Search
1000 results for “hunger”
-
CAHEC delivers 52,055 meals to low-income families across NC, supporting 294 households through innovative nutrition assistance program. Community impact drives meaningful change. #Hunger #Community
-
From Gimmick to Trend: Marvin’s Tire Watch
If you spend much time looking at watches from the 1950s (or thrift stores) you’ve probably seen one: A keychain with a fob that looks like a tire but contains a mechanical watch. Although the era of the tire watch has long gone, it proved to be an important milestone in Swiss watchmaking, showing that there was a market for a “second watch”, as marketing whiz Georges Caspari called it. And the whimsical shape attracted new and younger customers, a market Caspari addressed for Breitling just a few years later.
Georges Caspari made the Marvin Montre Pneu a smash hit and opened the door to a “second watch” market!Marvin’s Montre Pneu: A Simple Gimmick
Marvin introduced the Montres Pneu and Clip together in July, 1937The Montre Pneu (“Tire Watch” in French) was nothing but a gimmick when it was introduced in 1937, and the company certainly expected the success it saw two decades later. It was introduced alongside a watch with a spring-loaded attachment known simply as the “Montre Clip”, with simple and descriptive named. Indeed, Marvin appears not to have attempted to trademark the “Pneu” name, unsurprising since it is simply the French word for tire.
The basic design of the Montre Pneu is simple: A compact (10.5 ligne) movement is placed in a hinged case that resembles an automobile tire. It was designed to be placed on a desk, with the movement raised at an angle for easy viewing. Marvin registered the design for protection with the Swiss patent agency but did not (yet) file for a patent since it was so simple and derivative of other desk watches.
But the Montre Pneu did have one striking element: The movement was visible on the reverse side through a transparent glass case back. This allowed Marvin to show off their finishing skills, and recalled the open pocket watches prized by previous generations.
Although the original Montre Pneu was a striking desk accessory, Marvin stopped promoting it almost immediately. It was simply left in the company’s inventory as Switzerland and the world turned their attention to the looming World War.
The Montre Pneu featured a transparent case back, a rarity at the timeA Second Watch
The 1950s saw striking new designsAfter World War II, the Swiss watch industry was the envy of the world. Thanks to low exchange rates and limited damage and dislocation, the Swiss were able to ramp production of watches to levels never before seen. Swiss watch factories were able to capitalize on the world’s hunger for affordable, mass-produced luxuries like watches.
Marvin was a progressive firm, aggressively pushing new styling and design. Their early post-war offerings presage the trends that would shape this “golden era” of watches, with slim cases, angled dials, and modern features like center seconds. They even produced a “mystery watch” with an open outer case two years before the famous Ernest Borel Cocktail watch.
But Marvin dealers kept ordering the humble little tire watch! A steady stream of customers gravitated to it as a gift for “the man who has everything”, some of whom had looped a keyring through the cutout and carried it around as a fob. Women loved it, too, carrying the little watch in their purse when they didn’t want to wear a wristwatch.
Georges Caspari was the greatest marketer in the golden age of watchmaking, from Omega to Breitling to the humble Marvin Pneu!Advertising consultant Georges Caspari, hired by Marvin to help differentiate the brand, was struck by the possibility that a new and untapped market was opened by the Montre Pneu. He realized that customers would quickly buy a novelty as a second watch for themselves and would not hesitate giving one as a gift.
He pressed the company to offer an official keychain and kickstand to make it more versatile, as well as a smaller model for ladies with brightly-colored tires.
In 1953, Caspari kicked off one of the greatest marketing campaigns in watchmaking history, positioning the tire watch alongside famous automobile brands (Jaguar, Mercedes, and Fiat) and racing drivers (Fangio, Ascari, and Moss) with barely a mention of the Marvin Watch Company or any technical specifications.
Marvin produced a solid gold Pneu, and a calendar modelDemand exploded, with the Pneu quickly becoming the best-selling watch in the world. Marvin leaned into the trend, producing a version with a full calendar and even a solid gold chronometer as expensive as a Patek Philippe. It was 1954 before technical director Albert Boillod submitted a patent application on the Pneu design.
The Meaning of the Fad
Marvin rode the tire watch fad for a few more years, selling millions of examples around the world. Despite the patent (granted in 1957), knock-offs quickly appeared on the market. Many of these came from so-called “economic watch” producers outside the Swiss Jura: Busga, Candino, and Hanowa in German-speaking Switzerland, Mortima in France, and even the American Timex and Bulova. Unlike Marvin, many of these used cheap cylinder or Roskopf movements and were sold at half the price.
Marvin introduced a range of novelties but none were as successful as the little tire watchMarvin tried to diversify in 1958, introducing a watch shaped like a steering wheel and a nautical model in a life ring. But these lacked the charm and functionality of the little rubber tire model, which had finally saturated the market.
Georges Caspari understood that the real lesson of the Marvin Montre Pneu was the potential demand for specialized and differentiated watches. In the late 1950s he helped Willy Breitling to position the chronograph as a symbol of a sporting and dynamic personality. Thanks to Caspari, Breitling focused on the Navitimer, Chronomat, and Unitime and his iconic yellow-backed advertisements remain evident even today. He also pressed Swiss watch manufacturers to embrace the so-called teenage market with new and dynamic watches and chronographs.
You might also enjoy How the Chronograph Became the “It” Watch Complication
The Grail Watch Perspective: From the Pneu to the Swatch
Georges Caspari was one of the sharpest advertising and marketing minds in history, and his “second watch” concept was embraced by Ernest Thomke on March 1, 1983, when he introduced the Swatch: Although the name was officially a contraction of “Swiss Watch”, Thomke specifically mentioned that it was intended to be a “second watch” according to Caspari’s market positioning. It’s easy to see that the Swatch buyers see these fantastic, stylish plastic watches as a second or third or more! What had once been an industry focused on selling a single watch per buyer has evolved into one where collectors purchase boxes of watches and ordinary buyers purchase a new watch every year or more.
