Hodinkee
Business News: Hong Kong Crisis Batters Swiss Watch Exports
Turmoil there knocked five points off global Swiss watch growth in October.
Results for LVMH Watch Week 2026
22,609 articles · 6,347 videos found · page 206 of 966
Hodinkee
Time+Tide
Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Date – The thinking man’s steel sports watch
Editor’s note: Jaeger-LeCoultre is widely regarded as one of the best watchmakers on the planet … and for good reason. The Swiss outfit has been responsible for more advancements and complications in the mechanical watchmaking world than pretty much any other manufacturer. And what’s more, JLC has made movements for some of the top marques … ContinuedThe post Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Date – The thinking man’s steel sports watch appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
Shopping: LVMH Adding Tiffany to its Fold
LVMH buys iconic jewelry brand Tiffany for more than $16 billion.
SJX Watches
Patek Philippe Ref. 2523 World Time Becomes Most Expensive Watch Sold in Asia
Just two weeks after the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime in steel set the record for the most expensive watch ever when it sold for US$31m at Christie’s in Geneva, the auctioneer clinched the title of most expensive watch sold in Asia, toppling the former record holder. It sold a Patek Philippe ref. 2523 double-crown world time wristwatch – with a blue enamel dial signed by Milan retailer Gobbi – for HK$70.175m including fees, equivalent to US$8.97m. The result yields a tidy profit for the seller, a noted Asian collector who purchased the watch in 2010 at Christie’s in Geneva for 2.675m Swiss francs. One of two known with a blue enamel dial and extremely crisp, the ref. 2523 was offered for sale in an unusual manner. Though it was part of the Hong Kong watch auction, the watch was instead offered as the first lot during the 20th century and contemporary art sale a few days before, presumably to appeal to buyers who regularly spend much larger sums on art. The watch was extensively documented by Christie’s in its catalogues, both online and offline, though it did not do the typical presale marketing tour around the region due to its insured value. The presale estimate of HK$55m-110m, or about US$7m-14m, made the ref. 2523 the most expensive lot to be ever offered at a watch auction – leading to some mutterings that the watch might not sell – so anticipation was high when the sale started at 5:30pm, especially since ultra high-value vintage watches are usual...
Time+Tide
How to justify your next watch #2, the ‘Hey, it could be coke and hookers’ defence
NOTE: The problem is that some people just don’t get it. They don’t understand how important, nay, how essential, your next watch is. Not just to your happiness, but also to your sense of purpose, your ability to be a complete person. Against the blockers in your life, we have a new weapon. The Enabler. He is … ContinuedThe post How to justify your next watch #2, the ‘Hey, it could be coke and hookers’ defence appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Video
Is This The Purest Seiko Dive Watch? The Seiko SPB143
Revolution
Seen at Watch Art Grand Exhibition: Patek Philippe Ref. 2497 in Rose Gold
At the Watch Art Grand Exhibition in Singapore, Revolution got a closer look at some of the most precious wristwatches in Patek Philippe’s vault.
SJX Watches
IWC Introduces the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph “Blue Angels”
Having recently coming a licensee of the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, better known as the Blue Angels, IWC is marking the occasion with the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Blue Angels”. Already the longtime licensee for the U.S. Navy Fighter Weapons School – hence the Pilot’s Watch Top Gun editions – IWC is the latest watchmaker to sign with the Blue Angels. The team has had several watchmakers become licensees over the years, first Breitling in the 1990s, followed by Citizen. The new Blue Angels chronograph is in blue and yellow, the colours of the Blue Angels’ emblem. The dial is a dark, metallic blue with a yellow track for the hours. The case is in matte black ceramic and measures 44.5mm wide. The Blue Angels logo engraved on the back Inside is the cal. 89361, the brand’s top of the line, in-house chronograph. It’s an automatic movement with IWC’s signature Pellaton winding mechanism. The chronograph has both a flyback function as well as the hour and minute registers co-axial at 12 o’clock. Key facts and price Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Blue Angels” Ref. IW389008 Diameter: 44.5mm Height: 15.7mm Material: Black ceramic Water resistance: 60m Movement: Cal. 89361 Functions: Time, date, and flyback chronograph Winding: Automatic Frequency: 28,800 beats per hour, or 4Hz Power reserve: 68 hours Strap: Blue calfskin Limited edition: No Availability: From November 2019, at both boutiques and retailers Price: US$...
