, I think most people know they could easily spend their money more sensibly. I’m sure any financial advisor would give you a list of things your spare 10k would be better invested on, but we don’t care, we want the watch.

(Read can read more about – What Makes A Watch Expensive?)

Watch Collecting Is All About The Watch

While I have just discussed all the areas around watch collecting that we love to, we can’t deny that we also just love the watches and everything about them.

They are pretty much the centre of the hobby.

Appreciate The Design Of The Watch

A lot of watch collecting is just about getting watches that we like the look of. It brings us extreme pleasure to look down at our wrists and to see a cool watch.

We also like the differences between watches, which is why we usually end up with so many.

Appreciating The Watch Functions

Watches are not all about the look, they can be about the functions too. Watch collectors will appreciate everything the watch can do, this can be simple things like having a date function, or it may something much more complex like a perpetual calendar.

This is also why digital watches are still loved by collectors, they may not have the mechanical coolness, but they can still be full of interesting features and functions that just fascinate us.     

Appreciating The Watch Movement

Watch collectors love watch movements. Even if we can’t see them, we still love them. I know that makes no sense, but it’s true.

If you are just buying a watch, you don’t care about what is inside, just that it tells the time. Watch collectors really care about what is inside the watch.

Watch Modding Is A Hobby

A sub hobby of watch collecting is watch modding. However, this is very much its own hobby too.

If you are taking the time and effort to change things and put your own spin on a watch then it’s very much a hobby.

The watch modding hobby is very much like owning cars. Most of us have cars to get to from A to B (Which is like owning a watch tell the time).

 However, some people own cars and mod them. They do this simply as they love it. This is the exact same for watch modding, it’s done for the love of watches.

Buying Watches To Show Off Isn’t A Hobby

If you are only buying watches to show off and look cool, this isn’t watch collecting.

You are in the hobby of looking cool. It’s easily confused as you need to buy the watches to show off, so it can seem similar.

The focus of your hobby is not the watches. Watch collectors buy the watches for themselves, not for what other people think.

There is nothing wrong with buying watches to look cool, but just be aware you are not a watch collector.

(you can read more about – Will A Watch Impress People?)

Investing In Watches Is Not A Hobby

I think it is also important to say that if you are buying watches for an investment, you are not a watch collector. Collecting is for pure pleasure, it is solely a hobby and in fact we probably mostly lose money on our watches as we wear them and enjoy them.

Buying for an investment is simply buying for profit and is a business move.

There is also nothing wrong with doing this and I’m sure the lines get blurred here and some watch collectors also buy for investment, but really it is two different things.

Conclusion

Watch collecting is very much a hobby and is so much more than just buying watches. The buying is such a small part of the hobby and this is what confuses people.

There is a whole world around watches that collectors like to be involved in and this is also what allows us to be watch collectors all day long, without even buying watches. 

(You can read more about – Watch Collecting Mistakes You Should Avoid)