There’s a lot more I could say about Georges Caspari, too! He published and wrote romantic poetry and lived in a Château on the shore of Lake Geneva, and was interviewed for a 1992 documentary called “Les Séducteurs” that I simply cannot explain here. He was truly one of the most interesting characters I have ever encountered in my watchmaking research!
One more thing: Marvin apparently did produce a Montre Pneu with an alarm, but the company missed the next hot automobile-adjacent watch gimmick: The Beaumann Memopark certainly resembled the tire watch, and this cheap little parking timer sold in the millions. But that is a story for another day!
#Breitling #GeorgesCaspari #marketing #Marvin #tireWatch -
From Gimmick to Trend: Marvin’s Tire Watch
If you spend much time looking at watches from the 1950s (or thrift stores) you’ve probably seen one: A keychain with a fob that looks like a tire but contains a mechanical watch. Although the era of the tire watch has long gone, it proved to be an important milestone in Swiss watchmaking, showing that there was a market for a “second watch”, as marketing whiz Georges Caspari called it. And the whimsical shape attracted new and younger customers, a market Caspari addressed for Breitling just a few years later.
Georges Caspari made the Marvin Montre Pneu a smash hit and opened the door to a “second watch” market!Marvin’s Montre Pneu: A Simple Gimmick
Marvin introduced the Montres Pneu and Clip together in July, 1937The Montre Pneu (“Tire Watch” in French) was nothing but a gimmick when it was introduced in 1937, and the company certainly expected the success it saw two decades later. It was introduced alongside a watch with a spring-loaded attachment known simply as the “Montre Clip”, with simple and descriptive named. Indeed, Marvin appears not to have attempted to trademark the “Pneu” name, unsurprising since it is simply the French word for tire.
The basic design of the Montre Pneu is simple: A compact (10.5 ligne) movement is placed in a hinged case that resembles an automobile tire. It was designed to be placed on a desk, with the movement raised at an angle for easy viewing. Marvin registered the design for protection with the Swiss patent agency but did not (yet) file for a patent since it was so simple and derivative of other desk watches.
But the Montre Pneu did have one striking element: The movement was visible on the reverse side through a transparent glass case back. This allowed Marvin to show off their finishing skills, and recalled the open pocket watches prized by previous generations.
Although the original Montre Pneu was a striking desk accessory, Marvin stopped promoting it almost immediately. It was simply left in the company’s inventory as Switzerland and the world turned their attention to the looming World War.
The Montre Pneu featured a transparent case back, a rarity at the timeA Second Watch
The 1950s saw striking new designsAfter World War II, the Swiss watch industry was the envy of the world. Thanks to low exchange rates and limited damage and dislocation, the Swiss were able to ramp production of watches to levels never before seen. Swiss watch factories were able to capitalize on the world’s hunger for affordable, mass-produced luxuries like watches.
Marvin was a progressive firm, aggressively pushing new styling and design. Their early post-war offerings presage the trends that would shape this “golden era” of watches, with slim cases, angled dials, and modern features like center seconds. They even produced a “mystery watch” with an open outer case two years before the famous Ernest Borel Cocktail watch.
But Marvin dealers kept ordering the humble little tire watch! A steady stream of customers gravitated to it as a gift for “the man who has everything”, some of whom had looped a keyring through the cutout and carried it around as a fob. Women loved it, too, carrying the little watch in their purse when they didn’t want to wear a wristwatch.
Georges Caspari was the greatest marketer in the golden age of watchmaking, from Omega to Breitling to the humble Marvin Pneu!Advertising consultant Georges Caspari, hired by Marvin to help differentiate the brand, was struck by the possibility that a new and untapped market was opened by the Montre Pneu. He realized that customers would quickly buy a novelty as a second watch for themselves and would not hesitate giving one as a gift.
He pressed the company to offer an official keychain and kickstand to make it more versatile, as well as a smaller model for ladies with brightly-colored tires.
In 1953, Caspari kicked off one of the greatest marketing campaigns in watchmaking history, positioning the tire watch alongside famous automobile brands (Jaguar, Mercedes, and Fiat) and racing drivers (Fangio, Ascari, and Moss) with barely a mention of the Marvin Watch Company or any technical specifications.
Marvin produced a solid gold Pneu, and a calendar modelDemand exploded, with the Pneu quickly becoming the best-selling watch in the world. Marvin leaned into the trend, producing a version with a full calendar and even a solid gold chronometer as expensive as a Patek Philippe. It was 1954 before technical director Albert Boillod submitted a patent application on the Pneu design.
The Meaning of the Fad
Marvin rode the tire watch fad for a few more years, selling millions of examples around the world. Despite the patent (granted in 1957), knock-offs quickly appeared on the market. Many of these came from so-called “economic watch” producers outside the Swiss Jura: Busga, Candino, and Hanowa in German-speaking Switzerland, Mortima in France, and even the American Timex and Bulova. Unlike Marvin, many of these used cheap cylinder or Roskopf movements and were sold at half the price.
Marvin introduced a range of novelties but none were as successful as the little tire watchMarvin tried to diversify in 1958, introducing a watch shaped like a steering wheel and a nautical model in a life ring. But these lacked the charm and functionality of the little rubber tire model, which had finally saturated the market.
Georges Caspari understood that the real lesson of the Marvin Montre Pneu was the potential demand for specialized and differentiated watches. In the late 1950s he helped Willy Breitling to position the chronograph as a symbol of a sporting and dynamic personality. Thanks to Caspari, Breitling focused on the Navitimer, Chronomat, and Unitime and his iconic yellow-backed advertisements remain evident even today. He also pressed Swiss watch manufacturers to embrace the so-called teenage market with new and dynamic watches and chronographs.
