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The surf-style Shark watch was the perfect starter timepiece for a particular age group. A former owner explains the history of a childhood favorite.
When I wear my first shark watch
I have spoken on several occasions about my first timepiece. I have talked about my first watch on a couple of occasions.
It is, of course, the Freestyle Shark Watch. The digital watch that we grew up wearing was not a Timex or Casio. The Shark is celebrating its 40th birthday. It was born in 1981 amid Southern California’s rough waves and sandy beaches. This article is not the first time you will feel old. Although many people (including myself) consider this watch to be one of our youth, it wasn’t made just for children. The Shark is and was a surfer’s watch.
In the early 1980s, Freestyle focused on making watches for extreme sports like surfing. The Shark was designed specifically to be the world’s first surf watch. The two SoCal founders of the brand wanted a watch that could withstand the abuses of the ocean.
Although it might have seemed gimmicky initially, the idea has caught on. Even though their names are unknown to the current owners, it is believed that the original Freestyle owners did almost everything themselves in terms of business operations. They designed the watch. They produced the watches. Negotiated partnerships overseas. They slowly built up a following, and in the 1980s and 1990s, the brand became immensely popular as the surf culture began to enter the mainstream, thanks to movies like Point Break starring Keanu Reeves, the proto-dude, and an epically shaggy Patrick Swayze.
The Shark watch was introduced to the world of horology in 1981 when Quartz Revolution began. Nicolas Hayek Sr. launched Swatch in the 1980s to save Swiss watchmaking from impending doom. You’ll see a lot of color in the classic Swatch ads from this period. The design was avant-garde and colorful because if you wanted to put a new battery into a watch, it had to be crazy.
Shark was two years ahead of Swatch in the market. It is easy to see how it influenced the original Swatch watches in color and tone. This mutual influence or inspiration is expected in the watchmaking industry. Distribution was the critical difference between both brands. Swatch is sold in larger department stores than Freestyle. Shark watches were marketed primarily in surf shops.
Freestyle was an independent company. If you were involved in it, you would have heard about it. Swatch was the horological version of Top 40 Radio.
On the other hand, Freestyle needed to possess the scale to compete with Swatch. Its status was partly due to its contentment with remaining low-key but also because it realized that this was the only possible way to operate. That’s not to say it didn’t do well in the 1980s because it did. It was a massive success in mom-and-pop stores, where the Shark became a significant item. The Shark was not a product that a shop pushed on customers – it was a product they demanded. The Shark fed a culture dominated by wannabe Jeff Spicolis, who wanted a watch to match their checkered Vans.
The Shark is not a fine timepiece or watch. It’s digital and cheap, like $60 (166 of them would make a Submariner). It gives off an air of carefreeness and even a waved attitude. I wanted to convey a carefree, wavy attitude as a young Marylander.
I once owned a Freestyle Shark. I was born in the late 1980s, and my first experience with this watch was in the 1990s. I didn’t know what a Spicoli was when I wore my Shark. I was too busy eating Bagel Bites and watching Nickelodeon to pay attention. But I do remember the watch. My watch was a black Shark Leash fitted with a specific velcro strap. This was my first actual watch. I’ve said it before. This watch was my first, and I didn’t think much of it. It was a nice-looking watch that told the time. It was all. Also, I was 10 years old.
The Shark Clip was the original model, and it came in two other models: The Leash. The straps are what makes the main difference between the two models. One uses a snap-in mechanism, and the other uses velcro. The leash was the first to hit the market, with a velcro-like strap that mimicked a leash enclosure on a surfing board. The Clip was the next model, and it replaced velcro with a plastic enclosure. Both watches are cornerstones in the Shark collection and are still available in original form.
Shark’s business began to suffer at the end of the 1990s. The rise of skateboarding and the emergence of Nixon were significant factors. The company was flattened.
Freestyle decided to diversify its offerings by creating new watch collections and moving away from traditional sharks. Freestyle chose to compete against entry-level brands such as Casio, Timex, and G-Shock. Nixon and G-Shock became more aggressive on the market, and Freestyle responded by releasing the Shark X analog/digital watch. The brand expanded to include special edition watches with surfers Shane Dorian and Cory Lopez. Freestyle made a diving watch, the Hammerhead. It has a rubber strap and a stainless steel case with a rotating bezel.
These watches were all successful because they helped offset the drop in Shark watch sales. None of these watches achieved the same level of success as Shark.
In 2000, the original owners sold Freestyle to Geneva Watch Group. This company is known for licensing brands such as Tommy Bahama, Sperry, andas Kenneth Cole and Tommy Cole. The Freestyle brand survived during this period, but the popularity of Shark watches declined.
Under the direction of GWG in 2004, Freestyle brought the Shark into the spotlight in its original format, with some minor changes to the digital display and bezel. These were made more prominent and easier to read. Freestyle gained some popularity, but some issues remained. One thing is that the market and the customers’ perceptions of the brand have changed. The company was no longer viewed as the Shark Watch Company – the Surfers’ Watch – but as a company that offered a wide range of watches with no central identity.
