While September 2018 showed a (slight and isolated) fall in exports of Swiss Watches, the FH – Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry – reports that “industry exports have reverted to the sustained trend reported previously“. With a total of just under Swiss Francs 2 billion (1.987 billion precisely), exports of Swiss Watches were 7.2% […]
The Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève can be seen as the Oscars of the Watchmaking industry, by awarding the best watches introduced during the year. From ladies watches to chronographs or mechanical exception, the entire spectre of the production is covered. For the second time this year, MONOCHROME is part of the short list of official media partners of the GPHG. Before the ceremony starts, you can check the finalists of the GPHG 2018 here (with some personal notes and predictions from the redaction team). And because this event is also a celebration of the passion we all have for the beautiful horology, we invite you to follow the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève 2018 (GPHG 2018) ceremony live here, in English or in French.
In a press release published about an hour ago, Richemont just announced its consolidated results for the six month period ended 30 September 2018. Sales increased by 21% at actual exchange rates to EUR 6,808 million and by 24% at constant exchange rates. This comes as no surprise as Richemont had announced last month satisfactory sales for the first 5 months (up 25% at constant exchange rate). However, the growth rate seems to be slowing down.
Recently, Audemars Piguet has had a lot of hot news headlines – unprecedented revenues, quitting the SIHH, new technological partnerships. We decided that it was time for us to move to Le Brassus and have a good talk with the one person to answer our questions: François-Henry Bennahmias, CEO of Audemars Piguet. It isn’t the first time we’re in conversation with François-Henry – see here, here and here – and each time, his straight talk brings the right answers. Today’s video interview (viewable on top of this article) is full of interesting facts and observations.
Building a brand from scratch is a challenge. Success isn’t always (in fact, most of the time) present and few can claim “we made it”. Fromanteel could have been one of them, but this watch brand, founded in 2009, has stood the test of time and moved from the microbrand status to a more established young brand. Today we talk with Alfredo Silva, co-founder, to understand how to create a brand – and we’ll have a sneak peek at Fromanteel’s latest creation, the Pendulum Traveler Automatic.
Following the trend for more services, more clarity and more security, Omega just announced it will now offer a 5-year warranty on all newly purchased watches – with immediate effect. Until now, the Omega warranty was different depending on the type of products – up to 4 years on Master Chronometer watches, to be compared to a traditional 2-year warranty in the industry (which was the warranty offered, as of now, on the Speedmaster Moonwatch for instance).
SalonQP is once again getting ready to open its doors in London later this month (22nd – 24th of November). With a new owner at the helm and a revised format planned, it seems the iconic location – London’s Saatchi Gallery – is the only thing set to stay the same this year. Many familiar […]
It’s an interesting time to be a watch enthusiast. Fuelled by sites like Kickstarter, a phenomenon of inexpensive, quality movements and parts is unfolding, available with the immediateness only online media outlets can offer. Small startups (or microbrands) are producing compelling watches with capital raised via crowdfunding and online-only storefronts, minimizing overhead that established brands still […]
A few years back, Dutch entrepreneur and watch enthusiast Tom van Wijlick decided to relaunch an old watchmaking name: Lebois & Co. What started as a one-off project founded on Kickstarter quickly moved to the next level with multiple re-launch (here and here) editions and now, Lebois & Co is what we could call a “microbrand”. Today we talk with Tom van Wijlick about two important topics. First is the launch of a new watch, the Venturist, which will soon be reviewed on MONOCHROME but that you’ll already see in this interview. Second is the introduction of a new (and truly interesting) business model, where clients and watch enthusiasts will have the opportunity to become a shareholder of the company… Let’s hear all the details.
A few years back, Dutch entrepreneur and watch enthusiast Tom van Wijlick decided to relaunch an old watchmaking name: Lebois & Co. What started as a one-off project founded on Kickstarter quickly moved to the next level with multiple re-launch (here and here) editions and now, Lebois & Co is what we could call a “microbrand”. Today we talk with Tom van Wijlick about two important topics. First is the launch of a new watch, the Venturist, which will soon be reviewed on MONOCHROME but that you’ll already see in this interview. Second is the introduction of a new (and truly interesting) business model, where clients and watch enthusiasts will have the opportunity to become a shareholder of the company… Let’s hear all the details.