Omega Museum Collection, Worth Showing Off

Omega Watches have gained much notoriety from politicians, to sports figures, even celebrities.  Why has Omega been so popular?  It’s simple, they make quality timepieces, and they make them beautifully.  To prove my point, I give you one of my favorite Omega designs…the Omega Specialties men’s watch comes with all the bells and whistles, and it’s packaged beautifully!  This is an Omega limited edition Chronograph.  It is equipped with a Tachymeter, and a Pulsometer, and is a certified Chronometer.  I told you this watch was packed with function.  The dial is a soft opalescent silver, and the arms are very thin and don’t overpower the face.  The Omega Specialties men’s watch comes in several different variations, but the one that caught my eye is encased in 18 carat red gold.  The inner workings of this incredible men’s watch is fitted with an Omega 3201 hand wound Chronographic movement, and it features Omega’s famous Co-Axial Escapement .  It has a centralized Chronograph dial and a free sprung balance with small second, minutes, and hour’s hand. This men’s Chronograph is water resistant to 100 feet, and has a power reserve that will last up to 55 hours.  It works hard, and looks great, what more could you want?

Omega Watches Support The Olympics

Omega Watches are certainly stylish and exude a timeless feeling.  The Specialties Men’s Collection follows that tradition.  One of my picks in the Specialties line is the Olympic Vancouver 2010.  This sporty men’s watch is stylish and highly functional…not to mention it celebrates the 2010 Olympic games.  There is only one version of this limited edition watch and it comes in strong stainless-steel.  It is one of Omega’s Chronometers, equipped with a unidirectional bezel that rotates, a helium escape valve, and a screw down crown.  The Olympic Vancouver 2010 comes in a large men’s size, with a diameter of 41mm.  The polished stainless-steel bracelet is complimented by a white dial with a bright red ribbon of color encircling the face.  This men’s watch is all Omega, fine quality, and Swiss-made.  It is water resistant to 1000 feet, but why take it to the depths of the ocean floor…it looks too good on dry land.  The Omega Olympic Vancouver 2010 proudly displays the Official Olympic logo on the face, and is a representation of Omega’s dedication to, and respect for the art of timekeeping.  This men’s watch comes numbered, with the Olympic logo engraved on the back of the dial for authenticity, a nice touch.  Pick up your limited edition Omega Olympic today!

George Clooney, Omega Ambassador

George Clooney is a classic Hollywood actor, who is respected across the board for his work.  It’s no surprise that Omega Watches

asked him to join their team of Ambassadors.  George has been an Omega Ambassador since 2007, and proudly wears the Seamaster Planet Ocean Men’s Watch, steel on steel version.

The Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean comes in several different looks.  George’s choice, the steel on steel is probably the most sophisticated.  It is a chronometer and features a unidirectional rotating bezel, which makes it easier to properly measure elapsed time.  This Omega watch, like all of their dive watches, has a helium escape valve.  The escape valve enables the wearer to work under water for long periods if time or even in a professional pressure chamber.

Now, most of us won’t find ourselves in either of those situations…still the technology is impressive and quite affordable.  The self-winding chronometer with 48 hour power reserve is a highly-functional and handsome watch.  The shine of the stainless-steel make this Omega watch a dressier version.  Other combinations of the Seamaster Planet Ocean are steel on durable rubber strap, accented in vibrant orange.  If you really love the orange, there is a steel on leather style, which displays a bright orange strap and dial accents.

Choose the Seamaster Planet Ocean because it is made by Omega and will perform under pressure…any way you put it together.

The Vancouver Olympics may be over, but that doesn’t mean Omega Watches contribution to the games is.  Omega began their long history with the Olympics during the 1932 Los Angeles games and has acted as the official timekeepers of the games ever since then.  For the 2010 Winter Games, they supplied 220 timekeeping professionals and engineers, as well as 250 tons of equipment to insure all time measurements were accurate.  Omega also made sure not to leave out all the fans of the games; keeping with the tradition of making a commemorative timepiece, Omega has created the Vancouver 2010 Seamaster.

