Collectability teams up with Dennison and Emmanuel Gueit for its first-ever watch creation
Zach Blass- Dennison, founded in 1874, has carved out a distinct lane in the present market with very affordable stone dial watches (all under US$700).
- Its present designs come from the mind of legendary watch designer Emmanuel Gueit, best known for the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore and Rolex 1908.
- Collectability was founded by John Reardon, a globally recognised expert on Patek Philippe and former International Head of Watches at Christie’s.
As interest further rises in wristwatches, the pool of watch buyers worldwide has grown, and the watch enthusiast base has never been more informed. This means more diversified budgets and more individuals questioning how value-driven offerings are. The problem for longstanding, prominent, traditional, bigger brands – however you want to describe them – is that they need to maintain their positions. For better or worse, they’re stuck on the Mount Olympus of luxury, unable to come back down to earth.
This has created a gap for microbrands and smaller independents to satiate the larger market’s thirst for quality watches at a more approachable price. We have also seen a shift away from sports watch tunnel vision, with watch consumers now revisiting more design-driven pieces that deviate from the typical, and an appetite for bolder dials (both in colour and texture) that has led to a resurgence in stone dials. This is where Dennison has found lightning in a bottle with its ALD lineup, offering design-driven watches, often with natural stone dials, and always below US$700 at retail.
Dennison, originally founded in 1874, has a longstanding reputation as a celebrated casemaker that has worked with a wide range of respected brands such as Rolex, Omega, and Longines. Though the brand has a rich history in producing robust cases, such as the 13 Smiths watches taken by Sir Edmund Hillary and his team to summit Mt Everest (which used Dennison Aquatite cases), in its revival in the modern era, the brand centres around dressier pieces designed with legendary watch designer Emmanuel Gueit – most well known for his creation of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore, and more recently, the Rolex 1908.
Today, however, a third keen eye enters the mix with John Reardon and Collectability. A globally recognised expert on Patek Philippe and former International Head of Watches at Christie’s, Reardon, who is also well-known for his love of the Golden Ellipse watch, has teamed up with Dennison to create a collaborative edition – the first-ever watch creation to bear the Collectability name.
Though cited as an ode to the elegance of ’60s design, Reardon’s fondness for Patek’s Golden Ellipse has undoubtedly had some influence over the choice of a strong blue sunray dial and working with Dennison and its cushioned ALD case design to create Collectability’s first-ever watch collaboration. Reardon did take a cheeky stab at Patek’s well-known “you never truly own a Patek Philippe watch, you merely look after it for the next generation” tagline in how he expressed another motivating factor for teaming up with Dennison: affordability and access. “This collaboration breaks the mould, offering a design and price point that make the perfect watch not a future aspiration but an immediate reality,” John Reardon explains. “It’s not for the next generation. It’s for NOW.”
Fans of current-generation Dennison watches will recognise the handset and the cushion profile of the case, which, in both the steel and gold PVD variants, measures 33.65mm in width, 37mm in length, and a very slender 6.05mm thick. You also still have a recessed crown that creates a more pure and unobstructed cushion form. Though most known for its stone dial pieces, Dennison is also currently no stranger to sunray-finished dials. But, the twist – aside from the fact there is no Dennison branding on the dial – is the fact these collaborative editions have two-tone blue sunray dials with a stepped centre medallion. You will find two different shades of blue used, a bolder, more electric blue in the centre framed by a paler blue border, the step above. This step, and the border it creates, also has a case-matching metallic frame that creates further visual intrigue.
While gearheads and watch snobs will not find a Swiss Ronda quartz-driven watch all that fascinating, those who are driven to watches by the external look and appreciate historical design will certainly be interested in this Dennison x Collectability collaboration (and Dennison’s broader catalogue as well). Though there is no stone dial to further drive home the value proposition, the two-tone sunray dial and its stepped and polished-frame layout stand to entice those looking for elegance at a far more approachable price than conventional luxury brands can afford to deliver.
Dennison x Collectability Editions pricing and availability
The Dennison x Collectability Editions are both available now, with an order window of five days in which all orders must be placed. Price: US$690
| Brand | Dennison |
| Model | Dennison x Collectability Edition |
| Case Dimensions | 33.65mm (W) x 6.05mm (T) x 37mm (L) |
| Case Material | Stainless steel Gold PVD-treated stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 30 metres |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front |
| Dial | Stepped, two-tone blue sunray dial |
| Strap | Bespoke leather strap, case-matching pin buckle |
| Movement | Swiss Ronda Quartz 1062 |
| Functions | Hours, minutes |
| Availability | Now for pre-orders until May 11 |
| Price | US$690 |