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What Watch Do You Wear And Why? Share Your Passion With Us!
What You Need To Know (A Quick Summary):
- The general public doesn’t appreciate or understand your passion for fine timepieces. We do and so do your fellow readers.
- Send us an email with a brief bio on yourself with some pictures of you and your watch (minimum size is 540 x 340 pixels).
- We’ll publish it on the site and share your passion with the (informed) world.
The Problem
Let me set the scene for you; you’re at a party/board meeting/special function, etc. and you’re feeling (and looking) good. You’ve lovingly chosen one of your favorite pieces from your collection, selected specifically to complement your attire and convey just the right message to your peers. Understandably you’ve already received several compliments on your exceptional timepiece, not to mention your fair share of admiring (jealous?) stares and then out of nowhere the inevitable question comes:
“Why would you spend that much on a watch? It just tells the time.”
The wind is instantly knocked out of you as though someone has just struck you with great force in the sternum. You take a step back trying to maintain your balance as the world begin to spins around you, your blood literally starts to boil in your veins. You gasp for air, internally dialogging at a furious rate trying to make sense of this completely nonsensical statement:
“Just tells the time? Are they mad!?”
At one time or another we’ve all been there and experienced this most distasteful of scenarios and invariably we’ve all wasted the next 5 to 10 minutes of our life trying to explain the rich tapestry that is our passion. On the rare occasion we’re able to break through and thus welcome another fellow enthusiast into the fold, truly a joyous occasion. More often than not, however, we’re simply met with glassy-eyed, non-comprehending stares or polite (and infuriating) nods.
The Solution?
Here’s what we propose: don’t waste your time telling people who will never understand why you’ve chosen the watch you’re wearing and what significance it holds for you.
Tell us.
Send us an email with a brief biography about yourself and your watch along with some pictures (minimum size is 540 x 340) and we’ll publish them here on the site so that you can share your passion with fellow enthusiasts from around the world who will actually understand and appreciate your story. And feel free to tell us about more than one, if you have a collection than share that too!
As long as you keep sending your stories through we will publish at least one new reader profile every week.
So what are you waiting for, send us an email now and share your passion with the (informed) world!
4 Great Comments. Leave one too. | Filed under New This Week, Recommended Reading, Watch News
GMT Italia – Home To Some Of The World’s Most Amazing Timepieces
It is not often that you come across an authorized retailer that deals in some of the most exclusive timepieces in the world. That’s why we felt obliged to share something extra special with you today. Based in Milan, Italy, with another store in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, the Grand Masters of Time is Italy’s answer to France’s Chronopassion.
Established in 2007 the focus of this young company is to bring together some of the most exclusive and innovative names in Swiss watch-making, working closely with the brands to offer their clients a selection of some of the finest timepieces ever made.
Don’t just take our word for it though, see below for a selection of some of the current rare and limited edition pieces they currently have on offer within their stunning boutiques.
F.P. Journe – Centigraphe Souverain
© GMT Italia
MB&F – Horological Machine 2 – White Ceramic (L.E. 5 pieces for the World)
© GMT Italia
Harry Winston – Ocean Chrono Tri-Retrograde Baguette (L.E. 5 pieces for the world)
© GMT Italia
Richard Mille – RM 008 Tourbillon Split Second Chronograph
© GMT Italia
Harry Winston – Project Zalium Lady Z (L.E. 300 pieces for the World)
© GMT Italia
Urwerk 202 – Turbine Automatic Black Platinum (L.E. 10 pieces for the World)
© GMT Italia
Harry Winston – Project Zalium Z5 (L.E. 150 pieces for the World)
© GMT Italia
These are just a small selection of some of the truly amazing pieces that GMT have brought together in their two exceptional stores. Certainly for any watch enthusiast who finds themselves in the vicinity of either one a visit is all but mandatory.
If you would like to know more check out the GMT website: www.gmtitalia.com
The Watch Lounge Poll – Please Vote And Tell Us What You Want!
It’s hard to believe that it’s already been over six months since we launched The Watch Lounge back in September 2009. The team and I are continually blown away by the site’s rapid growth in popularity and as such we remain as committed as ever to not only bringing you fresh, original content you won’t find anywhere else but also to bringing you the content you want to read!
That’s why until the end of May we will be running a poll on The Watch Lounge to give you a chance to let us know what you would like to see more of. You will notice the poll to the right of this page, just below the MB&F banner, and it will appear in the same place on all our posts. Voting is easy, all you need to do is click on the option that appeals most to you.
Feel free to vote multiple times if there is more than one option that appeals to you or if you really want to get your point across! It doesn’t take more than a second and it will help us to ensure we bring you the content you want to read!
