Editorial: An Analysis of a Struggling Watch Industry, New and Secondary, for the First Half of 2024
Following three consecutive record years for the watch industry in 2021, 2022 and 2023, recovering from a complex situation in 2020 due to the pandemic, the watch industry in 2024 is not sending the same positive signs. Pessimistic notes in brands and groups’ financial reports, contraction of prices on the secondary market, ambient morosity, increasing inventories, decreasing waitlists and reduced speculation (in all fairness, the last two might be a positive outcome)… This is what our ears are catching in the corridors of the watch industry. What is the situation for the first semester of 2024? Let’s have an overview using the latest reports and analytics we have in hand.?Preliminary note: the analysis of the new watch market is based on either the exports of the industry as reported by the Swiss Federation of the Watch Industry (FHS) or on a brand/group’s perspective, with numbers that take into account the so-called sell-in – sales from a brand to a dis

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso case construction - Monochrome Watches
Jaeger-LeCoultre’s reverso is a remarkable watch. This is because the case can be turned around while it remains on the wrist. Jaeger-LeCoultre developed this case construction to protect the vulnerable crystal from the hardship of the polo game. On one of my favorite forums, The PuristS Pro, a member?posted photos of his Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Grande GMT?undergoing a full service and thus being?taken apart. All photos where taken by the watchmaker performing the service.The photos give a very interesting view of the case construction of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso and especially the mechanism that enables flipping the case around.?Here is a photo of one of my favorites of this Jaeger LeCoultre series… the Reverso Grande GMT. Ad - Scroll to continue with article Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Grande GMTThe dials can show time in two different timezones.

First Look: The MkII Fulcrum 39, an Accessible Mil-Spec Diver from Pennsylvania
Being a watch enthusiast/collector often requires looking at things with more than a little bit of romance. To make us want to keep acquiring the same tiny combination of metal, gears and springs over and over and over again, a watch must be more than the sum of its parts. Sometimes, that means looking back into the past at a certain watch and a specific time it was worn to add a little bit of that magic to our own lives. Maybe this specific model was worn underwater by James Bond whilst scuffling with SPECTRE over an atomic bomb, and maybe this other one is currently worn by RAF fighter pilots, and maybe this one was actually worn on the Moon! Whatever the flavour, these watches add a powerful bit of romance to what is otherwise a fairly mundane object. The irony being that probably none of the aforementioned adventurers gave so much as a second thought to their watches at the time, but I digress.?A second type of romance that can be had with watches comes through vintage pieces and a

First Look: The new Doxa SUB 300T Sharkhunter Clive Cussler
Nothing does more for a brand's image than having a famous name spontaneously endorse your product. Although Doxa was not the first Swiss brand to produce a professional dive watch, it was the first to introduce a dive watch with a unidirectional rotating bezel to ensure safe no-decompression ascents in 1967. Doxa's SUB 300, with its massive tonneau-shaped case, rotating unidirectional bezel and bright orange dial, won the patronage of diving legend Jacques Cousteau and his team of Calypso divers. Another fan of the SUB 300 was American novelist Clive Cussler, whose character Dirk Pitt wore an orange dial SUB 300 on his adventures. Cussler, a passionate shipwreck hunter, would have celebrated his 93rd birthday today, and Doxa celebrates with a new special edition, the SUB 300T Sharkhunter Clive Cussler.?Acclaimed American adventure novelist Clive Cussler (1931-2020)Clive Cussler's (1931-2020) most famous character is Dirk Pitt, a marine engineer, government agent and intrepid adventure

Bespoke Vacheron Constantin up for auction at the Louvre Museum
Over the last few years, Vacheron Constantin has extended on its tradition for combining horological complications with one-of-a-kind designs by way of its Les Cabinotiers. The special workshop is home to some of the world's most complex (thus most expensive) timepieces – each one made to measure by a very time-consuming and painstaking process. In this way, the Swiss watchmaker can demonstrate its mastery and expertise in various fields. In addition to creating watches that distil the essence of Les Cabinotiers, Vacheron Constantin has been holding an event for the last three years where it invites its clients from around the world to view some of its most exquisite Les Cabinotiers watches in a bid to showcase a very unique approach to watchmaking. This year is a little different, however.The Louvre, Paris, the world’s largest art museum.Organised at a time when the financial challenges associated with the arts and recreation industry are unprecedented, Vacheron Constantin