Over the years I have known many startup owners who wanted to create their own watch brand. One of the very first questions they would ask is – how much does it cost to make a custom logo watch? Honestly, this is hard to answer because it is like asking a cellphone dealer how much a cellphone costs. It depends. The price range for a watch is much bigger due to its varieties of parts used. Each variant can make a big difference to the pricing.
Ultimately it is your market orientation that has the final say. If you are targeting at the middle-end markets, ask your manufacturer to use medium quality watch parts and they will provide you a price; if high-end, ask for high quality parts and of course the price will be higher. Sometimes you can tell your manufacturer your estimated target price, and they will come up with a solution of the parts to be used.
Many new business owners make the mistake of always demanding a lower price. The risk of doing so is that your (smart) manufacturer can always find alternative materials to meet your target price without you knowing it. This is definitely not a thing Ascend Watches will do but something you should be mindful of. Nowadays prices have become so transparent that a manufacturer offering a slightly higher price will lose its business. All Chinese watchmakers are now living on minimum profit margins, so it is not a good idea to keep pushing them on the prices.
Anyway, what type of parts should be used for lower, middle and high end watch markets? Below is a table for your reference.
WATCH PARTS |
HIGH END SPECS |
MEDIUM END SPECS |
LOW END SPECS |
| Case (Housing) | 316L Stainless Steel | 316L/304 Stainless Steel | Zinc Alloy |
| Glass Cover | Sapphire Crystal | Mineral / Sapphire Crystal | Mineral Crystal |
| Movement | Mechanical / Swiss Made | Japan / Swiss Parts | Japan / Chinese |
| Leather Strap | Full Grain Leather | Genuine Leather | Faux Leather |
| Mesh Strap | 304 Stainless Steel | 304 Stainless Steel | Alloy |
| Plating | Premium Ion Plating | Average Ion Plating | Water Plating |
| Water Resistance | 10ATM (100 meters) | 3ATM / 5 ATM | 1 ATM (Spalshproof) |
| Price Range | >50 USD | 15-50 USD | <10 USD |
Some visitors to our website said that the price ranges listed above are too general. They still couldn’t get a good idea of the watchmaking costs. Therefore, we decided to show here price breakdowns of our typical minimalist quartz watches, chronograph watches and automatic watches. Hope this is helpful.