Based off Omega’s popular Seamaster watch, the Vancouver 2010 is an excellent representation of the Olympic Games.  The iconic Olympic rings are found on the back end of the second hand.  The caseback not only features the Olympic city, year, and symbol, but also the image found on every medal given in the 2010 games.  The watch also boasts a self-winding chronometer movement and helium escape valve.

Other notable features of the Omega Vancouver 2010 Seamaster watch include a red unidirectional bezel and date window at the 3 o’clock position.  It has a domed scratch resistant sapphire crystal that has received anti-reflective treatment on the inside.  The watch is also water resistant to 300M.

Breitling Bentley

It’s not hard to understand why some people would choose to by a replica of an authentic watch.  A TAG Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 5 costs roughly a grand, while a Breitling Bentley is almost 100 hundred times that.  Even a savvy buyer looking for a genuine watch on the used market knows it will cost him at least a few hundred dollars.  Because of the high cost associated with luxury brand watches, a replica seems like the perfect deal: a chance to wear a Rolex or Omega watch for a fraction of the price either cost.

What these seemingly smart shoppers miss is that there’s a reason authentic watches come with a high price tag.  Watches that carry a luxury name are hand-crafted under stringent quality controls, feature accurate movements, and are made from the finest materials.  Replicas, on the other hand, feature inferior movements, cheaper materials, inconsistencies, and can even have contaminants like hairs trapped underneath the crystal.

With all of the inaccuracies and inconsistencies that come with replica watches, it’s easy to say that you get what you pay for.  But there is one other thing to consider when looking at the authentic versus replica decision: people who wear authentic watches have the satisfaction of knowing that the watch on their wrist is the real deal, and the people who wear them know this can’t be underestimated or understated.

Omega Watches has added a new piece to its Museum Collection; the Milestone 1941 Collector’s Piece watch.  Taken directly from the company’s website this “museum was created in December 1983 to illustrate and perpetuate the historical highlights of the famous Swiss brand through the collection, preservation, maintenance, protection and exhibition of objects, documents and accounts related to the company and its activities. Some of the most remarkable items found among its collection are the 4,000 Omega watches, movement, clocks, instruments, tools, photos, engravings, posters, signs, awards and certificates.”

The museum is currently closed until April 2010 for renovations.

Each year Omega chooses a classic watch that was designed more than fifty years ago, and recreates it adding a new design and updated features, hence the new “Milestone 1941”. Originally this watch was made in 1938 and enjoyed much success among high-ranking military officers. The new version employs Omega’s famous co-axial technology and is crafted from high end materials such as 18K white gold.

The case measures 38mm and the dial is a varnished black color that comes with two sub dials: a 30-minute chronograph counter and small seconds counter at 3 and 9 o’clock respectively.
The watch runs on the Omega Calibre 3202 movement – an exclusive, self-winding one. The hour numerals and indexes are coated in Super-LumiNova while the hours and minutes are indicated by classic white skeleton hands, also coated with Super-LumiNova, rendering the dial perfectly legible under all circumstances.  The watch comes with a black alligator leather strap and matching 18K white gold buckle.

In accordance with the name of this watch, this new version will be available in a limited series of 1,941 pieces.

The focus of luxury watch brands has been moving from the U.S. and European markets to India and Asia for some time now. Out with the old and in with the new is what all luxury good brands need in order to survive the economic crisis that flattened the pockets of usual consumers.

India, with its huge population; many who are educated abroad and come back to start businesses, has seen its middle class growing. The appetite for luxury watches like Omega watches and Tissot watches has been growing as well. To promote their brands and their watches, these two companies have been hiring local, well known faces to announce their new collections, opening of boutiques and more.

Sonali Bendre is no longer an official Omega ambassador but she has what it takes to pitch the product. She’s 34 years old, beautiful and talented (an ex model and actress) but perhaps most alluring is that she’s married. And this is what sells products in India today; strange, but true. Apparently, when it comes to selling products married Indian women offer a sense of nostalgia and trust that unmarried women don’t. In Bollywood, the Indian movie market, this doesn’t work as well because married women stop being part of the average man’s dreams but “in the hugely cluttered media platforms, a married actress endorsing a brand does get that extra attention from the audience – a curious but extra glance.” This concept is further explained by Chief Growth Officer of Dentsu Media India, Sai Nagesh, who goes on to say that married women “continue to enjoy a certain nostalgic relationship in the minds of the audience.”

