Eager fans demolished the entire stock of the Noah X Timex Sun & Moon Watch in under five minutes from launch. Now, this cool yet classic piece is back for pre-order.
When the limited edition Noah X Timex Sun & Moon Watch dropped, all 200 pieces swiftly sold out.
However, there wasn’t a line at the Noah Soho store here in New York, which had a stock of 40. Clearly, people were sitting at their computers, tablets, and phones, waiting for Noah’s shopping page to update.
So, what’s the big deal?
Well, its Tank-like shape is elegant yet robust, and there’s an undeniable cool factor to the aesthetic. Just from the images, you can tell it’s easy and fun to style. And, of course, the price is right.
Even more, the collaboration makes sense. Noah is all about making heritage styles relevant and contemporary. Timex is one of the few names in the game with an American heritage. Some might call this watch a moment. It’s certainly rife with heirloom potential.
The Design of the Noah Timex Watch
Naturally, any gold-toned, square-shaped dress watch draws comparisons to the Cartier Tank. And though square cases and the Tank are inextricably connected, Cartier certainly doesn’t own the square watch.
The Noah Timex Watch is more fanciful than a modern Tank. Its case is more dimensional than the Tank Chinoise’s but also has some chunk to balance that out.
The bezel has a multi-stepped top and bottom, while the crown features fluting. The extra thickness adds strength to these potentially delicate-looking Art Deco features.
I also think that 37 millimeters by 25 millimeters is a good size for the stainless steel case. It’s not too big or too small, and it’s perfectly unisex.
It’s a great watch if you love a vintage look without the hassle of actually going vintage. In fact, I’d say the overall look is even borderline antique. The dial features the old Timex font, which they stopped using in the early aughts but had been using since the 1860s.
And at the three-hour position? A modern Noah logo, making for a face that’s more than just a double-logo dial; it’s a double-era dial. I think this makes it an instant collectible.
The day-and-night indicator peaks out from an umbrella-shaped cutout on the flat sandwich dial. Of course, this complication is the main event. The designer illustrated the smiling sun and moon designs in a Tarot Card fashion, adding an engaging and artistic sense of fun.
I find it to be a charming, sensibly thought-out composition. The Deco case and slightly whimsical watch face pair naturally together.
There’s just something about what seems like labored-over details. Even how the gold applications on the railroad outer track match the canon the hands sit on is a small but mighty characteristic.
The Timex Noah watch is quartz-powered and comes on an alligator-embossed leather strap.
Noah X Timex: Why Noah Is the Right Partner
As mentioned, the Noah X Timex partnership makes sense. If you knew just a little bit about Noah, you’d understand why.
Brendon Babenzien was the creative director of Supreme and is now with J.Crew. These two brands seem worlds apart, at least to the everyday non-fashion guy. However, both are undeniably American.
They’re a sort of living, constantly-forming, contemporary Americana, if you will. That’s what Noah will come to encompass.
For New York Fashion Week in 2006, Babenzien designed and launched a full runway show. This was the start of Noah, but it turned out to be a one-off — until 11 years later. Babenzien and his wife, Estelle Bailey-Babenzien, relaunched the brand in 2015.
Here’s something that I think is telling. Babenzien actually partnered with Union in LA to do a Noah pop-up. Union LA is a streetwear staple that also combines fashion with a capital F and the more pragmatic side of menswear.
Of course, the two go hand-in-hand. But, Union exists almost exclusively in the middle of the ven diagram. Furthermore, they’re quite a cheeky brand (they use expletives in their website copy).
This was a preview of the vibe of the upcoming Noah brand and Soho store. Nautical, prep, and military made cool, and punk, skater, and streetwear made attainable high-end.
Noah takes men’s heritage wear and makes it relevant without compromising its classicity. This, in turn, allows almost any guy to incorporate their pieces into their closet, regardless of personal style. A perfect partner for the Timex Noah Watch.
Noah told us that Timex originally wanted to limit the watch because they discontinued the astrological-looking plate on the dial. However, because of the demand, Noah asked Timex to make the model specifically for them.
Thankfully, Timex agreed.
Timex X Noah: Timex’s Talent for Remaining Relevant
I believe that the Timex X Noah watch is a symbol of Timex’s ability to survive. Again, very few watchmakers with an American name are still around. And Timex isn’t just surviving. They’re thriving in a space in which it’s difficult to.
They manage to hold down the budget market while remaining esteemed. This isn’t just because of its history as a Connecticut Naugatuck Valley timekeeper. The Naugatuck was once considered the Switzerland of America.
It’s also because they don’t just sit in this history but use it as an anchor to try other things. They give the market a lot it wouldn’t otherwise have.
Run-of-the-mill budget brands stick to cheap quartz pieces, while mid-tier and luxury brands flaunt automatics as the contemporary gold standard. With their foot in every type of movement, Timex even offers living nostalgia with their manual-wind watches.
Within its core budget options, Timex makes great timepieces, often drawing from its archives of legends. I maintain that the Bulova Hack is one of my favorite field watches of all time.
From Todd Snyder to the NFL, boy, do they know what partners will bring out their best. Whenever I’m craving some novelty, I turn to Timex. I know that if I want a watch with my favorite sports team on it, they’ll serve up something that’s affordable but not a toy.
The Noah X Timex Sun & Moon Watch is another example of what they do well — what both brands do well.
It’s vintage-inspired, rooted in heritage but modern. It has a touch of romantic, fantastical qualities, but it’s not dainty. Is it Tank-like? Sure. But we’re at a completely different price point here, and Cartier doesn’t combine features like this in one place.
My favorite part? The watch itself visually manifests how the partnership works and what makes the dynamic special.
Leave your questions and comments below!
Leave a Reply