Entries by GaryG

Celebrity Ambassadors: Good Marketing Or Terrible Waste?

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A few weeks ago, I had the very enjoyable experience of attending a day hosted by Audemars Piguet and the Watch Enthusiasts of New York (WENY) filled with watches, watchmaking, and lively conversation. In the evening, we were treated to something that for me was quite unusual but that in the world of luxury goods marketing is commonplace: an interaction with one of the brand’s ambassadors, in this case Sir Nick Faldo. Read on to learn what is it that leads watch brands to engage celebrities.

You Are There: San Francisco Collector Master Class With Audemars Piguet

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Audemars Piguet in collaboration with WENY (Watch Enthusiasts of New York) hosted an event in San Francisco that had it all: a watchmaking master class, in-depth talks with the brand’s historian while perusing a few vintage beauties, checking out some of the current collection, a whiskey tasting, and time spent with one of the brand’s ambassadors: the iconic golfer Nick Faldo.

Behind The Lens: McGonigle Tuscar One Of Ten

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For those of you who are regular readers of my “Behind the Lens” series, it’s no secret that my watch pals and I are big fans of independent watchmaking.

Here at Quill & Pad we’re also fans of the independents, prominently including Irish watchmaking brothers John and Stephen McGonigle.

Recently, I had the opportunity to photograph an example of the Tuscar One in Ten owned by a good friend. Let’s take a look at some of the results.

Behind The Lens: Roger Smith Series 2

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Roger Smith holds a special place in the pantheon of independent watchmaking, both on his own merits and as the man who worked most closely with the legendary George Daniels. While any Smith watch is rare, the particular Series 2 that you see photographed in this article is in fact unique: it’s the only such watch in stainless steel that Smith has yet produced.

Behind The Lens: Philippe Dufour Duality

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For this edition of Behind the Lens, I’m sharing a series of photographs of one of the great watches of our time, the Philippe Dufour Duality. The Duality, with its linked twin escapements, was originally planned for production in a series of 25 watches. In a turn of events that seems almost unbelievable today, a lack of initial demand eventually led Dufour to limit production to just nine pieces, one of which is owned by a good friend of mine.

Collectors Speak: Picks And Pans Of SIHH Week 2015

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For the past five years, I’ve had the delightful experience of traveling to Switzerland with several friends to experience SIHH week, before finishing up with a Friday night dinner at which we review our impressions of the week by answering what watch we thought was best of show at SIHH; what was the worst watch; what current-production watch that we saw at any event during the week would we buy if money were no object; and what current-production watch did we see that we would buy with our own money?

Behind The Lens: Fonderie 47 Inversion Principle

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In this edition of “Behind the Lens,” we take a look at a watch that you may not have heard about yet: the Inversion Principle by Fonderie 47. There’s a story to be told about both the brand and this particular watch. We explore both, although we primarily emphasize the design elements of the watch and their links to the brand, as well as some of my observations on what it was like to photograph this watch.

Why I Bought It: Jaeger-LeCoultre Tribute To Reverso 1931

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Over the twenty-odd years I’ve been buying “serious” watches, I’ve purchased more pieces bearing the Jaeger-LeCoultre brand name than any other, by far. Within the Jaeger-LeCoultre pantheon, one watch sub-group stands out for me: the Reverso. Between my wife and I, we’ve bought a total of seven Reverso models. Given that, why add another? In this instance, the Reverso Tribute to 1931?

GaryG’s Year in Review 2014

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It seems like only yesterday, but it was all the way back in January of 2014 that I had the opportunity to sit down for the first time with Elizabeth and Ian and hear their plans for Quill & Pad. Before the year completely gets away, here are a few of my observations and reflections on the industry, my first year at Quill & Pad, and my year in watches.