Remember when Justin Bieber used his wedding as an excuse to buy a rare Audemars Piguet Royal Oak ? Well, he's not the only one getting on the wedding watches train. The numbers support it: new research by pre-owned watch specialist Watchfinder & Co. reveals 34% of couples tying the knot this year have bought their groom a gift.
And Google searches for “gift for wedding groom” have increased by more than 68% in the UK over the past four years. But it’s not all about the grooms: more and more brides want timepieces for their wedding too. “In the last year or so I’ve noticed an increase in the number of men asking for a watch as an engagement or wedding present for their female partner,” says Danny Shahid , the luxury watch expert behind Diamond Watches London in Mayfair’s Burlington Arcade.
“This used to be a rare occurrence but now we have one or two such enquiries every month.” What explains this increased interest? “I believe this is because it’s now more on trend than ever before for a woman to be wearing a luxury watch, hence ladies models now make up a large proportion of our stock. Of course women also like to wear men’s watches, as larger dials are very cool at the moment.
” More than just a nuptial gift, some couples are choosing to exchange watches in addition to rings. This is already an established tradition in Asia, for example in South Korea , where the bride and groom’s families exchange elaborate gift boxes. Norman Seck and Pearly Yeo.