And it pays. Shooting an ad is less time consuming than filming a movie and also tends to bring home the rupees a lot more.  The amount they get paid depends on their popularity and how many personal appearance they may do for a certain brand / product. When it comes to promoting watches there are plenty of opportunities: new boutique openings, launch of a new collection, new women’s watch, new men’s watch, etc.

Sonali, who in addition to endorsing Omega watches, also endorses Pril soap, Surya bulbs and tubes and was recently made ambassador of the health brand Dr. Morepen.

These days a lot of people use their BlackBerry’s or other digital devices to see what time it is, rendering watches (for time telling purposes only) obsolete. Of course watches are also considered fashion accessories, a piece of jewelry and even status symbols, but Omega has chosen a “back to the basics” campaign to remind and educate people about the evolution of luxury watches. To do this, the company has employed the friendly faces of long-time celebrity brand Ambassadors Cindy Crawford and George Clooney.

Since the celebration of the 40^th anniversary of man’s first walk on the moon and the fact that the Apollo 11 astronauts wore Omega Speedmaster men’s watches, Omega has been launching ad campaigns that celebrate the brand’s sense of “pioneering adventure.”

Brand ambassadors like Cindy Crawford, George Clooney, Nicole Kidman, Michael Phelps and astronaut Buzz Aldrin have helped spread the word in Monocle campaign, launched last month, which brings Omega’s co-axial calibres back into the spotlight. This movement was and continues to be pioneering technology, as it makes watches more accurate by reducing the friction among their inner workings.

Cindy Crawford is Omega’s longest serving Ambassador and appeared in an ad in the New York Times where she states: “The Beauty Is in the Detail.”

Other headlines include Buzz Aldrin saying: “It’s Not Rocket Science. But It’s Close” and Formula 1 race car driver Michael Schumacher stating: “When Faster Isn’t Better.”

These ads are to be printed in the world’s leading newspapers and celebrate the 10^th anniversary of Omega’s release of its co-axial technology which is considered a breakthrough in the watchmaking industry.

Stephen Urquhart, president and chief executive officer of Omega, says “we will continue to build other campaigns around our core messages of innovative technology, international sports timekeeping, and our pioneering spirit.”

Go Omega watches!

Nicole Kidman has been an Ambassador for Omega watches since 2005. She is beautiful, talented, and generous and adheres very well to the terms of her contract with Omega. When actors, athletes or other famous faces are paid to rep a certain brand and / or product there are two basic rules. For example, with watches, the brand spokesperson is not to be seen in public wearing a watch other than one from the brand he / she is now representing and two, this person must also make a certain amount of public appearances to promote the watch brand.

Over the weekend Nicole made a high profile appearance at the Omega flagship store in New York.

Nicole promotes three lines of Omega women’s watches: the Constellation Quadrella Quartz, Constellation My Choice Quartz Mini, and the Seamaster Aqua Terra Quartz.

During the appearance she donated a signed Constellation women’s watch. She also autographed the cases of 30 other Constellation watches during the appearance. The proceeds of sales from these watches will go to UNIFEM (the United Nations Development Fund for Women), which is one of many organizations that Kidman promotes.  An ambassador since 2006, Kidman is the international spokesperson for UNIFEM’s Say NO to Violence against Women campaign.

In addition to promoting Omega watches, Kidman campaigns for women’s and children’s rights. She is a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF in Australia and for UNIFEM. Due to her work, the United Nations has named her a “Citizen of the World”.

Although the spotlight of this recent appearance at the Omega store was supposed to be on the watches themselves, people could not help notice the color of Kidman’s hair. After a long run as a blonde, she is back to being a redhead. Supposedly, red is her natural color and one that compliments her skin and eyes.

Attention ladies… For a great fall look, red hair and an Omega watch can’t be beat!