Results for Watch Crown Types

Weekend Rewind: Omega Isn't The Only Swatch Group Brand To Boast A Bond Watch

And it's not who you might expect.

Business News: Watchbox Forecasts 2021 Revenue to Cross US$300m

Having been founded in 2017 as a spinoff from authorised retailer Govberg Jewelers, Watchbox has swiftly grown into one of the biggest sellers of pre-owned watches globally. Having started life with a US$100m capital infusion from a Singapore-based private equity outfit, the company has just announced 2021 sales will cross US$300m, thanks to growth projected to top 40%. For comparison, that is approximately equivalent to the annual watch sales of the major auction houses, namely Christie’s, Phillips, and Sotheby’s. The announcement comes just weeks after Watchbox took a majority stake in De Bethune, a respected independent watchmaker that nonetheless struggling for most of its existence, but is now on a sounder financial footing. At the same time, the financial resources available to Watchbox indicate that its investment in De Bethune might be the first of several such acquisitions. At the same time, the Philadephia-based company announced an expansion of its store network, which currently includes outposts in Dubai (pictured above), Hong Kong, and Singapore. It plans eight new stores in 2022, with five located in the United States, followed by Zurich, Riyadh, and Tokyo.  

Type Casting: Comparing The Breguet Type XX And Type XXI Chronographs

The Type XX and Type XXI chronographs don’t seem to get quite as much attention as you would think they’d get, at least in the USA, where the world of pilot’s chronographs skews much more heavily towards companies like IWC, Omega, and Breitling. Maybe part of the reason for that is that when you think of tool watches, you might think of an awful lot of companies but Breguet just isn’t one of them – tourbillons, certainly, and a history of making aesthetically irreproachable, often complicated, and very elegant watches from the end of the 18th century right down until the present day, but not tool watches as such. And yet, aviation is perhaps just as important a part of the Breguet family’s history as watchmaking, with the Type XX and XXI chronographs representing one of the most important aspects of the inventiveness that characterized Abraham Louis Breguet and his descendants.

Introducing: The Hublot Big Bang Unico SORAI - A Limited Edition for Rhinos

A big green watch with a big green heart.

Bulgari Octo Roma Worldtimer: Everything Simply Falls Into Place

The Bulgari Octo Roma Worldtimer is delightfully down to earth. It might not be the thinnest, most complex, or rarest watch in the collection, but, boy, it is good looking! In Martin Green's estimation, it is one of those rare watches where everything simply falls into place.

New: Swatch injects more colour into their Big Bold collection with the Planets line

Swatch makes a colourful extension to their popular Big Bold Collection with four funky colours with cryptic names to make up the new Planets line.

H. Moser & Cie. Introduces the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar

After the Streamliner made its debut in chronograph form last year, H. Moser & Cie. has just grown the line of luxury-sports watches to include the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar. As is typical of Moser’s house style, the new perpetual calendar is streamlined in design and presentation, with the dial indicating the date and month while remaining minimalist, avoiding sub-dials entirely. The inaugural version of the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar gets a black fumè dial, giving the watch a subtle palette that’s fitting for its minimalist aesthetic. Notably, the monochromatic, shades-of-grey livery also harks back to the limited edition chronograph that was the opening model of the collection. Initial thoughts Compared to the two earlier Streamliner models – chronograph and time-only respectively – the latest is the most representative of Moser because of the ingenious movement within. A movement that made Moser’s reputation when it was resurrected in 2005, the calibre is one of the few that truly reimagines the perpetual calendar. While the Streamliner chronograph has an equally ingenious movement, the perpetual calendar movement is Moser’s own, which makes it that much more special. While appearing similar to the other versions of the Streamliner, the Perpetual Calendar differs in a few respects, which makes it stand out against its siblings in the Streamliner range, and more appealing for that reason. The design is slightly more nuanced, possessing details l...

“A big chunk of the industry is somewhat screwed.” An interview with Fears MD, Nicholas Bowman-Scargill

I’m going to put it out there and say there is no more charismatic person in today’s watch world than Fears managing director Nicholas Bowman-Scargill. In an industry littered with formidable personalities – hi Jean-Claude Biver, Patrick Prunnaux and Georges Kern – there is something refreshing about he of the double-barrelled name, and that is … ContinuedThe post “A big chunk of the industry is somewhat screwed.” An interview with Fears MD, Nicholas Bowman-Scargill appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

How Swatch Group quietly developed a gamechanger for affordable GMTs

Last year, Mido, one of the brands under the Swatch Group umbrella, released the affordable Ocean Star GMT.The post How Swatch Group quietly developed a gamechanger for affordable GMTs appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

VIDEO: The Seiko SPB239J is a retro-styled crowd pleaser

The craze for the Seiko 62MAS style shows no signs of slowing down, with the release of this SPB239J essentially confirming the brand’s intention to continue their climb into a higher tier of watchmaking. This vintage-inspired blueprint will continue to be adapted for all tastes, and this particular reference is sure to be a crowd … ContinuedThe post VIDEO: The Seiko SPB239J is a retro-styled crowd pleaser appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Road to Recovery: Richemont, Swatch Rebound to Pre-COVID Sales

