Founded in 1962, Caravelle’s goal was to produce everyday jeweled timepieces priced from $10.95 to $29.95 to compete with jewel-less watches in the same price range. Up until the middle of the 20th century, most watches were an investment. After World War II, however, the middle classes could now afford to have more than one timepiece, and so the market was soon flooded with inexpensive watches, due in large part to the fact that these watches housed jewel-less movements. Bulova, one of the most recognizable watch brands in the world, decided that it too needed to produce more budget-friendly versions of its watches to compete with companies like Timex, hence, the Caravelle line. The strategy worked and, by 1968, Caravelle was the largest selling jeweled watch in America. The Caravelle brand continues to this day, with the New York collection being its most famous line, priced between $79 to $149.
