Hands-On: The Maen Skymaster 38 MKIII, a Cool & Accessible Racing Chronograph
Racing chronographs… It might not be as packed as a category as dive watches, but in all fairness, finding the right one for you is not going to be a walk in the park. Hundreds of alternatives (and good ones, on top of that) exist, ranging from affordable quartz models to attainable Swiss mechanical options, followed by classic luxury icons or high-end watches with basically no limit of price. But let’s say you’re looking for a cool, compact, vintage-oriented racing chronograph with a timeless appeal, powered by a reliable mechanical movement… In that case, the Stockholm-based, Dutch-rooted microbrand Maen might have a very compelling solution for you: the third iteration of its chronograph collection, the Skymaster 38 MKIII.?By no means competitors, but you’ll get the racing chronograph vibe and inspiration…Even if we narrow down our search for a racing chronograph to accessible watches powered by mechanical movements, there are still dozens of watc

IN DEPTH: The Omega Flightmaster - The Special One - Monochrome Watches
The recent announcement of the revamped Speedmaster MkII from Omega seems to highlight a return to the company's glorious past- and rightly so, in my honest opinion, since Omega has a large number of design gems in its vaults. However, it was the introduction of the Z-33 spacemaster that made me want to dig some more and present to you the highly radical Flightmaster, a watch that, when it was introduced in 1969, was considered way ahead of its time. Maybe it still is….The 1960’s undoubtedly were hugely important for the Swiss watch industry; this was a memorable decade for chronographs and the other “tool” watches. The watch became the symbol of the adventurous human spirit, being worn by drivers and their crews when they went racing; by pilots as they broke speed and altitude records; by international travelers as they crossed the time zones of the world; by divers doing underwater exploration; by the adventurers as they climbed the tallest peaks. Especially i

Industry Swatch Group 2022 Half Year Sales Report
Swiss watch giant Swatch Group has just issued its 2022 half-year sales report, for the period January 1st – June 30th. At CHF 3,612 million, net sales are up 7.4% compared to the previous year at constant exchange rates, or 6.5% at current rates. The operating profit is up 25.1% at CHF 503 million.The Group reports double-digit growth for major markets, in particular Europe, America and the Middle East. However, the business has been impacted negatively by China's latest Covid lockdowns, just like for other luxury conglomerates. Swatch Group evaluates that sales losses have been approximately CHF 400 million, due to closures of warehouses and many retail stores in April and May in China. The Ukraine conflict had less than a 1% impact on Group sales.Commenting on its brands' performance, Swatch Group highlighted the impressive success of the Bioceramic MoonSwatch. Interestingly, at the same time, Omega was confronted with supply shortages impacting the Speedmaster Moonwatch, afte

Introducing The Nivada F77 Automatic Steel Sports Watch With Integrated Bracelet
There is nothing as hype these days as the 1970s steel sports watch with an integrated bracelet. To make it short, they are everywhere and at every imaginable price point. The style is so popular that even high-end indie watchmakers and micro-brands are jumping on the bandwagon. Can we blame them? Surely not, as it’s just a response to what the market wants. Looking at the accessible segment, the strongest contender with a Swiss movement and one of the few go-to options is the Tissot PRX collection. Except that there is a new competitor on the block: welcome the F77 Automatic from Nivada Grenchen.As with most of the previous releases of Nivada, this new watch doesn’t come out of the blue. It is actually a revival of a vintage watch that was produced in 1977, with all the codes you would expect from a watch designed after the shockwave produced by the Royal Oak. The original model, which you can see below, certainly displayed references to existing watches – an octagon

SIHH 2018 - Christian Selmoni of Vacheron Constantin, On The New Collection - Monochrome Watches
Yesterday, we told you about the brand new FIFTYSIX collection from Vacheron Constantin, which can be considered the brand's first major foray into entry-level pieces (relatively speaking). In this video, live from SIHH 2018, Christian Selmoni, Artistic Director of Vacheron Constantin tells us a bit more about what inspired the FIFTYSIX collection, as well as some of the other models the Maison will be introducing this year.As Brice highlighted in yesterday's article, when you think of Vacheron Constantin you don't generally associate the name with entry-level (aka affordable) timepieces. Founded in the mid-eighteenth century, Vacheron Constantin is one of the oldest watchmakers in the world and is well-known for its highly praised, exceptionally complicated timepieces created in precious metals using traditional techniques. Even well-established brands have to move with the times, however, and Vacheron Constantin is no exception. The brand is keen to attract new a new generation of wa