You might also enjoy How the Chronograph Became the “It” Watch Complication
The Grail Watch Perspective: From the Pneu to the Swatch
Georges Caspari was one of the sharpest advertising and marketing minds in history, and his “second watch” concept was embraced by Ernest Thomke on March 1, 1983, when he introduced the Swatch: Although the name was officially a contraction of “Swiss Watch”, Thomke specifically mentioned that it was intended to be a “second watch” according to Caspari’s market positioning. It’s easy to see that the Swatch buyers see these fantastic, stylish plastic watches as a second or third or more! What had once been an industry focused on selling a single watch per buyer has evolved into one where collectors purchase boxes of watches and ordinary buyers purchase a new watch every year or more.
There’s a lot more I could say about Georges Caspari, too! He published and wrote romantic poetry and lived in a Château on the shore of Lake Geneva, and was interviewed for a 1992 documentary called “Les Séducteurs” that I simply cannot explain here. He was truly one of the most interesting characters I have ever encountered in my watchmaking research!
One more thing: Marvin apparently did produce a Montre Pneu with an alarm, but the company missed the next hot automobile-adjacent watch gimmick: The Beaumann Memopark certainly resembled the tire watch, and this cheap little parking timer sold in the millions. But that is a story for another day!
#Breitling #GeorgesCaspari #marketing #Marvin #tireWatch -
From Gimmick to Trend: Marvin’s Tire Watch
If you spend much time looking at watches from the 1950s (or thrift stores) you’ve probably seen one: A keychain with a fob that looks like a tire but contains a mechanical watch. Although the era of the tire watch has long gone, it proved to be an important milestone in Swiss watchmaking, showing that there was a market for a “second watch”, as marketing whiz Georges Caspari called it. And the whimsical shape attracted new and younger customers, a market Caspari addressed for Breitling just a few years later.
Georges Caspari made the Marvin Montre Pneu a smash hit and opened the door to a “second watch” market!Marvin’s Montre Pneu: A Simple Gimmick
Marvin introduced the Montres Pneu and Clip together in July, 1937The Montre Pneu (“Tire Watch” in French) was nothing but a gimmick when it was introduced in 1937, and the company certainly expected the success it saw two decades later. It was introduced alongside a watch with a spring-loaded attachment known simply as the “Montre Clip”, with simple and descriptive named. Indeed, Marvin appears not to have attempted to trademark the “Pneu” name, unsurprising since it is simply the French word for tire.
The basic design of the Montre Pneu is simple: A compact (10.5 ligne) movement is placed in a hinged case that resembles an automobile tire. It was designed to be placed on a desk, with the movement raised at an angle for easy viewing. Marvin registered the design for protection with the Swiss patent agency but did not (yet) file for a patent since it was so simple and derivative of other desk watches.
But the Montre Pneu did have one striking element: The movement was visible on the reverse side through a transparent glass case back. This allowed Marvin to show off their finishing skills, and recalled the open pocket watches prized by previous generations.
Although the original Montre Pneu was a striking desk accessory, Marvin stopped promoting it almost immediately. It was simply left in the company’s inventory as Switzerland and the world turned their attention to the looming World War.
The Montre Pneu featured a transparent case back, a rarity at the timeA Second Watch
The 1950s saw striking new designsAfter World War II, the Swiss watch industry was the envy of the world. Thanks to low exchange rates and limited damage and dislocation, the Swiss were able to ramp production of watches to levels never before seen. Swiss watch factories were able to capitalize on the world’s hunger for affordable, mass-produced luxuries like watches.
Marvin was a progressive firm, aggressively pushing new styling and design. Their early post-war offerings presage the trends that would shape this “golden era” of watches, with slim cases, angled dials, and modern features like center seconds. They even produced a “mystery watch” with an open outer case two years before the famous Ernest Borel Cocktail watch.
But Marvin dealers kept ordering the humble little tire watch! A steady stream of customers gravitated to it as a gift for “the man who has everything”, some of whom had looped a keyring through the cutout and carried it around as a fob. Women loved it, too, carrying the little watch in their purse when they didn’t want to wear a wristwatch.
Georges Caspari was the greatest marketer in the golden age of watchmaking, from Omega to Breitling to the humble Marvin Pneu!Advertising consultant Georges Caspari, hired by Marvin to help differentiate the brand, was struck by the possibility that a new and untapped market was opened by the Montre Pneu. He realized that customers would quickly buy a novelty as a second watch for themselves and would not hesitate giving one as a gift.
He pressed the company to offer an official keychain and kickstand to make it more versatile, as well as a smaller model for ladies with brightly-colored tires.
In 1953, Caspari kicked off one of the greatest marketing campaigns in watchmaking history, positioning the tire watch alongside famous automobile brands (Jaguar, Mercedes, and Fiat) and racing drivers (Fangio, Ascari, and Moss) with barely a mention of the Marvin Watch Company or any technical specifications.
Marvin produced a solid gold Pneu, and a calendar modelDemand exploded, with the Pneu quickly becoming the best-selling watch in the world. Marvin leaned into the trend, producing a version with a full calendar and even a solid gold chronometer as expensive as a Patek Philippe. It was 1954 before technical director Albert Boillod submitted a patent application on the Pneu design.
The Meaning of the Fad
Marvin rode the tire watch fad for a few more years, selling millions of examples around the world. Despite the patent (granted in 1957), knock-offs quickly appeared on the market. Many of these came from so-called “economic watch” producers outside the Swiss Jura: Busga, Candino, and Hanowa in German-speaking Switzerland, Mortima in France, and even the American Timex and Bulova. Unlike Marvin, many of these used cheap cylinder or Roskopf movements and were sold at half the price.
Marvin introduced a range of novelties but none were as successful as the little tire watchMarvin tried to diversify in 1958, introducing a watch shaped like a steering wheel and a nautical model in a life ring. But these lacked the charm and functionality of the little rubber tire model, which had finally saturated the market.
