Like other big fashion and lifestyle brands, Ralph Lauren decided watches were missing from his emporium and introduced three lines in 2009 that expressed Lauren's love of all things equestrian and his passion for vintage cars. When it comes to Ralph Lauren watches, every last detail speaks about his American vision of laid-back sophistication and nonchalant elegance. The latest Ralph & Ricky ...
There’s no denying that “Boys and their Toys” is still pretty much a thing in today’s society. It’s also a given fact that watches, cars, and especially the combination of the two, still very much works. There’s of course a long-standing relationship between the automotive industry and watchmaking, whether it’s mechanical, quartz or fully digital. This ori...
Quartz and mechanical watches have learned to co-exist, but the call of nature still produces mixed offspring. If one almost killed the other, mechanical watches rose from the ashes and returned stronger than ever. However, just like the automotive world, things are changing, and the watchmaking industry has seen the arrival of new wrist-worn technologies, inventions which have nothing in common w...
Few watches are so easily identifiable as the IWC Pilot’s Watch. Even from across a room, you can spot the iconic shape and design of any IWC Pilot’s Watch, regardless of whether it’s a time-only, chronograph or even perpetual calendar watch. With such a long and storied history and its ongoing popularity, it’s only natural that IWC diversifies its Pilot’s Watch colle...
The Heritage collection is, without a doubt, one of my favourites in the Longines range, and for many years I have enjoyed sharing my admiration whenever the topic came up. The history of this truly great brand dates back to 1832, with vast archives to dive into. Thus, for the Heritage Collection, there are plenty of delightful models to replicate or serve as inspiration to please today’s cu...
LVMH, the world’s largest luxury goods company, has just released its results for 2022. The luxury goods market took a further leap forward, and it has been another record year for the French powerhouse, with a revenue of EUR 79.2 billion, up 23% compared to 2021. The profit from recurring operations is also up 23% at EUR 21.1 billion.The growth has been driven by Europe (+35%), Japan (+31%)...
Ten years ago, in 2013, Omega presented the first stage of its journey towards higher levels of anti-magnetism and accuracy. With a model based on the Seamaster Aqua Terra, the brand developed a watch capable of resisting magnetic fields up to 15,000 gauss. This was the first milestone in a story that later, combined with the tech developed by the brand and its co-axial escapement, would introduce...
A couple of weeks ago, Seiko released a new dive watch as part of the SLAxxx series – the higher-end collection with the most advanced features the brand can pack. Once again, it had to do with the most emblematic dive watch of the brand, the 62MAS – which is also the brand’s first-ever and, coincidentally, Japan’s first-ever dive watch. As part of the “Save the Ocean...
Introduced in 2013, the Jazzmaster Face-2-Face brings Hamilton’s innovative watchmaking expertise and flair for unconventional design to the fore. Today,?Hamilton introduces the third chapter in its fascinating Face-2-Face saga with a swivelling case and two dials with chronograph functions on one and measurement scales and an openworked movement on the other. ?In a departure from the large ...
As the world’s most valuable luxury brand, Louis Vuitton is associated in every corner of the globe with high-quality leather goods and accessories. Maintaining a consistent level of impeccable quality across all product lines is a prerequisite, and Louis Vuitton’s relatively young watchmaking division reveals how earnest the brand is in securing a rung in the top echelons of watchmaki...
Following a couple of years drastically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the luxury industry in general and the watch industry, in particular, have been on the rise again since the end of 2021. According to consulting company Bain & Co, sales of luxury goods are anticipated to grow by over 20% in 2022, and the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry has just reported record exports of Swiss w...
The year 1972 was an important one for the German watchmaking brand marking Junghans's role as one of the official timekeepers of the Olympic Games (the other was Longines). In addition to supplying all sorts of timekeeping instruments, Junghans also produced a series of civilian watches, including a chronograph known as the Olympic Bullhead. Revisited in 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of the b...
Old is gold. Rounding out a collection with some pre-owned timepieces is a very special feeling, especially if we are talking about emblematic or rare models As the trend for vintage watches consolidates, the market for second-hand luxury watches is growing fast. In its 2022 Swiss Industry Report, Deloitte estimates that the pre-owned market accounts for CHF 20 billion and is likely to reach CHF 3...
Cooperation between Panerai and German after-market specialist atelier Brabus, famous for its bold and high-tech approach to re-design and tuning powerful machines, seems a natural fit. Brabus editions of cars and boats are not meant for the faint-hearted. And the Panerai Submersible collection with combat-ready-looking watches offered in case sizes measuring 42mm, 44mm and 47mm is not created for...
In less than twenty years, Horage has developed three in-house movements, including a tourbillon and micro-rotor. Its inaugural K1 automatic is even the base of Bremont's new ENG300 automatic calibre (Bremont purchased access to K1's IP). This small independent brand has done a lot in a short period of time. We reviewed Horage's first tourbillon last year, named Tourbillon 1, and were impressed by...
