During World War I, soldiers found traditional pocket watches impractical, and they began wearing the devices around their wrists. The technology has evolved since then, adding additional features and modern designs.
On this day, January 3rd, in 1957, the first-ever electric watch was introduced in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, which eventually replaced mechanical wind-up watches.
Even though consumers today are moving away from wristwatches, relying on their cell phones to tell the time, there is still a significant market for watches. Rolex, the largest single luxury watch brand, ranked 71st in Business Week’s 2007 list of the 100 most valuable global brands. The company produces about 2000 watches every day with an estimated revenue of about $3 billion.