Phil Toledano Explains His Love for Geezer Watches

In a world where watch collecting can sometimes feel like a repetitive loop of stainless steel sports watches, one man is on a mission to bring back the weird, the gold, and the wonderfully eccentric. Enter Phil Toledano. Known to his massive Instagram following as @misterenthusiast, Toledano is an artist, photographer, and watch collector who doesn’t just swim against the current—he creates an entirely new stream. Lately, his focus has turned to a category of timepieces he affectionately terms “geezer watches.”

If you’ve been keeping up with the watch world, you might have noticed a shift. The giant, heavy, utilitarian chronographs are slowly sharing space with smaller, thinner, and far flashier vintage pieces. In a recent chat with GQ, Toledano opened up about his deep love for these overlooked relics of the 1970s and 80s. But what exactly is a geezer watch, and why should you care? Let’s dive into Toledano’s fascinating horological world and find out why these vintage grandpa watches are the coolest things you can put on your wrist right now.

Redefining Cool: What Exactly is a “Geezer Watch”?

To understand Phil Toledano’s obsession, we first need to define the aesthetic. When you hear the word “geezer,” you might picture retirement homes, golf courses in Florida, or the quiet luxury of a grandfather who has long since stopped caring about trends. And that is precisely the charm. A “geezer watch” is typically gold, ultra-thin, and often features integrated bracelets, textured metals, or exotic stone dials like lapis lazuli, tiger’s eye, or malachite.

These aren’t the watches built to survive a dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. They are watches built for country clubs, cocktail hours, and leisurely afternoons. Brands like Piaget, Audemars Piguet, Rolex (specifically their vintage Cellini and King Midas lines), Concord, and Corum are the kings of this domain. During the 1970s and 1980s, these watchmakers experimented with brutalist shapes, woven gold bracelets, and incredibly thin movements.

For Toledano, the appeal lies in their sheer expressiveness. Where a modern dive watch is designed for functionality, a geezer watch is designed for beauty and texture. “There is a tactility to these watches that we’ve lost,” Toledano explains. When you look at a watch with a “bark finish” on the gold bracelet or a dial made of shimmering aventurine, you are looking at jewelry, sculpture, and micro-engineering all rolled into one. It is a style that screams confidence precisely because it doesn’t care about modern sports watch conventions.

The Art of the Uncommon: Why Phil Toledano Rejects the Hype

If you have a few hundred thousand dollars to spend, you can easily buy your way into the modern watch elite. You can purchase a steel Patek Philippe Nautilus or a Rolex Daytona and instantly fit in at any high-end meetup. But to Toledano, that is incredibly boring. As an artist and photographer, his eye is naturally drawn to form, proportion, and historical narrative rather than social media clout.

Toledano’s love for geezer watches is a direct rebellion against the “hypebeast” culture of watch collecting. In his GQ interview, he notes how the market has become incredibly homogenized. Everyone is chasing the same five or six stainless steel sports watches. By contrast, the world of vintage gold and textured watches offers endless variety and, surprisingly, a lot of value.

Toledano views these watches as wearable sculptures. He is drawn to the unusual shapes—asymmetrical cases, octagonal bezels, and watches that blur the line between a bracelet and a timekeeper. For him, a watch should provoke a reaction. It should be a conversation starter, not just a status symbol. When you wear a vintage yellow gold Piaget with a jade dial, you aren’t just showing off wealth; you are showing off an appreciation for design, history, and craftsmanship that simply doesn’t exist in modern mass production.

How to Start Your Own “Geezer Watch” Collection

The beauty of the geezer watch trend is that it is incredibly accessible. While the most famous vintage pieces from Rolex or Cartier can fetch hefty sums, there is a goldmine of undervalued treasures waiting to be discovered by savvy collectors. Here is how you can start adopting the Phil Toledano aesthetic without breaking the bank:

• Look for Alternative Brands: While everyone is fighting over vintage Cartier, look toward brands like Concord, Corum, Piaget, and even vintage Omega or Longines. These brands made spectacular, ultra-thin gold watches in the 70s and 80s that can often be found for a fraction of the price of their more famous peers.
• Embrace Texture: Don’t settle for polished gold. Look for watches with “Milanese” mesh bracelets, “bark” finishes, or “clous de Paris” (hobnail) bezels. The way these surfaces catch the light is what makes them so mesmerizing in person.
• Go Small and Thin: The modern trend of 42mm giant watches is taking a backseat. Look for watches in the 31mm to 34mm range, especially if they are square or rectangular. Because they are ultra-thin, they sit flat against the wrist, sliding effortlessly under a shirt cuff.
• Seek Out Stone Dials: If your budget allows, look for watches featuring dials made of natural stones. No two stone dials are exactly alike, meaning your watch will be entirely unique to you. Lapiz lazuli (deep blue), malachite (striking green), and onyx (sleek black) are classic choices.

By shifting your focus away from the mainstream sports models, you will discover a world of horology that is rich in personality, artistic expression, and historical significance.

Conclusion: The Future of Time is Retro

Phil Toledano’s love for geezer watches isn’t just a fleeting personal quirk; it is a sign of a larger cultural shift. Watch collectors are growing tired of the predictability of modern watch design. We are seeing a collective yearning for personality, warmth, and artistic daring. The “geezer watch” represents a time when watchmaking was allowed to be glamorous, weird, and deeply personal.

As Toledano continues to champion these golden relics, he reminds us of a valuable lesson: the best watch to wear is the one that makes you smile when you look down at your wrist. Whether you are ready to dive headfirst into the world of vintage solid-gold Piaget cuffs or simply want to find a quirky 1980s gold-plated Seiko, there has never been a better time to embrace your inner geezer. After all, true style isn’t about following the crowd—it’s about knowing exactly who you are and wearing it proudly on your sleeve.