In 2021, when Ulysse Nardin married the Blast collection's skeletonised appearance to the design of its famous Diver watches, the result came in as a Diver X Skeleton, a model featuring a stainless steel case with a lightweight and highly durable carbonium bezel. A large blue PVD-coated X on the front and bright orange and white elements gave the model its distinctive look. The in-house UN-372 aut...
Today marks the dawn of the Year of the Rabbit, the new year according to the Chinese Lunar calendar. And as every year, multiple brands have dedicated a special watch to celebrate the occasion. Incorporating the theme either in spirit, with images of rabbits or colours important to Chinese culture, or with an adaptation of a calendar watch, each one honours the event in a special way. Yet, one of...
The Bubble, brought to us by an extraordinary visionnaire and talented businessman, former Corum owner Severin Wunderman almost a quarter century ago, rarely ceased to amaze and kept us interested all these years. The Corum Bubble is still one of today’s most recognisable watch designs, satisfying the thirst for the exceptional. It is hard to find another watch in the luxury segment that off...
It would be hard to categorise Farer as still part of the newcomers from the micro-brand scene. Established in 2015, the brand has made a name for itself and built a rather coherent collection comprising most of the “simple” complications – GMT, chrono, world time – with distinctive designs. A British brand, Farer is dedicated to originality combined with relatively classic...
The name Gerald Charles might not ring a bell immediately. However, if I say Gerald Genta, this might be far clearer… Indeed, behind the GC brand was the genius designer of many emblematic watches, which he established after selling his eponymous brand to Bulgari. With Gerald Charles, Genta continued to produce watches and to create singular designs, one of them being the Maestro. And more t...
Today we are bringing your attention to a new brand for MONOCHROME Watches, a brand that has been around for over a decade but hasn’t solely focused on watches since it was founded. Late last year, we were contacted by Nezumi Studios, a Swedish watchmaking company that was celebrating its tenth anniversary. Named the Voiture, this sharp-looking retro chronograph is the first model in Nezumi&...
An icon for over a century, the Cartier Tank requires little introduction. Among the countless versions of the model, the Tank Fran?aise was originally presented by the French Maison in 1996 and has been one of the brand’s greatest commercial successes of the past decades. As 2023 kicks off, it is time for a revamp of the Tank-on-bracelet with a launch campaign directed by Guy Ritchie featur...
When the name Vulcain comes into the conversation, your brain should (rightfully) have something very special in mind… A watch that has forged the brand’s success since 1947, a watch with a complication that is still a rare gem of the industry. I am, of course, talking about the Cricket alarm watch, the same complication that was relaunched as a flagship model to mark the brand’s...
The Laureato luxury sports watch was introduced by Girard-Perregaux in 1975 and tentatively revived in 2016 as a limited edition before becoming a full-fledged collection in 2017. Within the Laureato family is the burlier, sportier Laureato Absolute sub-collection, the brand's playground for innovative materials and bolder 44mm cases. The two new models joining the Laureato Absolute line-up are ho...
While road cycling continues to gain popularity in recent years, it’s surprising that relatively few watch brands are affiliated with the sport. One of the field’s most original and exciting initiatives must be credited to Tudor, which has joined Swiss cycling legend Fabian Cancellara to create a new team. Competing for the UCI ProTeam class in the 2023 season, the Tudor Pro Cycling Te...
The Ralph Lauren RL867 timepieces collection draws inspiration from the brand’s flagship men’s store at 867 Madison Avenue, New York. The store occupies a historic mansion built by Gertrude Rhinelander Waldo in 1898 as a residence, but she never got to live there. Her story and the story of the building on the corner of 72nd Street she commissioned with inherited money is well document...
Unveiled in 2021, the Hermes H08 is the French brand's versatile sporty-chic watch with a smooth cushion-shaped case and contemporary design elements. By juxtaposing different shapes (typical Hermes) and playing with different finishings and textures, the Hermes H08 reveals its fluid, sensual architecture. Previously offered in titanium and black graphene cases, the latest H08 ups the luxury facto...
With a complication originally born out of necessity yet now regarded as one of the ultimate expressions of mechanical watchmaking, the watches in today’s Buying Guide do more than just tell time. Each and every one of them is a wrist-worn mechanical masterpiece in some form, from the very refined to the boldly extravagant. The connection between the five? Besides ultra-complex movements, ex...
If you're following our Collector's Series column, the name of the man who's about to share his story should be familiar. Tom, also known as Wtt1975 on Instagram, has many passions. On one side, he's a company owner involved in car-related things – something that deserves to be in our Petrolhead series. And on the other side, he’s also collecting watches. Last week, he talked about his...
With a personal passion for watches (especially sports chronographs from the 1960s and 1970s), cars, motorcycles and everything mechanical since a young age, Nicholas Biebuyck has been collecting watches the whole of his adult life. He worked in the auction industry for Christie's and Bonhams before joining TAG Heuer as Heritage Director in 2021. On the occasion of the LVMH Watch Week 2023, we sat...