Toy Watch

Toy Watch timepieces have been quite popular with trendy women in Hong Kong.  Even my mother-in-law is eyeing one.  Fortunately, the Wife is not a fan.

I just don't "get" them.  They're not cheap - they cost around HK$3,000 (S$600) each - but they're (a) plastic, (b) mechanically-generic and (c) rip-offs of more established brands.

Doesn't this remind you immediately of a Rolex Submariner ?

 

The Rolex might cost many times more, but at least the wearer knows that there's an elaborate mechanism ticking inside a solid stainless steel casing.  And if the time does come when he/she needs to part with it, a Rolex retains much of its value.

Or perhaps the Toy Watch owes its appeal to the cheap chic, throwaway culture that its targeted audience embraces so passionately ?