I was watching one of the old James Bond movies (Thunderball) last night, and I noticed one of the guys was wearing a Navitimer, and Bond actually had an old Breitling Top Time on (with the optional geiger-counter complication). It got me wondering what those watches would have cost back in 1965.
Based on the consumer price index, a $7,200 Navitimer today would have cost $1,070 back in 1965. Going off census data, the median household income in 1965 was about $7,000 a year. It doesn't take much to realize people weren't spending $1,000 on watches back then which begs the question: What did Breitlings retail for back in the day?
I haven't had any luck finding the answer, but I would figure about $20-30. Hopefully someone will be able to sort me out on that one. Even if they cost $200-300, they still would have been a relative bargain.
I also think it's interesting what a premium society has placed on branding. I think we all agree that these are fantastic watches, but I also think it's widely accepted that there is not $7,200 worth of material and labor on our wrists. I'm not saying I regret paying that much for any of my watches; they are worth the price to me, and I guess that's all that matters, but I wouldn't mind living in a world where we didn't have that marketing-induced premium markup!
Disclaimer for the inevitable detail-oriented replies: *The $7,200 is just a ballpark estimate I came up with for a B01 Navitimer. I understand there are plenty of cheaper Breitlings, just as there are plenty of Breitlings that cost more*