Georges Caspari understood that the real lesson of the Marvin Montre Pneu was the potential demand for specialized and differentiated watches. In the late 1950s he helped Willy Breitling to position the chronograph as a symbol of a sporting and dynamic personality. Thanks to Caspari, Breitling focused on the Navitimer, Chronomat, and Unitime and his iconic yellow-backed advertisements remain evident even today. He also pressed Swiss watch manufacturers to embrace the so-called teenage market with new and dynamic watches and chronographs.
You might also enjoy How the Chronograph Became the “It” Watch Complication
The Grail Watch Perspective: From the Pneu to the Swatch
Georges Caspari was one of the sharpest advertising and marketing minds in history, and his “second watch” concept was embraced by Ernest Thomke on March 1, 1983, when he introduced the Swatch: Although the name was officially a contraction of “Swiss Watch”, Thomke specifically mentioned that it was intended to be a “second watch” according to Caspari’s market positioning. It’s easy to see that the Swatch buyers see these fantastic, stylish plastic watches as a second or third or more! What had once been an industry focused on selling a single watch per buyer has evolved into one where collectors purchase boxes of watches and ordinary buyers purchase a new watch every year or more.
There’s a lot more I could say about Georges Caspari, too! He published and wrote romantic poetry and lived in a Château on the shore of Lake Geneva, and was interviewed for a 1992 documentary called “Les Séducteurs” that I simply cannot explain here. He was truly one of the most interesting characters I have ever encountered in my watchmaking research!
One more thing: Marvin apparently did produce a Montre Pneu with an alarm, but the company missed the next hot automobile-adjacent watch gimmick: The Beaumann Memopark certainly resembled the tire watch, and this cheap little parking timer sold in the millions. But that is a story for another day!
#Breitling #GeorgesCaspari #marketing #Marvin #tireWatch -
From Gimmick to Trend: Marvin’s Tire Watch
If you spend much time looking at watches from the 1950s (or thrift stores) you’ve probably seen one: A keychain with a fob that looks like a tire but contains a mechanical watch. Although the era of the tire watch has long gone, it proved to be an important milestone in Swiss watchmaking, showing that there was a market for a “second watch”, as marketing whiz Georges Caspari called it. And the whimsical shape attracted new and younger customers, a market Caspari addressed for Breitling just a few years later.
Georges Caspari made the Marvin Montre Pneu a smash hit and opened the door to a “second watch” market!Marvin’s Montre Pneu: A Simple Gimmick
Marvin introduced the Montres Pneu and Clip together in July, 1937The Montre Pneu (“Tire Watch” in French) was nothing but a gimmick when it was introduced in 1937, and the company certainly expected the success it saw two decades later. It was introduced alongside a watch with a spring-loaded attachment known simply as the “Montre Clip”, with simple and descriptive named. Indeed, Marvin appears not to have attempted to trademark the “Pneu” name, unsurprising since it is simply the French word for tire.
The basic design of the Montre Pneu is simple: A compact (10.5 ligne) movement is placed in a hinged case that resembles an automobile tire. It was designed to be placed on a desk, with the movement raised at an angle for easy viewing. Marvin registered the design for protection with the Swiss patent agency but did not (yet) file for a patent since it was so simple and derivative of other desk watches.
But the Montre Pneu did have one striking element: The movement was visible on the reverse side through a transparent glass case back. This allowed Marvin to show off their finishing skills, and recalled the open pocket watches prized by previous generations.
Although the original Montre Pneu was a striking desk accessory, Marvin stopped promoting it almost immediately. It was simply left in the company’s inventory as Switzerland and the world turned their attention to the looming World War.
The Montre Pneu featured a transparent case back, a rarity at the timeA Second Watch
The 1950s saw striking new designsAfter World War II, the Swiss watch industry was the envy of the world. Thanks to low exchange rates and limited damage and dislocation, the Swiss were able to ramp production of watches to levels never before seen. Swiss watch factories were able to capitalize on the world’s hunger for affordable, mass-produced luxuries like watches.
Marvin was a progressive firm, aggressively pushing new styling and design. Their early post-war offerings presage the trends that would shape this “golden era” of watches, with slim cases, angled dials, and modern features like center seconds. They even produced a “mystery watch” with an open outer case two years before the famous Ernest Borel Cocktail watch.
But Marvin dealers kept ordering the humble little tire watch! A steady stream of customers gravitated to it as a gift for “the man who has everything”, some of whom had looped a keyring through the cutout and carried it around as a fob. Women loved it, too, carrying the little watch in their purse when they didn’t want to wear a wristwatch.
Georges Caspari was the greatest marketer in the golden age of watchmaking, from Omega to Breitling to the humble Marvin Pneu!Advertising consultant Georges Caspari, hired by Marvin to help differentiate the brand, was struck by the possibility that a new and untapped market was opened by the Montre Pneu. He realized that customers would quickly buy a novelty as a second watch for themselves and would not hesitate giving one as a gift.
He pressed the company to offer an official keychain and kickstand to make it more versatile, as well as a smaller model for ladies with brightly-colored tires.
In 1953, Caspari kicked off one of the greatest marketing campaigns in watchmaking history, positioning the tire watch alongside famous automobile brands (Jaguar, Mercedes, and Fiat) and racing drivers (Fangio, Ascari, and Moss) with barely a mention of the Marvin Watch Company or any technical specifications.
Marvin produced a solid gold Pneu, and a calendar modelDemand exploded, with the Pneu quickly becoming the best-selling watch in the world. Marvin leaned into the trend, producing a version with a full calendar and even a solid gold chronometer as expensive as a Patek Philippe. It was 1954 before technical director Albert Boillod submitted a patent application on the Pneu design.