Business News: Consolidation in European Pre-Owned Watches

Historically fragmented and dominated by numerous small players, the pre-owned watch industry has been consolidating with at an increasing pace, driven by the e-commerce and ambitious entrants from outside the business. Amongst the most prominent and fastest-growing is Watchbox, which began as an offshoot of authorised retailer Govberg Jewelers but has since grown into one of the largest pre-owned merchants with outposts in Hong Kong, Dubai, and even South Africa. Even Richemont, the Swiss conglomerate that owns brands like Cartier and IWC, has invested substantially in the space with its 2018 acquisition of British outfit Watchfinder. Though the most widely-reported developments in the business are largely concentrated in the United States and Britain, continental Europe is experiencing similar growth, especially in its largest markets like Germany and France. The recently announced takeover of Paris-based MMC by Watchmaster in Germany illustrates many of the trends shaping the pre-owned business. Like many recent startups in the space, Watchmaster was founded by digital entrepreneurs instead of watch industry insiders. In fact, almost all of Watchmaster’s founders and senior managers are former employees of Quandoo, the restaurant booking platform that was sold to Japanese staffing giant Recruit Holdings in 2015 for about €200 million, shortly before Watchmaster was set up. Watchmaster’s current chief executive, Tim-Hendrik Meyer, was a cofounder of Quandoo, as a...

How To Wear It: Should You Match Your Watch To Your Clothes – Or Your Clothes To Your Watch?

In his HODINKEE debut, former Ralph Lauren designer (and current Atlanta menswear impresario) Sid Mashburn addresses the eternal conundrum.

G-Shock And Swatch: The Two Most '80s Watches Of The '80s Came Out The Very Same Year

Over the past few decades, the G-Shock and the Swatch have gone from cult to classic – and cast an unexpectedly long shadow in high end-watchmaking.

Four + One: This Is Us Interviewing Sterling K. Brown

The Emmy winner shares four watches in his collection – and explains why he’s obsessed with aviator sunglasses.

Cheap Bastard: The Swatch Bioceramic C-White is an oversized bargain that’s eco-friendly, too

If you’ve already turned your horological nose up at the S word in the headline above, please remind yourself of the title of this column. T&T; teems with timepieces that will set back four, five and even six figures – if that’s you, congrats on the start-up/inheritance/proceeds of crime. If, however, you feel like adding … ContinuedThe post Cheap Bastard: The Swatch Bioceramic C-White is an oversized bargain that’s eco-friendly, too appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Swatch Introduces the NASA Space Collection

Shortly after launching the Earth-friendly Big Bold Bioceramic made of plant-based plastic, Swatch is venturing off the planet and towards the stars with the Space Collection. A line of five watches conceived in collaboration with American space agency NASA, the Space Collection is inspired by NASA’s colours and spacesuits. It is made up of a trio of extra-large Big Bold watches with Bioceramic cases, along with a pair of more classical Gent models in regular plastic. Old school Swatch: Space Race (left) and Take Me to the Moon. Initial thoughts I’m a big fan of Swatch and own several, including the MoMA “Starry Night” launched last month. The brand is often neglected by enthusiasts because of its fun and low-cost watches, despite Swatch having played a pivotal role in keeping Swiss watchmaking going during the Quartz Crisis. In fact, Swatch was crucial enough that its parent company renamed itself Swatch Group, despite owning brands like Omega and Breguet. It comes as no surprise that I like the new Space Collection, especially the Big Bold models. The Space Collection represents Swatch doing what it does best – offering fun, interesting timepieces at an accessible price point. In fact, the Space Collection models are likely the most affordable NASA-endorsed watches on the market. To put things in perspective, even the top-of-the-line Big Bold Chrono is cheaper than Omega’s NASA velcro straps. Starting at US$125 for the time-only version – the line up in...

Breguet Marine: A Great Bracelet Makes A Big Difference

Bracelets are one of the most underappreciated watch components. They are often taken for granted, yet designing and crafting a good one comes with considerable challenges. Martin Green thinks that the new Breguet Marine bracelets are a winner, but especially in gold there's a price to pay.

FRIDAY WIND DOWN – The Sex, Crime & Russell Crowe Edition

This week’s wind down comes from an unfamiliar voice. Right now, Nick is on holiday and reportedly sunning himself by a pool in Noosa wearing his infamously skimpy trunks and sipping a neon-blue cocktail. So I’m stepping into the breach to fill you in on a rather eventful week. The main news: we accidentally copped … ContinuedThe post FRIDAY WIND DOWN – The Sex, Crime & Russell Crowe Edition appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Ressence Debuts the Type 1 Spymaster with NFT Artwork

