In 1893 the famous Wenger watches first came into existence. It was at a time when watches were as much fashion accessories as they were used to tell the time. Wenger watches did nothing to change that fact. Instead they glorified in it. Wenger watches were designed to look good.
They were designed for people with too much money whose main concentration in life was how good they looked. The time was a secondary factor; perhaps they never bothered to even look. The history of the watch as a fashion accessory can be tracked back to the very earliest watches on sale in France in 1574.
They were more like a diamond necklaces than a watch and such were very expensive and very few people owned one. If you were lucky enough to own a watch, and it was limited to the upper classes, then you were dealt with a lot of respect. Or if the opportunity arose robbed of it. Watches as a luxury item did not change for hundreds of years. Why this is not certain, however perhaps it has something to with them kept as merely an object of fashion. Rather than finding new ways to improve them or even to make them cheaper the next major shift seems to the introduction of waistcoats with pockets that the watch could slip into.
It was no better in England than it was in France. Diamond bearings rendered them unaffordable to all but a few people. It was not until machines were developed to make watches that they became more available to the general public.
In the early part of the 19th century these machines were developed and started to make watches at a good rate, though these watches still associated with the upper classes. Much through habit rather anything else. When it became apparent there was money to be made from the watches, factories started to appear in the cities and the prices came down drastically. It still wasn't a practical item however and people were rushing to buy them merely to look good.
However the company has gone through many major shifts. In 1895 a group called Delsberg took over then the company merged soon after with Schweitzer. For almost ten years the company remained unchanged until 1907 when Theo Wenger became sole owner.
The biggest change for the company came only one year later when Wenger started to market Swiss army knives and then in 2003 the Swiss Business Tools globally. The Wenger Company have always maintained a high quality which also means expensive and today their watches are on sale for between $150 to $500. With the high quality of these watches that may well me a bargain.
Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Beach, Florida. Find more about this as well as fine wrist watches at http://www.watchesplusmore.com
