2023 mid year review
So here we are in the middle of 2023. Where has the year gone?
I recently dropped an IG post with a high level summary of my year in collecting so far, which then reminded me I should probably write about it in a little more depth. I’ll break it down into 4 sections here -
Account Growth
As I mentioned in my previous post, I found strange success in multi-watch shots, to the point where some of my posts were hitting 500k total reach, with my peak “30 day” cumulative reach hitting 1.3m. This has now pushed my account to the 16k follower mark, jumping a total of 11k followers in 6 months. This is something I didn’t expect, but am happy with.
Is this something that can be sustained? Sadly, no.
As we all know, IG is constantly tuning their algorithms, shifting emphasis to whatever ultimately gets the most user engagement. Such is the transient nature of trends in a world of short attention spans. I’ve already noticed a drop in reach from my usual multi-watch posts, coincidentally at a time where Threads has been introduced.
To me, this is a blessing in disguise. This now forces me to rethink my content strategy and photography themes, challenging my creative status quo. This sends me back to the experimental stage of photography.
Collecting
I honestly didn’t expect to acquire so many pieces this year, but here’s the journey so far -
Tissot PRX 35mm gold
The 35mm PRX gold quartz was my first acquisition in March. For whatever reason, I had the idea in my head that I really wanted a gold watch for that vintage vibe, dressed in jeans and a black t-shirt. I thought to myself this is probably going to be a quiet year, and I’ll have a play with this one. Got a great deal from Wamada as usual, and was a happy chappy.
Rolex Explorer 124270
My second acquisition of the year, late March.
This legendary piece has been a grail of mine for a while. I’ve seen it so many times. Everything about the history, design, build quality, movement… it all speaks to my soul. I had been waiting patiently for that fateful call for almost 2 years. It never came (lessons were learned with this).
Instead, I got a different kind of contact. One of the dealers in my network reached out saying they sourced a good deal on a pristine Explorer. It was marginally above retail price, and absolutely brand spanking new. The previous owner clearly just bought it for purchase history at their local AD. I pulled the trigger on it without much hesitation. Considering the recent July 2023 price increases, I got it close to current retail.
Tudor Pelagos 39
My third acquisition, in April.
The Pel39 had been a watch that intrigued me since release. There’s just something about the endless black depth of the dial that captivated me, with the brushed ghost bezel and red text on the dial. It was love at first sight. It was the placeholder 6 digit sub.
The call for this came when I hit the 10k follower mark, with the joke with my SA that this would be the “titenium” watch. More importantly, that SA grew to be a good friend of mine (maybe I’ll write a separate article on the importance of this).
MoonSwatch Jupiter
My 4th acquisition, late April.
The one and only. This was a random addition, which a friend had gotten overseas. I had no intention of adding a MoonSwatch to the collection, but when he saw Jupiter in stock and asked if I wanted one, I said sure.
Tudor FXD
My 5th acquisition, in May.
I can’t say this was a watch I was interested in before, as I had never seen one in person. I told my SA to let me know if one came in to the store so that I could at least have a look (even if it was going to be allocated to someone else). One did arrive, apparently the first FXD in 7 months, and I was able to come in to see it. To my surprise, I really liked it. I asked if I could have it, and they sold it to me on the spot.
Tudor BlackBay 54
My 6th acquisition, also in May. In fact, same day as the FXD.
When this was announced at W&W this year, it was a piece I’ve said no to, twice. My SA called me with the first one to arrive in Aus, and I said no without seeing it. I thought it would be too small. Couple of weeks later, I went in again for another, but just to see it. Again, I said no, probably not for me.
For whatever reason it kept growing on me and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The vintage proportions and design, married with modern construction. I asked my SA to let me know when another arrives to let me know. One did (same batch as the FXD), and when I tried it on, I ended up purchasing it. Third time is the charm.
Note: I acquired both 54 and FXD on the same day, with both meant to be allocations to other people. I say this not to boast, but to emphasise that watch buying is as much a networking game as it is about having the financial means to purchase. It should be no surprise that preferential treatment and VIP’s exist in the industry. I plan on writing an article later in the hopes it might help someone get that fateful AD call quicker.
Rolex Submariner 124060
My 7th acquisition of the year, late June.
The holy grail. The one I’ve been waiting for. Absolute modern perfection of a watch, with nothing else that needs to be said.
This was a 3 month wait with my SA - pretty quick, all things considered. I’ll address some common misconceptions I’ve learned about AD waitlists in a separate article.
Serica 5303-2
My 8th acquisition of the year, July.
This piece has been pure lust, driven by the one and only Morgan Saignes. To me, it’s the most beautiful white dial diver on market at the moment.
I was originally intending to order the new chronometer version coming in Sept, as I’ve never seen a 5303 on the second hand market here. By pure chance I recently saw one pop up (turns out it belonged to our very own watchfam member @tellyourtime). I pulled the trigger.
Yes, I’m aware of the peculiar choice of Soprod movement and niggling issues with this batch (sometimes hacks, sometimes doesn’t, and overall movement feels a bit wiggly), which shouldn’t be the case for a watch at this price point. However, personally it doesn’t bother me as I was more after the design aesthetic.
The bezel is a combination of brushed metal and ceramic, pure beauty. Funnily enough, my main gripe is just how easily the bezel turns, where even wiping the dial can turn it.
I’ve worn this more than my Sub. Let that sink in. Pun intended.
Photography
Whilst I was able to grow my account, I can’t say I’ve grown my photography skills. My first goal for the year was to create a more cinematic mood in my photos, similar to that of @morgansaignes and @m.adcock. I’ve always admired the way they incorporate nature in their scenes and aren’t afraid of harsh light and shadows. Coincidentally, they’re both shooting on the Q2 which I recently had the opportunity to try out for a week and enjoyed immensely. This has now made me consider hunting a second hand Q2, or maybe even grabbing the Q3 when there’s stock.
My second goal was that I also had the intention of shifting into more video content as a learning challenge. Whilst I did create some reels, I’ve yet to start the YouTube channel that I had planned, as a different medium to communicate to my audience. There’s various topics I’d like to talk about, in a similar vein to my articles, with the aim of helping people with their collecting and photography.
My third goal was to reconfigure my room setup to work more as a functional studio workspace. It hasn’t happened, the room is still a mess, whilst I constantly stare blankly at the Ikea catalog.
What’s next
The good thing about this recap is that it’s a mid-year one, meaning there’s still the second half of the year to go. I honestly have no idea what the next 6 months will hold given how unpredictable the first 6 have been. I will however keep pursuing my above 3 goals, whilst also slowing down on the watch purchasing. I have one more on the way (a small, but meaningful one), but that’s it.
No more… unless the GMT call happens.