With a knack for technically innovative yet fun timepieces, Belgian watchmaker Ressence now unveils the Type 1 Spymaster, a limited-edition series of watches – each accompanied by a non-fungible token (NFT) artwork – conceived in collaboration with New York espionage museum Spyscape. NFTs are digital tokens stored on a blockchain – the digital ledgers that also store cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether – that are essentially assets in digital format. Each of the 21 watches in the Type 1 Spymaster series is accompanied by its own NFT, a unique video artwork referencing the watch that also serves as a certificate of authenticity. The first publicly-available example of the Type 1 Spymaster, numbered “008”, will be offered at Sotheby’s Important Watches auction in Hong Kong on April 23 with an estimate of HK$170,000-300,000, or US$21,000-38,000 (we covered a few highlights from the sale earlier this week). It will be sold to benefit a good cause, with all proceeds going to the Make-a-Wish (UK) Foundation, which works to fulfil the wishes of young children with terminal illnesses. Initial thoughts NFTs have catapulted into prominence in recent months – a digital image sold for US$69 million at Christie’s in March 2021 – becoming the biggest and hottest fad in an era of fads. Watchmakers have jumped on the bandwagon as well, but if there’s a brand that’s NFT ready, it is Ressence. Having both filled a watch case with oil and installed magnets with...

Fight, fight, fight: Why Apple and Swatch hate each other so much

Sometimes a professional rivalry gets personal. Grievances build up, eyes narrow and suddenly it all explodes into a fireball of drama and animosity. Something like that is now raging between Apple and Swatch in a long-running feud that, from the outside at least, seems petty, vindictive and wildly entertaining.   The two companies just keep … ContinuedThe post Fight, fight, fight: Why Apple and Swatch hate each other so much appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

5 New Chronographs Presented At Watches & Wonders 2021

The chronograph remains one of the most popular complications – and for a good reason. While most of us only use it as a mobile egg timer, chronographs both add a lot of dynamic to the look of a watch and give the wearer a sense of control. Watches & Wonders 2021 is not short on chronographs, which come in their usual wide variety of interpretations. Martin Green highlights five of the most interesting from the digital fair.

Patek Philippe Unveils the Nautilus Chronograph Ref. 5990/1R in Rose Gold

Patek Philippe’s most coveted model line, the Nautilus was the focus of the four new launches at Watches & Wonders 2021. In addition to the ref. 5711/1A with an olive-green dial, the second new Nautilus for men is the Nautilus Travel-Time Chronograph ref. 5990/1R-001, a rich combination of a rose gold case with a deep blue dial. An ultra-luxe travel watch (that’s still a bit more affordable than the recent Greubel Forsey GMT Sport), the ref. 5990 has been one of the most complicated models in the Nautilus line since its introduction in 2014. First launched in stainless steel with a black dial, the ref. 5990 was an instant hit due to its good looks and practicality – and the fact that it’s a Nautilus. Initial thoughts In rose gold case with a blue dial, rendered in a shade of blue similar to that of the original ref. 5711/1A, the new ref. 5990/1R-001 is a good-looking timepiece that no doubt looks and feels like a luxury-sports watch, albeit more luxury than sports. If the steel ref. 5990/1A wasn’t not luxe enough, this ought to do the trick. Leaving aside the fact that it’s a Nautilus, hence an ultra fashionable watch that’s near impossible to get, the ref. 5990 is appealing in its intrinsic qualities, regardless of material. Despite the complications, the ref. 5990 is actually svelte, just 12.53 mm high, making it one of the slimmer flyback chronographs on the market – and it also incorporates a second time zone function. Add to that the fine finishing of...

Tudor Introduces the Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K

Tudor’s first-ever solid-gold dive watch is making its debut at Watches & Wonders 2021. The Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K has a case in 18k yellow gold – in a sleek, brushed finish – along with a gold-flecked green dial. (And the Fifty-Eight 18k is launching alongside the more affordable Black Bay Fifty-Eight 925 with a sterling silver case.) And despite being ultra-luxe for Tudor, the Fifty-Eight 18k is very much like the rest of Tudor’s offerings in being a value proposition, with a retail price of a bit over US$18,000 – a solid deal for a solid-gold dive watch. Initial Thoughts If there is one thing this year’s Watches & Wonders has made abundantly clear, it is that green is the new flavour of the day. The Fifty-Eight 18K is one of many green watches being launched – but doubtlessly the best value proposition – and Tudor opted for a dark, rich green that complements the case metal. Stylistically, the new Fifty-Eight models are polar opposites. The sterling-silver 925 is reserved and subtle, while the 18K clearly has greater visual impact. The Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K comes with two straps: alligator leather and fabric The Fifty-Eight 18k is expensive for a Tudor, with a retail price of US$18,340. That’s over US$15,000 more than last year’s navy blue version in steel. But – and this is a big but – when compared with the precious-metal dive watches made by practically every other brand, the Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K is a bargain in relative te...

Personal Wristwatch Of Bugatti Founder Ettore Bugatti: Made By Mido And Now Up For Auction

Bugatti Founder Ettore Bugatti was a fanatic for details with the mind of a sculptor. His visions on four wheels still grace the most elite concours d’elegance around the world. And his personal Mido watch on a bespoke gold bracelet is set to be auctioned by Stanislas Machoïr on Saturday April 17, 2021. Martin Green shares a few more details about this priceless artifact here.