Traditional Watch Companies Need Not Be Blinded By The Coming Onslaught Of Smart Watches

With all the talk about Apple and other tech guys getting into wearable gears like watches, I wonder how many of those folks are shaking in their boots right now about.

Or should they even be worried?

Watches, along with those high-end purses, really speaks to status than anything.  So, while some brands could potentially suffer, certain brands should be able to weather any onslaught the mobile guys are likely to dish out.  It’s unfathomable that Apple, Google, or Samsung will have the cool factor to come out with $10,000 smart watches that can challenge Rolex’s name.

Forget the uber-rich brands for now.  Even some of your more mainstream brands will continue to have appeals as regular watches simply because they are regular watches.  These days, everyone has a mobile device that could tell time and, yet, the companies that make watches, likely were hit hard during initial surge of smartphone adoptions,  have survived and still managed to keep on ticking.

It’s likely that they will continue to have their customers even when smart watches do hit the market.  They’ve got two options.  One, they can continue to make watches.  Sure, they’ll get hit a bit more but those companies that survive should continue to endure.  Second, they can join in the smart watch war.  They can consider both options and even bloody the noses of the mobile guys.

I recently just bought a pretty nice watch that does nothing but tell time.  It’s got a style I like and also because it was not a smart watch.  I totally see other folks who love watches and the style they bring to continue buying and wearing time pieces that do nothing more than tell time (or date if at all).

There will be a market for watches.  Just like there is a market for dedicated GPS devices even though they were hit hard when every mobile device makers added GPS chips to their phones.

Yes, the watch makers have to worry.  However, if they plot their future strategies carefully, I think they’ll do well.  Not all but most top tier guys and those who are able to market themselves smartly can even thrive.