SJX Watches
Business News: Swiss Watch Exports to Hong Kong Plunge 30% in October
The latest figures from trade body Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH) show a massive fall in Swiss watch exports to Hong Kong, a statistic that is proxy for sales of luxury watches. According to the FH numbers for the month of October 2019, exports to Hong Kong fell 29.7% to 191.3m Swiss francs. This comes after a more measured, 4.6% drop in September. Exports to Hong Hong have now fallen below those to China, which rose 10.8% to 218.4m francs. Enjoying a 11.2% rise to 227.5m francs is the United States, which was the largest market for Swiss watches in October. For the year to date, Hong Kong remains the world’s largest market for Swiss watches, though the gap between it and the second-placed United States is falling. Hong Kong imported 2.26 billion francs of Swiss watches in the year to date – a fall of 8.8% compared to the same period las year – compared to 1.97 billion francs for the United States. Pedder Street in Hong Kong’s Central business district, ordinarily a shopping paradise. Photo – Hong Kong Tourism Board The drop in watch exports to the city confirm industry talk that the luxury goods has been hard hit by the six months of protests that have roiled Hong Kong. Shops located in the worst affected areas can only stay open for a fraction of a business day, or not at all on some days. Several executives from both watch brands and retailers in the territory have cited consecutive, month-on-month drops in store sales that reach into the double d...
Time+Tide
RECOMMENDED WATCHING: Jean-Claude Biver’s unbelievable watch collection
There’s a pretty strong case to be made that Mr Jean-Claude Biver is one of, if not the most influential individual in the horological industry of the last half-a-century. Here is a man who cut his teeth at Audemars Piguet and witnessed first-hand the development of the now legendary Royal Oak. A man who would … ContinuedThe post RECOMMENDED WATCHING: Jean-Claude Biver’s unbelievable watch collection appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
![Sotheby’s to Sell A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Service Watch in Steel [Withdrawn]](https://watchesbysjx.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/lange-1815-steel-service-watch-3.jpg)
SJX Watches
Sotheby’s to Sell A. Lange & Söhne 1815 Service Watch in Steel [Withdrawn]
Long before the Odysseus “sport-elegant” watch, A. Lange & Söhne already had a serially produced timepiece in stainless steel. In the late 1990s, just as the brand was rapidly gaining traction as the preeminent German watchmaker – remember that it had only unveiled its wristwatch collection in 1994 – the company rolled out the fabled 1815 service watch. (NB: Sotheby’s has withdrawn the watch from the sale.) The rationale behind the watch was simple: a loaner for clients who had sent in their Lange wristwatch for servicing. Staying true to the exceptionally high standards the start-up brand had established for itself, the loaner was not a disposable or cut-rate watch. It was a time-only 1815 that was almost identical to the standard model – with the same highly finished movement and solid silver dial – except the case was steel while the dial was black with white markings, a colour not available on the regular production watch. Note the case back engraving. Photo – Sotheby’s Reputedly around 80-120 of these service watches were made. They were produced in small batches over a period, perhaps over a handful of years from the late 1990s to the early 2000s. The number might not seem like much, but with the company being relatively new at the time, the number of watches returned for servicing was presumably quite small. The movement in the service watch is finished to exactly the same level as that on a standard watch. Photo – Sotheby’s The 1815 serv...
Video
THIS is the Ultimate Tool Watch: Breitling Endurance Pro 44
Revolution
Seen at Watch Art Grand Exhibition: Patek Philippe Ref. 1591 in Stainless Steel
At the Watch Art Grand Exhibition in Singapore, Revolution got a closer look at some of the most precious wristwatches in Patek Philippe’s vault.
Time+Tide
How to justify your watch purchases to your partner, a new series, starting with ‘The Heirloom Defence’
MEET THE ENABLER: Defending the indefensible is a tiresome but necessary business. Obviously, we understand that you’ve found a new must-have watch to add to your collection (congratulations!). But the next step, making it happen, may not always fly with non-believers whose reactions will likely range from horror to derision to divorce. That’s where The … ContinuedThe post How to justify your watch purchases to your partner, a new series, starting with ‘The Heirloom Defence’ appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
At the Watch Art Grand Exhibition: The World’s First Perpetual Calendar Wristwatch
At the Watch Art Grand Exhibition in Singapore, Revolution got a closer look at some of the most precious wristwatches in Patek Philippe’s vault.
