While exploring the vast world that is the watch industry, you’ve probably noticed the occasional watch with more than one logo on its dial. In this article, we’ll be taking a closer look at some of these timepieces and how those logos came to take such a prominent position on the dial.
Rolex Air-King Domino’s Pizza
It’s said that hard work pays off. That payoff has come in many shapes in sizes over the years. Take Domino’s, for instance. They reward their top-performing employees with a Rolex Air-King with a prominent Domino’s logo on the dial. Domino’s is one of the world’s largest fast-food pizza chains, second only to Pizza Hut, and they make every effort to motivate their managers.
Domino’s was founded in 1960 and opened its first franchise location 7 years later. Over the next ten years, they would expand to 200 stores. Founder Tom Monaghan first gifted a watch—his own—to an employee in the 70s. Then came the stainless steel Rolex Air-King with the Domino’s Pizza logo on the dial. This timepiece is intended to motivate managers to work even harder. Any manager that makes at least $25,000 in weekly sales 4 weeks in a row is rewarded with this watch. When this promotion first started, it was only $20,000 a week over 4 weeks. Imagine how much pizza that would have been back in the day!
Several editions of the Domino’s-branded Rolex Air-King have existed over the years. While earlier models featured the famous logo on the dial at a 45 or 90-degree angle, more recent models have come with a stainless-steel logo attached to the Oyster bracelet just below the case at 6 o’clock.
Rolex Air-King Pool Intairdrill
The Rolex Air-King seems to be the go-to model for many brands. One lesser-known example is the Pool Intairdrill edition. These watches were also intended as rewards, more specifically to managers and safety personnel on oil rigs after their rig had gone a certain number of days without any accidents. Pool Intairdrill was a major supplier of parts and labor to big oil companies in the 1970s and 80s. These special editions feature the Pool Intairdrill logo on the front and have the awardee’s name engraved on the case back.
TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf Racing
Fans of watches and motorsport celebrated the release of the TAG Heuer Monaco Gulf Racing watch. Both TAG Heuer and Gulf boast long histories on the motorsport scene. Everyone knows the iconic image of Steve McQueen in his white racing overalls with Gulf racing stripes from 1971’s “Le Mans”. In this image, he’s also sporting a Heuer Monaco on his wrist.
For TAG Heuer and Gulf, that was reason enough to partner up for a special edition TAG Heuer Monaco in honor of 50 years of Gulf racing stripes in 2017. Other Gulf-inspired watches had already been made; however, they hadn’t features the Gulf colors and logo.
Rolex Comex
Rolex diving watches with the COMEX logo on the dial are just as iconic and sought-after. COMEX is short for “Compagnie Maritime d’Expertises“, a French commercial diving company with a long history in specialty diving. In fact, they are one of the world’s leading engineering and deep-diving companies and used to have a partnership with Rolex. Some even call them the NASA of the deep sea.
Rolex COMEX diving watches were handed out exclusively to COMEX employees. Having been produced in such small quantities, these watches rarely appear on the market and are extremely coveted and difficult to find. This only drives up the price of what would’ve already been an expensive vintage Rolex.
Rolex crafted several COMEX watches from the early 70s through the late 90s. Various editions of both the Submariner and Sea-Dweller got the COMEX treatment.
These are just a few examples of watches that come with third-party brand logos on the dial. There are many others out there, though they’re not all as well-documented. One example is the Omega Seamaster TCDD. Its dial features the logo of the Turkish State Railways. Then there are Seiko watches with the Dr. Pepper logo. There’s plenty of double-branded timepieces to choose from.
These are just a few examples of watches that come with third-party brand logos on the dial. There are many others out there, though they’re not all as well-documented. One example is the Omega Seamaster TCDD. Its dial features the logo of the Turkish State Railways. Then there are Seiko watches with the Dr. Pepper logo. There’s plenty of double-branded timepieces to choose from.
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The post One Watch, Two Logos: How Non-Watch Brands Find Their Way onto the Dial appeared first on Chrono24 Magazine.