The Meaning of the Fad
Marvin rode the tire watch fad for a few more years, selling millions of examples around the world. Despite the patent (granted in 1957), knock-offs quickly appeared on the market. Many of these came from so-called “economic watch” producers outside the Swiss Jura: Busga, Candino, and Hanowa in German-speaking Switzerland, Mortima in France, and even the American Timex and Bulova. Unlike Marvin, many of these used cheap cylinder or Roskopf movements and were sold at half the price.
Marvin introduced a range of novelties but none were as successful as the little tire watchMarvin tried to diversify in 1958, introducing a watch shaped like a steering wheel and a nautical model in a life ring. But these lacked the charm and functionality of the little rubber tire model, which had finally saturated the market.
Georges Caspari understood that the real lesson of the Marvin Montre Pneu was the potential demand for specialized and differentiated watches. In the late 1950s he helped Willy Breitling to position the chronograph as a symbol of a sporting and dynamic personality. Thanks to Caspari, Breitling focused on the Navitimer, Chronomat, and Unitime and his iconic yellow-backed advertisements remain evident even today. He also pressed Swiss watch manufacturers to embrace the so-called teenage market with new and dynamic watches and chronographs.
You might also enjoy How the Chronograph Became the “It” Watch Complication
The Grail Watch Perspective: From the Pneu to the Swatch
Georges Caspari was one of the sharpest advertising and marketing minds in history, and his “second watch” concept was embraced by Ernest Thomke on March 1, 1983, when he introduced the Swatch: Although the name was officially a contraction of “Swiss Watch”, Thomke specifically mentioned that it was intended to be a “second watch” according to Caspari’s market positioning. It’s easy to see that the Swatch buyers see these fantastic, stylish plastic watches as a second or third or more! What had once been an industry focused on selling a single watch per buyer has evolved into one where collectors purchase boxes of watches and ordinary buyers purchase a new watch every year or more.
There’s a lot more I could say about Georges Caspari, too! He published and wrote romantic poetry and lived in a Château on the shore of Lake Geneva, and was interviewed for a 1992 documentary called “Les Séducteurs” that I simply cannot explain here. He was truly one of the most interesting characters I have ever encountered in my watchmaking research!
One more thing: Marvin apparently did produce a Montre Pneu with an alarm, but the company missed the next hot automobile-adjacent watch gimmick: The Beaumann Memopark certainly resembled the tire watch, and this cheap little parking timer sold in the millions. But that is a story for another day!
#Breitling #GeorgesCaspari #marketing #Marvin #tireWatch -
From Gimmick to Trend: Marvin’s Tire Watch
If you spend much time looking at watches from the 1950s (or thrift stores) you’ve probably seen one: A keychain with a fob that looks like a tire but contains a mechanical watch. Although the era of the tire watch has long gone, it proved to be an important milestone in Swiss watchmaking, showing that there was a market for a “second watch”, as marketing whiz Georges Caspari called it. And the whimsical shape attracted new and younger customers, a market Caspari addressed for Breitling just a few years later.
Georges Caspari made the Marvin Montre Pneu a smash hit and opened the door to a “second watch” market!Marvin’s Montre Pneu: A Simple Gimmick
Marvin introduced the Montres Pneu and Clip together in July, 1937The Montre Pneu (“Tire Watch” in French) was nothing but a gimmick when it was introduced in 1937, and the company certainly expected the success it saw two decades later. It was introduced alongside a watch with a spring-loaded attachment known simply as the “Montre Clip”, with simple and descriptive named. Indeed, Marvin appears not to have attempted to trademark the “Pneu” name, unsurprising since it is simply the French word for tire.
The basic design of the Montre Pneu is simple: A compact (10.5 ligne) movement is placed in a hinged case that resembles an automobile tire. It was designed to be placed on a desk, with the movement raised at an angle for easy viewing. Marvin registered the design for protection with the Swiss patent agency but did not (yet) file for a patent since it was so simple and derivative of other desk watches.
But the Montre Pneu did have one striking element: The movement was visible on the reverse side through a transparent glass case back. This allowed Marvin to show off their finishing skills, and recalled the open pocket watches prized by previous generations.
Although the original Montre Pneu was a striking desk accessory, Marvin stopped promoting it almost immediately. It was simply left in the company’s inventory as Switzerland and the world turned their attention to the looming World War.
The Montre Pneu featured a transparent case back, a rarity at the timeA Second Watch
The 1950s saw striking new designsAfter World War II, the Swiss watch industry was the envy of the world. Thanks to low exchange rates and limited damage and dislocation, the Swiss were able to ramp production of watches to levels never before seen. Swiss watch factories were able to capitalize on the world’s hunger for affordable, mass-produced luxuries like watches.
Marvin was a progressive firm, aggressively pushing new styling and design. Their early post-war offerings presage the trends that would shape this “golden era” of watches, with slim cases, angled dials, and modern features like center seconds. They even produced a “mystery watch” with an open outer case two years before the famous Ernest Borel Cocktail watch.
But Marvin dealers kept ordering the humble little tire watch! A steady stream of customers gravitated to it as a gift for “the man who has everything”, some of whom had looped a keyring through the cutout and carried it around as a fob. Women loved it, too, carrying the little watch in their purse when they didn’t want to wear a wristwatch.
Georges Caspari was the greatest marketer in the golden age of watchmaking, from Omega to Breitling to the humble Marvin Pneu!Advertising consultant Georges Caspari, hired by Marvin to help differentiate the brand, was struck by the possibility that a new and untapped market was opened by the Montre Pneu. He realized that customers would quickly buy a novelty as a second watch for themselves and would not hesitate giving one as a gift.
He pressed the company to offer an official keychain and kickstand to make it more versatile, as well as a smaller model for ladies with brightly-colored tires.
In 1953, Caspari kicked off one of the greatest marketing campaigns in watchmaking history, positioning the tire watch alongside famous automobile brands (Jaguar, Mercedes, and Fiat) and racing drivers (Fangio, Ascari, and Moss) with barely a mention of the Marvin Watch Company or any technical specifications.
