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I was recently visiting a friend and noticed some old magazines sitting on the table. They were Esquire magazines from 1941 and 1942, which he told me he’d found at the local thrift store. Due to the dates of publication, naturally much of the theme had to do with World War 2. This included a decent amount of really interesting watch ads that I wanted to preserve and share.
The US domestic watchmaking industry focused all of its efforts on wartime production during WW2. This left a major gap in supply during the war, placing American watchmakers at a disadvantage.
Swiss watchmakers were still producing watches for civilians, however. Swiss imports already accounted for just over 60% of the US watch market by 1941. The US was already aiding the Allies at this point, but wouldn’t actually enter WW2 formally until December of the following year.
This helps explain why the majority of the watch advertisements in these magazines are for Swiss watches – not American ones. It’s also pretty easy to tell which brands are American. You’ll know because the ad will be asking you to purchase U.S. war bonds before one of its watches.
Rolex: There’ll Always Be Christmas – Even During WW2
This ad came from the 1942 magazine, and was clearly released with Christmas time in mind. This was also long before the Daytona was released, or even the iconic Submariner.
You’ll probably notice fairly quickly the difference in design language of the watches in the ad (versus modern Rolex design language). If you look closely, the model in the very middle is particularly interesting. It sports a “California” dial (with Roman numerals at the top of the dial, and Arabic numerals at the bottom).
In modern times, this type of dial is more closely associated with Panerai. Interestingly enough, Panerai utilized Rolex’s patented “sandwich” dials during WW2 – which featured the unique combination of Roman and Arabic numerals.
A more detailed (and very interesting) history of “error proof” and “California” dials can be read here. It’s a good read, covering not only the history of Panerai and Rolex, but also why this style of dial is associated with California in more recent times.
Gruen: Technically American, With A Swiss factory Up Its Sleeve
Fun fact: Rolex now owns the building that was once Gruen’s Precision Factory. Another interesting Rolex/Gruen connection is found in the 877 caliber movement, produced by Aegler Co. in 1928. These movements were used in both Rolex’s “Prince” models, as well as Gruen’s duo-dial doctor’s (aka Techni-Quadron) watches.
World War II was a time when despite the large demand, American-made wristwatches weren’t really available for civilians to purchase. This created a scenario where retailers began importing Swiss brands to fulfill the demand.
Gruen was a dual Swiss and American company, however. It was able to sell watches during the war, and was also able to keep producing at its Precision Factory after the war as well.
The first ad from November of 1941 appears to be much more civilian-oriented. The second ad, from December of 1942, is clearly more military-inspired. This makes sense, since the US didn’t formally enter WW2 until December 1941, a month after the first of the above ads was released. What a difference a year can make.
Eterna’s Friendlier ad
The ad below doesn’t directly reference any war. Instead, it’s just targeting the friends and family. Eterna makes watches for the whole family, and it wants to show you that it’s “time to remember” them.
Eterna is the forgotten founder of ETA, which today is the largest producer of finished watch movements. Both Eterna and ETA became a part of the ASUAG group in 1932 as part of an industry consolidation Basically, the name Eterna was kept for watch production, and ETA for movements. Of course ETA is now owned by Swatch Group. Eterna is owned by Citychamp Watch & Jewellery Group Limited.
Roughly six years after the publication of the above ad, Eterna released the Eterna-matic automatic movement in 1948. This new movement used five strategically placed ball bearings, making it more efficient. This also helped reduce wear and tear. The five dots in Eterna’s current logo pay homage to these five ball bearings.
Wrapping Things Up
Of the four ads in this post, the Eterna ad seems more muted than the Rolex and Gruen ads from 1942. Christmas must have been a tough one that year. Like the Rolex ad, Gruen’s 1942 ad is clearly referencing Christmas. It also appears more patriotic, which figures since Gruen was based out of Cincinnati, Ohio. You can almost feel the influence of the war environment seeping through these ads.
The slogan, “BUY A GRUEN WATCH… BUT BUY A WAR BOND FIRST!”, clearly demonstrates the country’s priorities at the time. There’s also the disclaimer: “Gruen continues to manufacture only such quantities of watches as will not interfere with our aid to our government in the War program”. That’s something unique to the American Gruen that you likely won’t see on any of the other ads for Swiss watches.
The contrast in tone between Gruen’s 1941 ad and 1942 ad is pretty interesting by itself, in my opinion. It captures an entire shift in the country’s mentality in the span of a year.
Know more about Rolex, Gruen, and Eterna and want to add to the discussion? Please post a comment below!