Hoping to make the most of the warm weather and long days of summer, we’ve asked a few Phillips Watches specialists and team members to tell us about the watches they're most looking forward to wearing this summer.
At this point in the season, it might be a last-minute decision, but the prototypical summer watch should be grab-and-go, comfortable in the heat, and a perfect fit for your ideal summer activities. Whether you envision laying out with a book in your hand, enjoying evenings in the mountains, or diving into the ocean, there’s no wrong choice.
We asked our team to weigh in with their summer picks – and the list is varied and full of personality.
A Space One Jumping Hour in Blued Titanium
Alexandre Ghotbi, Head Of Watches, Continental Europe And EME
The Space One will be my go to watch this summer. I love the space ship futuristic look of the watch especially with the blued titanium case and orange strap that give it a very flamboyant pop!
The watch is not however only an uber cool design but the jump hour function was developed by none other than independent artisan wunderkind Theo Auffret.
A Rolex Oyster Perpetual Ref. 126000 with Yellow Dial
Arthur Touchot, Int. Head of Digital Strategy & Specialist
Summer is for wearing bright colours, and more than a single watch. But if I had to choose one, based on what I’m doing this summer, I would choose a watch that is simple (summer is for wasting time, not checking it), versatile and fun, and most importantly, a watch that I can jump into the water with, without having to worry too much about what I’m carrying on the wrist. This all leads me to my Oyster Perpetual Ref. 126000. It’s a smaller watch (36mm), with a lot of personality (a vibrant yellow dial), which I picked out from the rang of colourful Perpetual models that Rolex brought out in 2020. Over the past four years, I’ve enjoyed wearing it under the sun, or beneath grey skies, whether I’m heading to the beach, or if I want to add a pop of colour to an outfit in the city. There’s never a bad time for it.
A Vintage Universal Geneve Polerouter Date
Gertrude Wong, Head of Sale, Specialist, Hong Kong
My go-to travel watch especially for the summer heat has to be on a bracelet. I love the feeling of wearing this Universal Geneve Polerouter date because of its story of being a watch originally made to fly across the world. Its low-key meaning safe anywhere and stressfree which is perfect for holidays. I am totally a winter person as a Canadian, the fact that it is turning tropical also makes me want to get out in the sun more.
A Rolex Explorer II Ref. 16550
Zi Yong Ho, Senior International Specialist, Hong Kong
When it comes to my favorite summer watches, I can't think of a more fitting timepiece than the Explorer II Ref 16550 that I recently acquired. I can already envision myself wearing this watch on the beach, with an ice-cold beer in hand, and enjoying a relaxing evening. I'm ready to embark on new adventures, create unforgettable memories, and let this remarkable timepiece be my stylish companion throughout my summer escapades.
Rolex Yacht-Master 'Haribo'
Antonia Fodor, Social Media Manager, Perpetual
Nothing screams summer like a colourful assortment of bright, shining sapphires and glistening diamonds, right? Especially when that opulence is fitted on an ultra-practical rubber Oysterflex strap. And in this rather cold and rainy London ‘summer’, the Yacht-Master ‘Haribo’ certainly helps transport me to a St Tropez Beach Club. In my eyes, summer is about finding the perfect balance between comfort and style, and the ‘Haribo’ fits that bill perfectly. Not to mention that the Everose Gold case was quite frankly made to complement a tan. Whether on a mega-yacht or swimming in bright blue waters, this Yacht-Master really is the perfect accessory for any summer-time activity. It’s also sure to bring some brightness to an otherwise gloomy summer day!
An Oris Divers Sixty-Five Calibre 400 Limited Edition
Logan Baker, Senior Editorial Manager
For the first time at Oris, the Divers Sixty-Five was equipped with a countdown bezel in this limited edition produced for my former employer, Hodinkee. There's no date window, and the faded green dial was influenced by the pastoral landscape of Oris' hometown of Hölstein, Switzerland. I've also always loved the use of shields for the hour markers on the cardinal points of the dial, in the shape of one of the company's former logos.
One of the most exciting trends I've personally witnessed during my time in watches has been the steps that various brands have taken to offer added value to their customers through the development of in-house or proprietary movements. I'm generally not one to prefer an in-house movement just for the sake of saying it's an in-house movement, but when a watch brand takes the time, energy, and financial commitment to create a proprietary movement, it's a fascinating exercise in brand building and can often demonstrate what is and isn't important to a watchmaker.
The best example of this in recent history, in my opinion, has been the development and roll-out of the calibre 400 at Oris. I've always liked Oris, but I never really fell in love with any specific watch in the brand's catalog. I didn't necessarily care that a huge percentage of the Oris catalog was dominated by Sellita-based movements, but I also wasn't prepared to spend more than $2,000 on a watch like the Big Crown Pointer Date, Divers Sixty-Five, or Aquis. I preferred to spend my money elsewhere.
The Oris Divers Sixty-Five Limited Edition for Hodinkee was, in my view, the perfect combination of bringing that history back to life while offering a next-gen, forward-thinking approach to mechanical watchmaking. The 38mm × 12.6mm stainless steel case and no-date dial was, for me, the ideal orientation for the Divers Sixty-Five, which as a collection is meant to recall the original Oris Star dive watch that was born in the 1960s. The Oris logo on the dial? It's the exact vintage font you'd find on a vintage Oris Star. It's similar to the current-day Oris branding, but it has an unrefined sensibility that makes it feel almost hand-drawn on the dial.
About Phillips In Association With Bacs & Russo
The team of specialists at PHILLIPS Watches is dedicated to an uncompromised approach to quality, transparency, and client service. Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo holds the world record for the most successful watch auction, with its Geneva Watch Auction: XIV having realized $74.5 million in 2021. Over the course of 2021 and 2022, the company sold 100% of the watches offered, a first in the industry, resulting in the highest annual total in history across all the auction houses at $227 million.
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