While the dictionary lays out a pretty broad definition—“Luxury is a condition of abundance or great ease and comfort, or something adding to pleasure or comfort but not absolutely necessary; an indulgence in something that provides pleasure, satisfaction, or ease.”—I thought I’d kick this off by defining what luxury means to me. 

One of the most luxurious items I own is my Rolex Submariner. By nearly any metric, a Rolex watch is a luxury product. But what actually makes it that? Does its high price alone define it as luxury? In part, maybe. By commanding such a price, it means fewer people can own one, thus creating more brand cachet and demand. 

Is it luxury because of its features or performance? Hardly. Even the least expensive Rolex at just under $6,000 offers nary a single additional complication other than telling the time. No date, no alarm; it won’t take your pulse and won’t display text messages. It just displays the time. And Rolexes aren’t even especially accurate at their principal task of timekeeping, often running several seconds fast or slow . . . per day. 

So why would I, or really anyone, choose to invest so much in a Rolex compared to other brands, making it one of the top-selling watch brands in the world, and so desirable among collectors? It’s because a large part of luxury goes beyond performance and into things more tangential like pride of ownership. I got this as a gift from my wife on our fifth anniversary over 20 years ago, and I still wear it on my wrist literally 24/7.

I had wanted a Submariner for years—probably initially inspired by Ian Fleming having James Bond wear one, then fueled by adverts during Wimbledon and The Masters—and when I was finally able to make the plunge, I left the store with this amazing sense of accomplishment.

I still have a huge sense of pride in owning something handcrafted, in limited numbers, with higher-caliber components, and employing superior craftsmanship. I’ve taken the watch around the world; have taken it diving, climbing, skiing, while working in attics, and while driving an Aston Martin DBS. After all these years, I still feel good about owning it, wearing it, checking the time on it, and—sure—having people notice it.

Like any luxury product, the Rolex comes with a bit of “welcome to the Club”-ness about it, making you feel like a part belonging to a larger whole. It also creates a wonderful, almost instant, bond between people. When I’ve casually commented on a customer wearing a Sky Dweller, or another with a DeepSea, or discussed various models with Krell CEO Walter Schofield, there is a sense of kinship, with one aficionado recognizing another, and also a sense of, “OK, he gets it.” People also generally like to open up and discuss their relationship with their watch. 

A watch certainly serves the point for making a luxury analogy but the same metric can really be applied to any luxury product—a suit, a handbag, a writing instrument, an automobile, or a home entertainment system. Whatever the product, there are luxury brands within that category that establish the boundaries of what is possible well beyond just being serviceable. 

For me, luxury involves making a commitment to wanting something beyond the norm—in this case, a premium wristwatch—and aspiring towards achieving the best experience possible.