OPINION: Will COVID hammer the final nail into the coffin of the dress watch?
Having moved house last year, I finally got around to collecting the last remaining items from our storage facility last weekend. All that was left was a forlorn collection of those random bits and pieces that you barely use, but can’t quite stomach throwing out. There was a box of bedraggled Christmas decorations, a tennis racquet with broken strings and countless CDs (despite the fact I no longer own a CD player). But there was also a battered trunk containing all eight of my suits alongside a musty tuxedo. None of these had been worn in the past 18 months. Admittedly, I had a lifestyle change during that time period. I chucked in my job, dived into a start-up and succumbed to a sea-change, moving my young family to live by the beach. Yet, truth be told, I wasn’t regularly suited and booted even when I was marginally respectable. Working in media generally involves some half-cocked stab at “business casual” at best. I’m not alone in letting sartorial standards plummet either. Even people with grown-up jobs have become increasingly relaxed. Last year, Goldman Sachs announced a move to a “flexible dress code” with a company memo citing the “changing nature…
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The world has kept spinning through the ongoing horrors of COVID-19 that continue to unfold day to day. And, excluding a brief golfing ban in Australia — that also stretched, quite bizarrely, to kayaking and stand up paddle boarding — plenty of people have sought respite from cabin fever on the course. Me, on the other hand, I’m not a golfer. I’m a perfect mix of low skills and high standards, with a peppering of competitiveness. It makes me a nightmare to tee off against. So, when the new TAG Heuer Connected Golf Edition landed in our mail room, neither I nor anyone else in the team was going to fit the bill to give it a proper road-test on the course. So we called in a friend, Jamie Glazier, who not only owns an enviable URL — dare2dream.com.au, but a business as a golf performance coach. If anyone could tell us if this watch was actually going to add value on the green, it’s this guy. We followed up this extensive video review with a Q&A with Jamie below. In other news, the year’s least surprising and best telegraphed watch release happened right on the date it was rumoured to be…
Editor’s note: It doesn’t happen very often, but sometimes you can have your cake and eat it too. The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic is one such occasion, where packed into an ultra-thin, ultra-modern watch, you get the two most practical complications a wristwatch can offer. A GMT and a chronograph. That’s right, in this angular meeting of form and function you get two complications that are rarely seen together, but are integrated here remarkably well. Let me say this plainly from the outset. The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic is just so impressive. Not only is it the world’s thinnest automatic chronograph (ever, no fancy caveats needed), measuring 6.9mm for the full watch, and 3.3mm for the BVL 318 movement alone. But (and more importantly for me) it looks and feels good on the wrist and is exceptionally user-friendly. For me there are two big points in favour of this watch. One: the form is flawless, unmarred by obvious, ugly pushers. One of the genius moves of the Octo’s angular design is that it allows for the near seamless integration of geometric pushers that extends the existing look, rather than adding some clunky lumps to one side.…
While still in its infancy compared to the historical juggernauts of the horological world, Ming is already turning heads for all the right reasons. One of the heads they have turned is none other than John, who took a chance on a brand he hadn’t known a whole lot about and purchased the Ming 17.06 Copper earlier this year. Despite typically focusing his collecting on the big-box brands that we all know and love, John was curious at what the fuss was all about, and if a smaller brand such as Ming could live up to the rather high expectations he had for his watches. Upon receiving the watch, he quickly came to understand what the brand represented. Ming didn’t represent centuries of history and watchmaking methods steeped in tradition, as most watch brands focus their marketing dollars towards. Instead, Ming was about a few very passionate people who wanted to make something different, and get all the details right. As anyone who has pledged money towards a Kickstarter project watch will know, when you strap a brand new watch company’s product to your wrist, the details are what makes the difference — and it’s the details that are most often…
Editor’s note: We all love blue watches. That much is clear, with the popularity of the blue dial stainless steel sports watch escalating almost beyond belief in 2019 and still in 2020. Both vintage and modern examples of blue watches from a few of the best watch manufacturers in the world command ever-increasing prices as appetites grow more ravenous and the size of the plate remains relatively unchanged. But as you might expect from the watch collecting community, the pulp of the matter lies in the details, and not all blue watches are created equal. Blue and white are a popular pairing, from antique ceramics to dive watch dials, but there is a colour combination that is somehow even more enchanting. Blue and gold. It’s a pairing many hoped for from the just-released Tudor Black Bay 58, only to be disappointed. And you can’t blame them, because the potential is well and truly captured in the stunning, sparkling Grand Seiko SBGE248. Grand Seiko has something of a reputation for finely finished understatement. This watch is, well, a little extra. That’s not to say that the Grand Seiko SBGE248 isn’t as finely finished as you’d expect, it’s just that, thanks to its popping…
