The first full month of the second half of 2024 continues to show the market in decline. The WatchCharts Overall Market Index lost 0.8% in July, worse than the performance in June.
Many think that the Rolex Submariner is the first modern dive watch, however that crown belongs to the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, which became the blueprint for all modern divers’ watches.
Ken Gargett describes the Taittinger Comtes 2013 as a champagne that dances. Citrus and grapefruit pith, florals, brioche, stonefruits, a hint of ginger and mixed spices. A beautifully elegant champagne with immaculate balance and intensity, which lingers long after first impressions.
Not everyone wants to own an iconic watch. Some want to stand out for their individuality or even go under the radar. Ramon Kalra shares his thoughts on collections from some of the largest watch brands that he doesn’t feel get as much attention as they deserve.
Many think that Louis Vuitton’s first watch was the Tambour, which was launched in 2002. However the brand actually began with a watch collection called Monterey in the 1980s. The Monterey I, an unusual worldtime watch designed by Gae Aulenti with date and moon phase, was soon followed by the ceramic-encased Monterey II that added an alarm function.
You can like everything, but you can’t buy – or keep – everything! Inevitably, the choices involved lead at times to regrets; for GaryG, along with many of his pals, the sadness is much more often about pieces they sold too soon or failed to buy rather than pieces they were sorry about buying in the first place. Here’s a story of shoulda, woulda, coulda.
The Czapek Place Vendôme Complicité has a stunning movement while maintaining the design language of the Place Vendôme. This may seem trivial to some but for a brand that has always had a strong design culture, designing a movement around the desired appearance is still quite impressive.
Tim Mosso explores the renewed rivalry between luxury watch titans Omega and Breitling. Once an also-ran, Breitling has been rehabilitated in the marketplace and offers competitive watches in all classes.
As Rolex has moved upmarket, Omega and its Speedmaster have been left in possession of the mid-market field.
G-Shock is a sub-brand of Casio that is designed to withstand mechanical stress, vibrations, and shocks. It’s a great affordable watch, but is it still worth buying? Raman Kalra certainly thinks so and explains why.
Gary Getz (aka GaryG) was interviewed recently for The Horology Club of Hong Kong. In these two videos, Gary explain how he got into watch collecting and shares some of his favorite watches and why they are special to him.