SJX Watches
Auction Report: Albert Piguet Double-Balance Resonance Watch Sells for CHF250,000
One of the most interesting lots in the second instalment of Masterworks of Time at Sotheby’s that just concluded was a seemingly unassuming pocket watch with an estimate of just 7,000-10,000 Swiss francs. But the pocket watch contains a movement with a single gear train driving double balance wheels linked by a differential, constructed to keep time according to the principles of resonance. This is one of the very movements that inspired Philippe Dufour to create the Duality. And its appearance at auction comes at an opportune time, with F.P. Journe going to launch an entirely new Resonance movement in 2020. The Philippe Dufour Duality Mr Piguet of Lemania The movement was made by Albert G. Piguet (1914-2000), a noted watchmaker who finished the movement in 1933, just before graduating from the École d’Horlogerie in Le Sentier, then the premiere watchmaking school in the Vallee de Joux. He joined movement maker Lemania after graduation, and eventually rose to technical director. Piguet stayed in that role from 1948 to 1980, during which he helped develop numerous calibres, including the important CH27 chronograph movement that later became the cal. 321 found in the early Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch, and also the cal. 2310 used by the likes of Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin. Piguet’s 1933 pocket watch movement is just one of six produced between 1932 and 1934 by students at the watchmaking school, working under the tutelage of headmaster Marcel Builleumi...
Time+Tide
Tudor’s Black Bay Ceramic One sold for a ridiculous amount at Only Watch 2019
If history is anything to go by, we shouldn’t have been surprised at news coming out of Only Watch 2019 that Tudor’s entry into the charitable auction, the Black Bay Ceramic One, had sold for a staggering 350,000 CHF ($515,000 AUD). In fact, for Tudor’s third pièce unique entered into Only Watch to do anything … ContinuedThe post Tudor’s Black Bay Ceramic One sold for a ridiculous amount at Only Watch 2019 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Video
This Extremely Unique Watch Brand has a completely Fresh Take on a Field Watch
Two Broke Watch Snobs
Ep. #149 Watch Brands We Know Nothing About Pt. 9: Traser Watches
Radioactive gas tubes, tough military watches, kidnapping Sean Astin for your watch brand promo - this episode has it all.
SJX Watches
Auction Report: What Went Down at Only Watch 2019
Only Watch 2019 is the biggest watch auction ever – and it was the most exciting sale in a notably quiet Geneva auction season – with 50 lots selling for 38.59m Swiss francs. The last Only Watch auction in 2017 raised a mere 9.29m francs in comparison. And of course 31m francs of that came from just one watch, the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime in steel, which went to a determined buyer from Asia bidding via telephone with Wei-Ting Jud of Christie’s London. Presided over by Christie’s jewellery department head Rahul Kadakia, the best watch auctioneer who is not a watch specialist, the saleroom in Geneva’s Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues was jam-packed, so full even Audemars Piguet chief executive Francois-Henri Bennahmias had to stand. And there was even a famous face in attendance, or at least in the same building – former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is a a known watch collector, was spotted in the lobby of the hotel. Luc Pettavino, who founded only watch after his late son was stricken by Duchenne muscular dystrophy, the very disease that Only Watch raises funds to research a cure. Photo – Alex Teuscher Photography Though the Patek Philippe accounted for most of the sale proceeds – which all go to a medical charity – the other 49 lots in the auction still sold for an average of 155,000 Swiss francs, which is well above the average for a watch auction. The Antiquorum watch auction that took place a day later, for instance, averaged only...
SJX Watches
Highlights: Phillips Geneva Watch Auction X
With the Double Signed theme auction out of the way, here are a few highlights from Phillips’ Geneva watch auction, including a Lange Zeitwerk that might be a value buy, and a steel Rolex Day-Date prototype. Lot 145 – Lange Zeitwerk in rose gold The Zeitwerk is unquestionably a modern classic – notably, it is probably the most reliable digital display watch on the market – and is relatively good value on the secondary market, selling for a chunk off retail. This example is in rose gold, and is complete with all boxes and paperwork. It was first sold in 2011, and obviously wasn’t worn much sine then. The estimate is just 20,000-40,000 Swiss francs. Lot 179 – Patek Philippe ref. 1463 in steel One of the top lots in the sale, this is a ref. 1463 “Tasti Tondi”, an early water-resistant chronograph by Patek Philippe. But this is in steel, of which only 67 are known, with a two-tone dial, furthering reducing the number known to just 17. The watch is in excellent condition, with a sharply preserved case and original dial, although the dial might have been cleaned in the distant past. The estimate is 300,000-600,000 francs. Lot 209 – Patek Philippe ref. 1518 in yellow gold The ref. 1518 is a landmark, being the first serially produced chronograph with perpetual calendar. This is a good example of the ref. 1518, almost the quintessential version of the model with a yellow gold case. It is clean and in good condition, albeit showing a little bit of age on the dial,...
