🔒Timex wins over Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary with affordable E-Line watch

Timex is known for producing reliable, reasonably-priced watches that are accessible to everyday consumers rather than luxury markets. The company’s iconic advertising slogan, used from the 1950s through the 1990s, was: “Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.” The ads famously showed Timex watches surviving extreme torture tests. Timex releases new watch models twice a year. Some are new designs; others are reissuances of the brand’s heritage. One of its newest offerings is the Marlin Jet Quartz Chronograph, which launched Aug. 12. It’s part of a collection that is “straight out of the space age, capturing futuristic design ideals of the ‘60s with a domed Hesalite crystal that envelops its bezel.” Recently, Timex’s popular E-Line watch — which has an adjustable bracelet and a 1970s TV-style dial — caught the eyes of Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary, a high-end watch collector. He was surprised to learn that the E-Line wasn’t a fancy watch that costs thousands of dollars, but a Timex. “Kevin reached out to us directly. I spoke to him,” said Michelle Prins, Timex’s senior director of global marketing. “He was very interested in the E-Line. He didn’t know what it was, but somebody was wearing the watch, and he thought it was a high-end watch. He’s a big watch collector. He went over to the guy and was like, ‘Oh, I love your watch. What is it?’ And the guy was like, ‘It’s a Timex.’ And we were completely sold out, so he called to see if we had any.” Timex hooked O’Leary up, and he wore an E-Line on his show, promoting it as a “great entry-level watch for younger people.” The watch is priced at about $260.