The brand continued to grow in the interim years. The brand dabbled with department stores because GWG, as a department store, had access to this stream of commerce. It also tried out other outdoor products, like a Freestyle-branded altimeter. Freestyle also offered a smartwatch and a skate watch, the Velvet Shark. Nothing took off.
GWG declared bankruptcy in 2015 or 2016. ILG, a specialty licensing and manufacturing firm, then acquired it. ILG sold the Freestyle brand after it purchased GWG. Freestyle’s manufacturing operations ceased during the turmoil of the bankruptcy proceedings. The factory closed, and the brand could not produce, ship, or sell watches. The brand was about to die.
A group of anonymous (and private) American investors saw a brand that was effectively dormant with great potential. In 2017, they saved Freestyle and the Shark Watch from extinction. The purchase, whose amount is unknown as it was a privately sold item, represented a return to Freestyle’s roots. It meant that the company was once again 100 percent privately owned and held.
The new owners had a limited inventory and needed to decide what to do next. Was there a question? Shark was the original brand, and consumers still recognize it. Once again, the Leash and the Clip were the future of the Freestyle brand. Freestyle needed to look back to move forward.
Freestyle watches were sold on grey market sites at 60-70% discounts. The new owners wanted to consolidate and bring the product back in-house. They went on a quest to buy back their watches, emphasizing brand integrity.
When they relaunched, they focused on Instagram. Like all other cultures, surf culture has migrated to social media, especially regarding colorful, youthful, and affordable products.
The Shark I wore when I was 10 years old is virtually unchanged. You can buy it online, in stores such as Zumiez, or in specialty shops. You might mistake the watch for a Casio or a smaller G-Shock. This is because Shark (or Freestyle, in reality) does not have the same name or brand recognition as its digital rivals. The G-Shock is also more durable. The Shark is a simple timepiece that offers 100m of water resistance—for those waves.
It is square. According to the Freestyle brand, the case is 38mm wide, which is a medium fit for kids. (It sounds a bit big, but it was no problem). I didn’t pay much attention to the case in my tween years. But now that I look at it again, I can tell some thought was put into its design and engineering. The case has many angles, including sloped lugs. It’s got a kind of bezel on it. Two buttons control various features on both sides of the case. These features include dual-time functionality, an alert, and military or 24-hour time.
The buttons are known as “Hydro Pushers” because they can also be pressed underwater. This is something that you shouldn’t do with a mechanical clock. There are four Hydro Pushers in total:
- A mode button.
- An activation button for the backlight.
- A button that starts the stopwatch or timing function.
- Resetting the clock.
Timex watches have a backlight feature called Indiglo. It was a clever and memorable name. I love the naming convention of the Shark Watch. It appeals to my inner child. It’s called “Night Vision.” What do you do when you cannot read the time in the dark? What do you do? You activate Night Vision. Night Vision is engraved into the top of the bezel.
It’s a shame the Shark has a small screen compared to modern digital watches. However, it does have a retro feel. The display shows the time, date, AM/PM, two letters from the day, and the date. On the surface of the frame around the display are the logos of both Freestyle, in a retro script typeface, and Shark, with their iconic fin logo.
The Shark Clip and Leash are different in how they are secured. The Clip uses a snapping clip system. The Leash’s strap, though not very comfortable, is made of sturdy polyester. Meanwhile, the Clip’s strap is nylon. Both have two patches with their respective logos. The second patch, which is at the bottom, indicates the model. The straps measure 20mm in width.
The Shark Leash was an excellent product for my younger self because it was easy to use. The strap was also easy to use. I just had to pull it around my wrist and then press down. It worked like the old Velcro shoes we used to wear before learning how to tie laces. The Shark Watch was an excellent starter watch, not just for telling time.
Freestyle and its Shark Watch are flourishing in their current form. A brand representative said growth has been “double digits” since 2017. He said, “This year, we’re exceeding that trajectory by 25%.”
Freestyle is now using the drop model to release new products and has, in turn, regained a portion of its cult following. The fans not only collect watches but also share their Shark tans on social media. Teenage couples own their own Shark watches. This marketing campaign is a nice nod to the watch’s indie roots.
Today, Freestyle is almost exclusively focused on customer feedback, translating it into new products. Freestyle has recently branched out into Apple Watch straps, allowing Apple Watch owners to wear their iconic Shark watch bands.
This watch will bring back childhood memories for those born between the mid-80s and the early 90s. Last year, I talked to Cara Barrett on HODINKEE Friday Live, and we both mentioned that we had Shark watches when we were kids. She did what I’ve yet to do: She bought a colorful watch for herself as an adult.
Shark first-generation owners who were thoughtful enough to hold onto their originals are now old enough to pass them on to their children. They are the Gen-Z natives of social media today. Freestyle’s promotion of its watches in this manner makes perfect sense.
Not all watches have to be high-tech or provide lasting value. It’s not always the engineering prowess or lasting value that makes us happy. Sometimes, it is the nostalgia. Or the fun of a watch that costs less than a meal for two. The Shark watch reminds me of Game Boy, Pogs, and Stretch Armstrong. It’s an old relic from my youth. It doesn’t matter if we grow out of something (except for Game Boy and Stretch Armstrong). I’m happy that the Shark is still alive and well – on the hunt for new generations.
