From red carpet to online forums: who really drives watch demand?

Spend even a short amount of time around the luxury watch industry and one thing quickly becomes clear: the famous wrist still matters.

But as a relative newcomer to covering the sector, I’ve found myself wondering about something slightly different. Not whether celebrity ambassadors generate attention (they clearly do), but do they actually drive the purchase?

The watch world has long borrowed from the fashion playbook. Put the right product on the right person on the red carpet and the world notices. From Cannes to the Met Gala, fashion brands understand the halo effect a celebrity appearance can create. Yet even in fashion, that influence is often more inspirational than transactional. A dress worn at the Oscars might spark trends globally, but very few people are buying the exact gown seen on the night. Instead, they buy into the aesthetic, the brand, or the story behind it.

Watching the watch industry up close, it feels like the same dynamic may apply.

Take the latest example. Ryan Gosling will soon be wearing the TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E5 in Amazon MGM Studios’ upcoming sci-fi film Project Hail Mary. From a marketing perspective, it’s a perfect placement — a global movie release, a Hollywood A-lister, and a watch front and centre on the big screen.

Across the industry, similar partnerships are key. Cartier taps into the cultural influence of Timothée Chalamet, reaching Gen Z and younger consumers while redefining the brand’s image for a new generation. Meanwhile, Omega continues to benefit from the lasting impact of its association with Daniel Craig and the James Bond franchise.

All of this drives visibility, and plenty of it. But, looking closer at what actually drives demand, the picture starts to shift. Analysis of auction results, secondary-market activity, and enthusiast chatter suggests that watches generating real momentum tend to do so because of heritage, scarcity, and design credibility, rather than celebrity appearances alone.

And there are plenty of examples to prove the point. Take the Omega x Swatch MoonSwatch collaboration: a playful release that, thanks to online forums and enthusiast communities, exploded into a global phenomenon. It’s this kind of community energy — whether it’s spirited debates on Reddit or a Time+Tide event (pizza and watches? Count me in!) — that really signals which watches matter.

In a world that’s increasingly disconnected, those connections feel real. Personally, I’d much rather be part of those conversations than just watch a timepiece show-up on a red carpet.

From where I’m sitting (and just for clarity, that’s coffee in one hand, laptop in the other, deep in the latest watch news and consumer reports), the brands that get it right aren’t just flashing celebrity faces. They’re winning over the enthusiasts who actually decide which watches sell out and become icons.

The red carpet may start the conversation, but in today’s watch market, it’s the community that determines how the story ends.