Independent Dutch watchmaker Fred Dingemans (b.1961) is something of an anomaly in the rarefied universe of watchmaking: he didn’t study watchmaking and he makes his watches by hand in his garden shed using pre-electronic machinery (a lathe, a drilling machine-cum-press and an engraving machine) he inherited from his job in precision mechanics. Embracing the DIY […]
Jean-Marc Pontroue became CEO of Panerai in 2016, bringing new ideas, energy and a more contemporary approach to the brand. Although changes within the company were inevitable, the core values and instantly recognizable aesthetic remain intact. During the digital Watches & Wonders week, I talked with Jean-Marc about Panerai’s plans and challenges in 2020 during this unprecedented Corona Virus pandemic. New models will launch as planned, while others will wait until next year as the company adapts to global boutique closures, cancelled events and a big shift to a single, major fair in Geneva. With a focus on the environment, partnerships and long-term ambassadors like Mike Horn, Panerai is poised to emerge from the crisis stronger than ever with exciting new projects and innovations in the works.
Two weeks ago we already talked with the California-based collector who goes under the Instagram handle @Watch_Time_It_Is and we talked about a rather rare, but extremely beautifully finished, watch of his, the McGonigle Tuscar Bánú. Today we’re looking at another watch. Again one from a small independent watch brand. Again one from a brand of two brothers. And again one that showcases stupendously beautiful movement finishing. Let’s see what motivated @Watch_Time_It_Is to buy a Grönefeld Parallax!
Christian Selmoni is the Style and Heritage Director at Vacheron Constantin. He joined the brand thirty years ago, in 1990, and gradually climbed the ladder to his current position, in the meantime having been responsible, among others, for the design and development of the company’s famous 250th-anniversary collections. Overall one of the most likeable persons in the watch industry, a perfect gentleman, always dressed to impress and when he starts talking about ‘his’ brand you can see and feel his enthusiasm. Through zoom, we talked about a range of topics including bespoke and one-off VC timepieces, some of the brand’s most complicated pieces (and most complicated watch in the world), and the strategies of making a watch wearable when it’s packed with two dozen complications and watch faces on both sides.
Nirupesh Joshi and his wife Mercy Amalraj founded Bangalore Watch Company in 2018 with the goal of representing 21st-century India with exciting and high-quality watch collections. Neither worked in the watchmaking field prior to this, as both had successful tech and consulting careers. Nirupesh is an aviation and watch enthusiast and grew frustrated by his […]
I guess I need to start this interview with an apology. Sorry, this interview is long, very long, comprising close to 3,000 words. However, the conversation with Chris Grainger-Herr, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen, was great and there was just so much to say about the new Portugiesers. We had the conversation two weeks ago, in the midst of the COVID-19 lock-down. Chris was in his office, in Schaffhausen, and the interview was done through a zoom-meeting. It’s weird, not sitting together for a talk, but it is what it is and I guess for the foreseeable future this is going to be the new normal.
Usually, we would start by saying “we sat down with Mr Schmid, CEO of A. Lange & Söhne, to discuss the brand’s newest releases” or something along those lines. Well, not today. Last week I met ‘virtually’ with Wilhelm Schmid during a Zoom meeting for an interview about the two novelties A. Lange & Söhne […]
A couple of weeks ago, we introduced a new brand and its first model, namely the Firle Sennen Automatic, launched on Kickstarter here. Having played with the watches for a certain time and keeping in mind the extremely reasonable price at which these timepieces are offered, we were pretty impressed by the result… Especially when […]
A couple of weeks ago, we introduced a new brand and its first model, namely the Firle Sennen Automatic, launched on Kickstarter here. Having played with the watches for a certain time and keeping in mind the extremely reasonable price at which these timepieces are offered, we were pretty impressed by the result… Especially when […]
Next week will see the launch of a new Kickstarter brand called Gyre. We’ve seen quite a lot of initiatives like this in the last five years, but this one promises to be completely different. Its founder is Bernard Werk, a man whom I’ve known for more than fifteen years, a man who (back in the days) gave me the chance to write for his magazine. Bernard is a seasoned watch journalist and the owner of Watching, the oldest watch publication in The Netherlands. With Gyre he plans to raise awareness for ocean pollution while raising money for its clean-up as well. I spoke to Bernard about his fresh idea and how that turned into a 3-year hurdle race now finally nearing completion with the launch of the Gyre SeaCleaner.