If you have been paying close attention to advertisements on watches you may have noticed something very eerie. Why do nearly all watch companies set their time pieces at 10.09? Everyone from Rolex, Apple Watch, IWC, Sony Smartwatch, TAG, Casio and many others have their advertisements set at 10.09. In fact even the custom branded watches on our website are set at 10.09. Don't believe me? Well check out these advertisements:

Is there a global conspiracy? Does 10.09 signal something sinister? Well I have some insider news for you. The answer is sadly no. However, there is a history that dates back 100 years though.

History of Marketing Watches at 10.09

The practice of promoting watches at the time of 10.09 dates back to 1920. This practice was first introduced by the Hamilton Watch Company and was later followed by Rolex. The reason behind this is for pure marketing reasons listed here:

• Logo and custom Branding of a watch happens under 12.00 in most instances.
• Having the time set at 10.09 frames the branding in a nice even symetery
• Watch makers prefer 10.09 because it looks like a smile
• The 10.09 point also does not hide other aspects on a typical watch like the date dial.

Since 1920 setting watches is a tradition that all watch makers understand. If you are promoting or marketing a watch then you set the time to 10.09 or somewhere close to that.

Adhering to Marketing Standards

The new entrants into the watch industry including Apple, Sony and other technology companies now also adhere to these traditional standards as a way of paying respect to the watch industry. It makes sense for these technology companies to emphasize that their product is indeed ultimately a normal watch, to be used normally by normal people and not merely a high tech piece of equipment.