Marvin produced a solid gold Pneu, and a calendar modelDemand exploded, with the Pneu quickly becoming the best-selling watch in the world. Marvin leaned into the trend, producing a version with a full calendar and even a solid gold chronometer as expensive as a Patek Philippe. It was 1954 before technical director Albert Boillod submitted a patent application on the Pneu design.
The Meaning of the Fad
Marvin rode the tire watch fad for a few more years, selling millions of examples around the world. Despite the patent (granted in 1957), knock-offs quickly appeared on the market. Many of these came from so-called “economic watch” producers outside the Swiss Jura: Busga, Candino, and Hanowa in German-speaking Switzerland, Mortima in France, and even the American Timex and Bulova. Unlike Marvin, many of these used cheap cylinder or Roskopf movements and were sold at half the price.
Marvin introduced a range of novelties but none were as successful as the little tire watchMarvin tried to diversify in 1958, introducing a watch shaped like a steering wheel and a nautical model in a life ring. But these lacked the charm and functionality of the little rubber tire model, which had finally saturated the market.
Georges Caspari understood that the real lesson of the Marvin Montre Pneu was the potential demand for specialized and differentiated watches. In the late 1950s he helped Willy Breitling to position the chronograph as a symbol of a sporting and dynamic personality. Thanks to Caspari, Breitling focused on the Navitimer, Chronomat, and Unitime and his iconic yellow-backed advertisements remain evident even today. He also pressed Swiss watch manufacturers to embrace the so-called teenage market with new and dynamic watches and chronographs.
You might also enjoy How the Chronograph Became the “It” Watch Complication
The Grail Watch Perspective: From the Pneu to the Swatch
Georges Caspari was one of the sharpest advertising and marketing minds in history, and his “second watch” concept was embraced by Ernest Thomke on March 1, 1983, when he introduced the Swatch: Although the name was officially a contraction of “Swiss Watch”, Thomke specifically mentioned that it was intended to be a “second watch” according to Caspari’s market positioning. It’s easy to see that the Swatch buyers see these fantastic, stylish plastic watches as a second or third or more! What had once been an industry focused on selling a single watch per buyer has evolved into one where collectors purchase boxes of watches and ordinary buyers purchase a new watch every year or more.
There’s a lot more I could say about Georges Caspari, too! He published and wrote romantic poetry and lived in a Château on the shore of Lake Geneva, and was interviewed for a 1992 documentary called “Les Séducteurs” that I simply cannot explain here. He was truly one of the most interesting characters I have ever encountered in my watchmaking research!
One more thing: Marvin apparently did produce a Montre Pneu with an alarm, but the company missed the next hot automobile-adjacent watch gimmick: The Beaumann Memopark certainly resembled the tire watch, and this cheap little parking timer sold in the millions. But that is a story for another day!
#Breitling #GeorgesCaspari #marketing #Marvin #tireWatch -
Mit Essen spielt man (nicht)
Essen und Nahrungsmittel im Rollenspiel: Einsatzmöglichkeiten, Abenteueraufhänger und Beispielrezepte
Ein Gastbeitrag von Brigitte Massek aka Carabas Crafts. Vielen lieben Dank an dieser Stelle.
Wenn ich an meine Rollenspielrunden zurückdenke, erinnere ich mich an Berge von Knabberkram am Tisch, Essenspausen mit bestellter Pizza oder das gemeinsame Kochen an einem langen Rollenspielwochenende. Ob das gesund war oder nicht, sei dahingestellt, aber es ist auch unbestreitbar, dass die meisten von uns ziemlich ähnliche Erinnerungen an Rollenspiel haben. Auch das Spielen am Tisch selbst erinnert häufig an eine große Familie, die sich zum gemeinsamen Essen und Austausch trifft.
Da ist es nicht weiter verwunderlich, dass Schokolinsen als Gummipunkte oder Gummitiere, die sogar farbkodiert werden können (besonders Kreative mod-en sie sogar), als Gegner auf den Karten Verwendung finden. Schließlich darf die Person, die den finalen Schlag ausführt, auch den süßen (oder sauren) Platzhalter essen.
Genauso wenig überrascht es, dass auch in den Spielen selbst Essen bzw. Nahrung oft eine Rolle spielt. Manchmal ist es eine Hungersnot, die Held*innen dazu zwingt auf die Jagd zu gehen oder wie bei einigen Survival Games Buch über die eigenen Vorräte zu führen. Auch die Beschaffung von bestimmten Lebensmitteln kann ein guter Aufhänger für einen Plot sein:
- Auf Grund einer Hungersnot, die durch die Folgen eines Krieges ausgelöst wurde, können sich die wenigen Bewohner*innen von Dorf X nicht mehr selbst versorgen und brauchen eine neue Nahrungsquelle. Vorbeikommende Reisende sind daher eine willkommene Hilfe, denn sie haben vielleicht auf ihrem Weg etwas entdeckt, das dem Dorf helfen kann.
- Da der böse Y jedes Jahr mehrere Menschen für seine Gottheit opfern lässt, um seine unheilige Macht zu erneuern, wird eine Lotterie unter allen Anwesenden im Königreich ausgerichtet. Das Schicksal meint es nicht gut mit den Held*innen und sie sollen beim nächsten Neumond am Schafott enden. Am Abend vor der Zeremonie soll ein großes Bankett für alle ausgerichtet werden, an dem auch der König teilnehmen wird (hier gerne exotische Lebensmittel verwenden, damit der König seine Macht demonstrieren kann). Die letzte Chance das Essen zu vergiften oder Schlafmittel darunter zu mischen und zu entkommen oder den Bösewicht seiner gerechten Strafe zuzuführen.
