Watchmaking is an impressive art, and that art costs money. However, as the old saying goes, every rule has its exceptions. Here are Lukasz Doskocz’s top five picks for best value for money at the 2018 SIHH.
When collectors gather anywhere and talk about their collections, recent purchases, and executed or potential sales, there’s a term that comes up more often than not: “getting hurt.” Here I provide a master class in how not to get hurt in the world of watch collecting.
What is the most precious element of any watch brand? Its manufacture? Its skilled employees? Its brand ambassadors? Its boutiques? Martin Green thinks that it’s none of those, because the most important asset of a brand is its so-called DNA. Here he explains how brands better used their DNA at the 2018 SIHH.
Hairsprings are miniscule. Generally no more than one centimeter in overall diameter when coiled, they are roughly 50 microns thick and 150 microns wide. Tiny they may be, but insignificant they are not. In fact, they are so significant that Rolex refers to them as “the guardians of time.” But what do silicon hairsprings bring to the table? Watchmaker Ashton Tracy explains why he went from skeptic to fan.
Łukasz Doskocz has no problem being quite frank with anyone when it comes to watches: he enjoys every watch fair and looks forward to seeing what comes next. This year, unlike the years before, it seems to him as if brands have started to listen to collectors, finally appreciating what we want for our money. Which is why the SIHH 2018 mattered to him greatly . . . well, that and a few other things.
In the world of watches, especially with regards to collecting, rarity is a large factor contributing to the cost of a luxury timepiece. The reason is because rarity is almost always an implied condition that seems beyond control – like it just happens. In this article Joshua explains why he thinks that out of all the metals, especially the white metals like platinum and white gold, stainless steel is the most precious metal.
On January 22, 2018 Richemont announced its intent to purchase the remaining shares it doesn’t already own of online luxury retailer YOOX Net-A-Porter Group (YNAP). There’s much more to this story than just a corporate acquisition. This is as much about Amazon and how fine timepieces will be sold in the future as it is about the online sales of luxury goods between two industry giants.
Friends, colleagues, and clients have posed many questions about the grey market for fine timepieces over the years. Most recently, my post ‘A Cautionary Tale on Buying New Watches Online’ was met with quite a few comments, quite possibly leaving more questions than answers. Here are a few answers.
There are two main problems in watch journalism as I see things today – and this is from the viewpoint of a watch enthusiast, watch collector, (former) watch brand social media manager, watch publisher, watch photographer, and watch journalist: 1) low average quality of horological articles and 2) often obscure incentives. What might be done? Here are some possible answers.
There was a small horological polemic recently out of Geneva caused by an employment advert from a high-end watch brand looking for a “chargé d’industrialisation métiers d’art.” First they industrialized horological crafts, now it’s the arts. What’s next?
