FRIDAY WIND DOWN: No watches for you 2020 says Patek, while Sheeran and Mayer tie 2-2 in the polls!
Well, what else can possibly happen in this beleaguered watch industry of ours? Fairs are cancelled. Roadshows are roadblocked. Even events are a sweet, champagne-flavoured memory. What about brands not releasing watches at all? And what if a brand that would have ordinarily been the latest of adopters when it comes to e-commerce was suddenly available through their AD’s websites with ‘Add to Bag’ next to the listing? Tick, and tick. Patek Philippe will not release any watches in 2020. And, of the watches currently on sale, several are now available for purchase online. So there you have it. Another sacred cow meets the scimitar. At the other end of town, we received an email today from a microbrand, Albany Watches, who informed their database that the brand would be ‘on hold’ indefinitely. “I hope you understand how regrettable this decision has been to make,” says Brett, the founder. “It’s been my pleasure to bring Albany Watches to the watch world since its inception. Through the trials of testing prototypes, to finding the right company that’s manufactured to the levels of quality I expect, to receiving stunning reviews from around the world and finding supporters like yourselves has been a dream…
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With the possibility that yet more brands will not release watches this year, following suit with Patek Philippe, the field for the best new watches has narrowed dramatically. And in the steel sports watch category, there now stands one towering contender for the best of 2020. And that is a watch released before this year lurched off a cliff and into this unimaginable territory we find ourselves lost in – a world without watch fairs. A world without roadshows. A world without new watches? In what now seems like a brilliant act of forethought, LVMH jumped the field with LVMH Watch Week, held in Dubai in January, and came fully and front-loaded with some brilliant releases. In my opinion, the best Big Bang ever, the Big Bang Integral, the most creative and potentially unisex collection ever released by Zenith (that bloody gorgeous Midnight collection, Lord, what a winner), a single knockout release of the Heuer 160th Carrera Limited Edition, and, of course, three sparkling new executions of the Finissimo – two of them interesting, slash, peculiar, and one a category killer. This one. The 100M Stainless Steel. And if you had any doubts how proud the team are of this…
Editor’s note: ‘Modding’ a watch is not a trend in watchmaking, it is a trope. It has, and always will be, a part of the watchmaking and watch-wearing world as companies and individuals seek to personalise and individualise watches. A uniquely modified watch becomes more of a statement. And it offers an alternative to a ‘Piece Unique’, one-off watch. This story is the first in ‘The Modifier’s Series’, which looks at the main players in the modding game. Coming up, MAD, Bamford and more… For so many of us, Rolex — for all of its flaws — remains the pinnacle of the watch world. While inflated prices may be making the barrier to entry higher, the dream of slaving away for years to finally reward yourself with a hallowed five-pointed crown is still very much a thing, and a universal marker of success. To those who have already achieved this dream, maybe even multiple times, the question becomes: what next? Sure, you could go for some precious metal, haute horology, minute repeater, dual-axis tourbillon which costs as much as an average Monaco apartment. Or you could have the timepiece of your dreams personally crafted by Artisans De Genève. Since 2016, Les Artisans…