- Die Gruppe bekommt den Auftrag ein Rezept zu finden, um das Lieblingsessen der sterbenden W zuzubereiten, um sie glücklich in die nächste Welt gehen zu lassen, damit sie auf Grund ihrer besonderen Magie nicht als Banshi/ böser Geist/ [untotes Monster hier einfügen] wiederkehrt. Doch das Rezept ist verschwunden und die Held*innen müssen sich beeilen, bevor es zu spät ist.
- Im Wald verschwinden immer wieder Personen, weswegen die Abenteurergruppe gebeten werden nach dem Grund zu suchen. Nach mehreren Stunden werden sie von einem süßen Duft überrascht und finden wenige Zeit später eine Lichtung, auf deren Mitte ein Baum wächst. Seine Äste hängen schwer von Süßigkeiten und anderen Leckereien herab, ideal um nur die Hände nach dem leckeren Essen auszustrecken. Doch sollten sie das wagen, werden sie erkennen, was der Baum wirklich ist: ein gefräßiges Monster, an dem sie kleben bleiben werden und dass sie langsam in seine Krone zu seinem Mund führen wird, um sie zu verspeisen…
- Die Tochter eines Verwanden eines Spieler*innencharakters ist krank geworden. Die Ärzt*innen sind ratlos, aber eine alte Legende spricht von einem mythischen Wesen in den Bergen, dessen Fleisch alle Krankheiten heilen kann. Gemeinsam machen sich die Abenteurer*innen auf die Suche, um diese Wesen zu erlegen und das Mädchen wieder gesund zu machen.
Aber Nahrungsmittel können noch viel mehr. Sie und die Art wie sie zubereitet werden zeigen auch den Unterschied zwischen den Ständen auf: so werden sich Bauer*innen hauptsächlich von Getreidebrei und schnell wachsendem Gemüse ernähren, Sklav*innen hingegen erhalten nur den Brei, während Soldat*innen sich ihre Mahlzeiten gelegentlich mit Fleisch aufbessern können und die Oberschicht alles essen kann, was und wann sie will und nicht einmal weiß, was auf ihren Tellern liegt. Reisendes Volk benötigt hingegen lang haltbare Lebensmittel, die sich gut transportieren und einfach verarbeiten lassen. Die Zubereitung einfacher Rezepte findet dabei am Lagerfeuer statt.
Eintopf
Ein Klassiker für jedes Lagerfeuer. Kann leicht mit ein paar anderen Zutaten abgewandelt werden.
Zutaten: Fleisch von einem Tier mit Klauen (ganz und fein zerkleinert), getrocknetes Fleisch in Gedärm, mehrschichtige Knollen, Knollen zur Ungeheuer Abwehr, Blut von Nachtschatten, Kräuter der Gegend, Bier, rote Bohnen, lange Feuerbohnen, aromatische Körner
Zubereitung: Beide Sorten Knollen und die Feuerbohnen hacken, Fleisch würfeln. Das Fleisch im heißen Feuertopf anbraten und bei Seite stellen. Die Knollen mit dem noch rohen, fein zerkleinerten Fleisch anrösten und anschließend alle anderen Zutaten, die das Feuer ertragen, hinzufügen, umrühren und mit geschlossenen Deckel 2 Stunden köcheln lassen. Anschließend Kräuter mit zarten Blättern hinzufügen und die Schüsseln gemeinsam leeren.
Energiespender
Perfekt um Energie nach einer Schlacht zurückzuerlangen oder die Batterien nach einer durchgearbeiteten Nacht in der Bibliothek wieder aufzuladen. Ebenfalls für das Kochen am Lagerfeuer geeignet.
Zutaten: gestockte Milch, Öl, Eier, süßes Pulver, Mehl, Backpulver, Verkaufsschlager des Alchemisten (weißes Pulver; findet man häufig bei Bäckern), 4 Äpfel, süße Gewürze nach Wahl
Zubereitung: Alle Zutaten, außer die Äpfel, glattrühren. Die eine Hälfte der Äpfel würfeln und in die Masse geben, die andere in Scheiben schneiden und darauflegen. Mit geschlossenen Deckel 45 Minuten backen bis der Teig braun ist.
Anmerkung für die Spielleitung
Sollten SCs sich dazu entschließen Monsterteile zu verwenden, liste je 3 positive und 3 negative Eigenschaften des Monsters abwechselnd auf und würfle mit 1W6. Das fertige Mahl verleiht nach dem Verzehr für mindestens eine Stunde die erwürfelte Eigenschaft. Um daraus einen Abenteueraufhänger zu spinnen, kann diese Zeit jedoch gerne ausgeweitet werden.
Kleiner Tipp: Es ist besonders schön, wenn ihr im Anschluss die Rezepte gemeinsam (im Dutch Oven oder Kochtopf) nachkocht.Zutatenerklärung
Eintopf (Chili con Carne) Rindfleisch und Hack, Wurst, Zwiebeln, Knoblauch, Tomatenmark, Kräuter, Bier, Kidneybohnen, Chilischoten, Kümmel
Energiespender (Apfelkuchen) Joghurt, Öl, Eier, Zucker, Mehl, Backpulver, Natron, Äpfel, z.B. Zimt
Bestimmte Gerichte können auch Erinnerungen und Gefühle hervorrufen. Vielleicht überlegt ihr euch beim nächsten Mal ein paar Gerichte, die euren Charakteren wichtig sind und welche, die sie gar nicht ausstehen können. Wie würde es sich anfühlen in einem niederschmetternden Moment von einem NSC oder einem SC das Lieblingsgericht zu erhalten? Oder was wäre, wenn euer Charakter Kartoffeln nicht ausstehen kann, weil er oder sie in ärmlichen Verhältnissen aufgewachsen ist und diese jeden Tag essen musste, die Held*innengruppe aber in ein Dorf gelangt, wo das Kartoffelfest gefeiert wird und eine Woche nur Kartoffelgerichte serviert werden?