If you have any other suggestions or would like to provide any other feedback I encourage you to email us directly or write your thoughts in the comment section below so that we can get some interactive discussion going.
Thanks for voting!
The Watch Lounge Team
Marvin Watch Giveaway On Hodinkee – Don’t Miss Out!
Two of our favorite watch people, Marvin Watches and Hodinkee.com, have teamed up to bring you a cool new giveaway not to be missed!
So what’s the prize? We’re glad you asked!
It’s a Marvin Mechanical Automatic timepiece with an open heart (ref M113.13.34.64). As you can see above the case is made of 316L stainless steel and features a silver opaline dial, sapphire crystal, and a superb exhibition case back which reveals the automatic Selita SW 200 movement, considered by many to be comparable to the ETA 2824.
The price of this timepiece is $950.
The winner of this competition will be drawn at random this Friday April 30th, so check out Hodinkee.com now for all the details on how to enter!
How To Move Forwards While Looking Backwards – Innovation In The Watch Industry Part.4
In Part.3 we looked at how young watch-maker Romain Jerome is attempting to turn a concept into an icon, with the on-going development of their DNA of Famous Legends series. Today, we turn our attention to another, far more established brand who has already achieved all that and so much more. The challenges they face are somewhat different yet overcoming them are just as integral to the brands continued success.
The question is, how can you be innovative and forward-looking when so much of your brand’s identity is so inherently linked to one particular series ?
The Icon
It’s fair to say that when most people (well watch people anyway) think of Audemars-Piguet, they think of the Royal Oak series. To such an extent some might argue, that it almost seems like the other references live in the shadow of their famous big brother. Rest assured though that these other magnificent pieces, such as the Jules Audemars or the Millenary, are alive and well, and continue to reflect the sublime expertise of this highly respected Manufacture.
Nonetheless though, is it possible that the Royal Oak in someway inhibits the brand’s ability to grow, its ability to create and attract new interest? Arnaud Vidal, General Manager of Audemars Piguet France certainly doesn’t think so:
“Without any hesitation, no. The Royal Oak is for us and for our clients an iconic product and it’s important to remember, from a market perspective, that some brands struggle all their life to be associated with an iconic product. We, we have it, and our clients are very attached to it.”
Developing Not Just Creating
Certainly no arguments here, but what impact does this have on innovation? Especially when you consider that more than 50% of the brand’s revenue comes from one single model, what incentive is there to be developing new models? However, as Vidal rightly points out, innovation isn’t just about developing new models. It also involves developing the models you already have:
“Even at the unique scale of the Royal Oak and its declensions Royal Oak Offshore, we are in constant innovation, following three different axis : materials, finishing, and complications.”
Indeed Audemars Piguet owns one of the most powerful and productive R&D departments in the industry (Renaud et Papi) and it utilizes this facility to great effect. A perfect example of what Mr. Vidal is talking about is the Millenary Carbon, which features a case made from a combination of aluminium, steel, nickel, and forged carbon (the last of which is the equivalent of more than 100 kilometres of compressed carbon fibers!)
On the complications side, Audemars-Piguet also demonstrates their know-how, for instance with a superb tourbillon and a double cylinder which ensures 12 days of regulated autonomy.
Still though, this Millenary Carbon is a limited edition, a tactic which is becoming increasingly common in the industry and in this context makes us question whether the brand is relying on the Royal Oak for its core business and then creating limited editions to generate buzz for the brand?
Although many would consider this a commercially sensitive topic Vidal does not shy away and answers us without any ambiguity:
“No, and for four reasons. The first one is that we don’t need limited editions in our product range, as we unveil around thirty new items per year, amongst which limited editions are just a part.
The second reason is that our limited editions are designed as a special attention, a thanks for our closest customers. As a proof, each limited edition is almost completely sold out even before we produce it.
The third reason is that we don’t markup our limited editions, except, of course, with the potential additions we made to the standard version and that could impact the final price.
Last but not least, the fourth reason is that the limited edition concept, often seen as a sales booster, is on the contrary, for us, a constraint; we are a traditional manufacture with limited production (editor’s note: 25.000 units / year), and each limited edition that we make requires the use of our production tools and consequently slows down the production of our standard models.”
The Final Word
It seems that unlike some of the other brands we have looked at so far, Audemars-Piguet invests in innovation (at least in part) as a way of rewarding its loyal customers. Arguably a key difference here is that AP is a very established and well-respected brand and therefore isn’t as concerned with proving its merit as a watch-maker.
Regardless though, the knowledge and expertise gained from these special editions still flows down to the standard range, ensuring the company continues to produce innovative timepieces of the highest quality.
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