Time+Tide
Smart Money: 5 of the best buys from Only Watch 2019
Most of the hype around the results of Only Watch 2019 has been wholly and solely squared at the monumental, record-breaking price achieved by the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime ref. 6300A, and it’s pretty easy to understand why … it sold for $31 million CHF (roughly $52 million AUD)! However, away from the white noise … ContinuedThe post Smart Money: 5 of the best buys from Only Watch 2019 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Top 3 most expensive watches sold at Only Watch 2019, also featuring Audemars Piguet and F.P. Journe
Patek Philippe’s entry into Only Watch 2019, the one-of-a-kind stainless steel Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime ref. 6300A, has just smashed, in fact obliterated, the record for the most expensive watch ever sold at auction. But it wasn’t just the Patek that stretched into the seven-figure stratosphere at the charitable auction last night, as two other … ContinuedThe post Top 3 most expensive watches sold at Only Watch 2019, also featuring Audemars Piguet and F.P. Journe appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Video
Fratello Talks: Trade To Upgrade — Is It Possible To Trade Your Way To Your Grail Watch?
SJX Watches
The Most Expensive Watch Ever – Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime in Steel for CHF31m
The Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime ref. 6300A made for Only Watch 2019 has just made history by selling for 31m Swiss francs – selling to a new face at watch auctions – topping the 23m francs achieved by the Henry Graves Supercomplication and the 17m francs of Paul Newman’s “Paul Newman” Daytona. Before the Grandmaster Chime sold for the record-setting sum, I wrote: A major, outsized finish of 12m or 15m francs, or even more, is possible but only likely if an unexpected, deep-pocketed bidder buys the watch, or manages to push the winner further than expected. I was way off the mark value-wise, but at least half right. The bidding opened with room bids, first a 5m franc bid from gem dealer and auction veteran Claude Sfeir, followed by 10m francs from a prominent SE Asian collector. But the action swiftly moved to phone bidders, all bidding via Christie’s representatives, including Stéphane Von Bueren of the watch department in Geneva. It was a prolonged tussle – with bidding rising in 500,000 franc increments – between Mr Von Bueren’s client and another represented by Wei-Ting Jud of Christie’s London. Once bidding hit 17m francs, there was brief applause as the watch topped the record of Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona. At 22.5m francs, a new bidder jumped in, represented by Max Fawcett of Christie’s Geneva. From there it was Mr Fawcett against Ms Jud – and another round of applause when the watch surpassed the record set by the Graves Supercompli...
Time+Tide
The 3 mistakes I made buying a vintage watch, my cautionary tale
How did I accidentally become a vintage watch guy? Partly, I blame the fact that I’ve got the spindly wrists of a teenage girl. That meant I naturally gravitated towards smaller dials. But I also put it down to the tawdry state of my finances. When I first started to get into watches - before the retro … ContinuedThe post The 3 mistakes I made buying a vintage watch, my cautionary tale appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
WATCH DISASTERS #1 – Ken’s prodigal GMT-Master II
Watch Disasters is a new series on Time+Tide that describes, in chilling detail, incidences when owning an expensive watch goes wrong. This is not going to be comfortable reading, so prepare for the pain. Admittedly, this is a bit of a soft start. The ‘prodigal’ in the title gives it away. If you have a … ContinuedThe post WATCH DISASTERS #1 – Ken’s prodigal GMT-Master II appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
5 Skeleton Timepieces Revealing Mechanical Beauty For Only Watch 2019
Only Watch by Christie’s will be held in Geneva on November 9, 2019, and a surprisingly high number of skeleton watches are among the 50 unique pieces for sale. Skeletonizing is a technical and aesthetic art that allows for fascinating insights into the movements’ inner workings. Which pieces might you be interested in bidding on?
SJX Watches
Hands-On: Chanel J12 The Inseparables “Only Watch”
To mark the 20th anniversary of the J12 this year, Chanel gave its signature timepiece a microscopic yet significant makeover, both inside and out, while preserving the distinct identity that has contributed to the watch’s two-decade success. For Only Watch 2019, the brand created J12 The Inseparables – the very first examples of the new-generation J12 to roll off the line, distinguished by a unique case and bracelet finish. And the pair also happen to be one of the most affordable lots in the auction. The brand has approached these unique iterations in the same manner it approached the revamp – with subtlety and restraint. The pair of watches are both rendered in smooth, matte ceramic, with a tone-on-tone dial. And both are equipped with a special black-coated execution of the new Caliber 12.1 produced by Kenissi, the movement maker that is part owned by Chanel. Matte finish The most apparent difference between the Only Watch pair and the standard version is the matte finish of the ceramic case and bracelet; the standard models have a glossy, polished finish. While the J12 is primarily a women’s watch, especially in this smallish size, the finish of the Only Watch editions come across as more masculine – and also more refined and discreet. And as it always has been, the case measures 38mm. It is made entirely in-house by the brand, thanks to its ownership of G&F; Chatelain, a reputed case and buckle manufacture, whose clients include Richard Mille, MB&F; and Bel...
Video