Wie ihr seht, ist Essen mehr als Nahrung: es ist Nostalgie, Erinnerung, lebensnotwendig und das, was uns mit unseren Mitmenschen verbindet. Und hin und wieder dürfen wir gerne auch damit spielen.
#Essen #Nostalgie #PenPaper #penandpaper #pnp -
Ich bin seit einer guten halben Stunde bereit zum #Frühstück – und langsam bekomme ich auch Hunger!
-
Ich bin seit einer guten halben Stunde bereit zum #Frühstück – und langsam bekomme ich auch Hunger!
-
Ich bin seit einer guten halben Stunde bereit zum #Frühstück – und langsam bekomme ich auch Hunger!
-
Ich bin seit einer guten halben Stunde bereit zum #Frühstück – und langsam bekomme ich auch Hunger!
-
Ich bin seit einer guten halben Stunde bereit zum #Frühstück – und langsam bekomme ich auch Hunger!
-
New Quest: the mortality of green! (Castles and Crusades). A sapling holds the forest's future, but ancient malice hungers to corrupt it. Dare you protect its fragile green? What choices will you make? #CastlesandCrusades #Fantasy #Questable #ttrpg https://questable.app/#/quests/kx3DrsJyo5CdVo4vuMaR
-
New Quest: the mortality of green! (Castles and Crusades). A sapling holds the forest's future, but ancient malice hungers to corrupt it. Dare you protect its fragile green? What choices will you make? #CastlesandCrusades #Fantasy #Questable #ttrpg https://questable.app/#/quests/kx3DrsJyo5CdVo4vuMaR
-
New Quest: the mortality of green! (Castles and Crusades). A sapling holds the forest's future, but ancient malice hungers to corrupt it. Dare you protect its fragile green? What choices will you make? #CastlesandCrusades #Fantasy #Questable #ttrpg https://questable.app/#/quests/kx3DrsJyo5CdVo4vuMaR
-
I wonder if we’ll look at this year’s #MetGala as some kind of tipping point?
The gushing #billionaire owned press foist fawning imagery on us normies. It all smacks of the self absorbed Capitol Elite at the center of the #HungerGames.
Is this the year when backlash coalesces? Where the 99% say enough and demand a #WealthTax?
-
I wonder if we’ll look at this year’s #MetGala as some kind of tipping point?
The gushing #billionaire owned press foist fawning imagery on us normies. It all smacks of the self absorbed Capitol Elite at the center of the #HungerGames.
Is this the year when backlash coalesces? Where the 99% say enough and demand a #WealthTax?
-
I wonder if we’ll look at this year’s #MetGala as some kind of tipping point?
The gushing #billionaire owned press foist fawning imagery on us normies. It all smacks of the self absorbed Capitol Elite at the center of the #HungerGames.
Is this the year when backlash coalesces? Where the 99% say enough and demand a #WealthTax?
-
I wonder if we’ll look at this year’s #MetGala as some kind of tipping point?
The gushing #billionaire owned press foist fawning imagery on us normies. It all smacks of the self absorbed Capitol Elite at the center of the #HungerGames.
Is this the year when backlash coalesces? Where the 99% say enough and demand a #WealthTax?
-
https://www.europesays.com/africa/234463/ Hunger Crisis Deepens Across Somalia As Millions Face Emergency Conditions #Somalia
-
https://www.europesays.com/africa/234342/ Somalia’s worst-ever drought leaves millions starving as Trump’s aid cuts and Iran war deepen hunger crisis #AidAgencies #SaveTheChildren #Somalia #UNFoodAndAgricultureOrganization
-
https://www.europesays.com/africa/234314/ Somalia’s worst-ever drought leaves millions starving as Trump’s aid cuts and Iran war deepen hunger crisis #Somalia
-
https://www.europesays.com/africa/234134/ Crisis hunger levels worsen in Somalia #Somalia
-
Nein, auch beim Irankrieg-Desaster verlieren nicht einfach alle.
Menschen sterben durch Krieg und Gewalt, das fossile Gewaltregime des Iran, die Revolutionsgarden & auch das Putin-Regime jubeln. Die Mitwelt & die Wirtschaft am Golf, die Weltwirtschaft leiden. Inflation und Verarmung greifen weltweit um sich. Durch die Verknappung von Stickstoff-Dünger drohen auch mancherorts Ernteausfälle und Hunger.
Aber "westliche" Ölkonzerne ziehen Rekord-Gewinne aus der fossilen Falle, auch in Deutschland. Sie zocken nochmal aus der #Karbonblase ab.
Teilt das bitte & reibt es jenen unter die Nase, die sich immer noch einreden wollen, fossile Gewaltenergien wären "günstig", erneuerbare Friedensenergien aber "teuer".
Das Gegenteil ist der Fall!
#Irankrieg #Desaster #Iran #USA #Israel #Golfstaaten #Frankreich #UK #Revolutionsgarde #Fossilismus #Wirtschaft #Weltwirtschaft #Inflation #Verarmung #Dünger #Ölkonzerne #bp #Shell #Total #Rekordgewinne #Gewaltenergien #Erneuerbare #Friedensenergien
-
📢 "Nos hemos levantado para decir «No a la OMC». Estamos en contra de todos los acuerdos de libre comercio: ningún acuerdo comercial debería obligar a un Estado a importar alimentos que destruyan su producción alimentaria local."
-
Getting into the Halloween spirit? Here are the 21 best spooky, scary games to play right now
-
Getting into the Halloween spirit? Here are the 21 best spooky, scary games to play right now
-
Getting into the Halloween spirit? Here are the 21 best spooky, scary games to play right now
-
Getting into the Halloween spirit? Here are the 21 best spooky, scary games to play right now
-
Getting into the Halloween spirit? Here are the 21 best spooky, scary games to play right now