Gizmodo
Slate's Moneybox columnist, Daniel Gross, details a sinking trend in the sales of mid-range watches—ones actually meant to tell time—and chalks this up to the fact that "most people these days carry a highly accurate and durable time piece, but it isn't a watch."
It's an iPod, a cell phone, whatever. Sales of watches under $200 were down 10 percent in 2005, and Gross expects that 2006 wasn't much prettier, judging by Fossil's numbers and the naked wrists of his colleagues. He's right, I think—no one stops me to ask what time it is anymore.
The prescription? Watches that are gadget-y, obscenely expensive, or fashionable, all of which continue to sell well. That is, watches consumers wear for more than just telling time. I, incidentally, wear a Fossil, but I can't not have something on my wrist. What's on yours?
Takes a Licking and Stops Ticking [Slate]
Image via Watchismo