How do you celebrate a first birthday? Balloons? Candles? Maybe a cake? That’s what most folks would do. Hublot, however, like to do things a little differently. That’s why, to mark a year since their Monaco boutique opened, the provocative Swiss watchmaker has unveiled this – the Hublot Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph Special Edition “Boutique Monaco”. Mouthful of a name aside, this limited edition timepiece is based on the standard Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph, but it’s been adorned with a number of bespoke stylistic elements that aim to commemorate the iconic principality and its flag. Chief among the new visual cues is the adoption of red and white as the dominant colour scheme, with the suede leather and rubber strap, as well as the thick minute track, sporting these striking colours. The rest of the watch is standard Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph fare, which means a 45mm titanium case with both brushed and polished elements, a complex and very contemporary skeletonised dial and Hublot’s in-house calibre HUB155 movement. Speaking about the limited edition timepiece, Hublot CEO Ricardo Guadalupe said, “The Hôtel de Paris, a renowned luxury hotel, and the Casino, which is one of the most prestigious in the world,…
In the timeless words of Lil Pump, “Gucci gang, Gucci gang, Gucci gang, Gucci gang, Gucci gang, Gucci gang, Gucci gang (Gucci gang!)”. Evidently, Italian fashion juggernaut Gucci has heeded these wise words of advice, because the vogue maison’s gang has just swelled considerably, as a result of partnering with eSport giant Fnatic. For those of you who don’t indulge in video games, this may seem like a slightly odd move for a company whose usual remit has been making luxury sandals … but it may prove to be a smart one. In fact, just last year, Yahoo Finance published a story that stated, “Gaming is the fastest-growing form of entertainment in the world. Revenues have been increasing globally at a clip of 9.7 per cent per year. Last year (2018), video game revenues totalled $139 billion. By 2022, the global video game market is estimated to be nearly $200 billion.” And this was reported before the COVID-19 global pandemic, which, if anything, has only further enhanced and necessitated the rise of esports. Fnatic was founded way back in 2004 in the UK, and according to the global esports entertainment organisation, they “are the most successful eSports brand of the…
This year appears to be Year of the Luminor for Panerai. Having redefined the warranty with the lavishly lumed and 3D printed PAM01117, the introduction of the Panerai Luminor Marina PAM01313 sees a bit more restraint return, with classic Luminor design cues but a similarly luscious blue sunburst dial. With its technologically impressive three-day movement, and price tag to match, this Luminor Marina straddles the line between work and play better than many previous attempts. Though, to be fair, recent years have seen the brand separate the two – granting dressier dials like this. As far as dressy divers go, this PAM01313 strikes a slick balance between rugged tool and sculpted beauty. As typical from the Italian designers, the 44mm Luminor cushion case makes no effort to hide itself on the wrist. Long lugs may poke past wrist constraints, although their curvature — seamlessly blending with the radius of the case’s side profile — ensures a comfortable and hugging fit. With a sapphire crystal that doesn’t protrude far from the bezel, the 15.65mm thickness isn’t afraid to embrace the theme of bulk. The beauty comes into the picture with the dial and finishing of the watch, each element being quintessentially Panerai. The…
Editor’s note: Daniel Yong lives and breathes Grand Seiko. His Instagram handle is @MrGrandSeiko and he runs a blog called Mr Zaratsu in reference to the famed case-polishing method used by the brand. It’s safe to say he has immersed himself in the brand over years, building his scholarship of both vintage and modern references from Grand Seiko, which he shares with the enthusiastic online community. Unsurprisingly, Daniel is also an excellent source of information when it comes to the most noteworthy watches released in recent years, the references that have potential to become future classics, and what the legacy Grand Seiko has built over the last 60 years really means. Unless otherwise stated, all of these stunning pictures are ours and taken by Jason Reekie. Hi Daniel, thanks for taking the time today. You’re a Grand Seiko collector and it’s clear you have a deep passion for the brand. Why is that, and what speaks to you most about the Grand Seiko DNA? I love that the brand embodies everything about Japanese culture. The relationship with precision, craftsmanship, the incorporation of nature and constant evolvement is 100 per cent clear in their designs. With these aspects being formulated a few decades…
The 30-year wait is over. Liverpool are Premier League champions, having clinched the title with a record seven games of the season to spare. Frankly, it turned into an annihilation. Jürgen Klopp’s team won 26 of 27 league games from August to February 28 and haven’t lost at home in the league for three whole years. Right now they are English, European and World champions. But how does the team’s wrist game stack up? The Mastermind – Jürgen Klopp The Watch – IWC Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month Edition “50 Years Aquatimer” Usually when a team is this dominant, the resentment of rival fans curdles into animosity. But it’s impossible to dislike Klopp. The charismatic German manager with the megawatt grin has revolutionised the Premier League with his “heavy metal football”, characterised by insanely attacking full-backs and a high-pressing, full-throttle style. Excitable and demonstrative, Klopp is not a man of great subtlety, so he’s happy wearing this extra-large watch. The 49mm case of this IWC Aquatimer houses multiple complications that include an unusual perpetual calendar in which the date, month and leap-year indication are all represented digitally. Made out of IWC’s Ceratanium alloy (a special combo of titanium and ceramic),…