New Watch Master

Oris and Worn & Wound Celebrate the Big Crown Pointer Date “Bullseye” at a Packed Brooklyn Showroom Event Despite frigid temperatures outside, the Windup Watch Shop showroom in Brooklyn was buzzing with energy as Oris and Worn & Wound hosted an evening dedicated to one of the brand’s most beloved new releases: the Big Crown Pointer Date “Bullseye.” Fans, enthusiasts, and first-time Oris buyers alike packed the space, turning a cold winter night into a warm celebration of independent watchmaking.   Representing Oris for the evening were VJ Geronimo, CEO – The Americas; Josh Shanks, Director of Marketing and Communications – North America; and Megan Hines, Marketing Coordinator. Their presence gave attendees direct access to the people behind the brand, creating an atmosphere that felt both intimate and entertaining.  Guests were treated to extensive hands-on time with the full Oris collection, with special attention naturally focused ...

Affordable Vintage: the Longines Grand Prize Longines is a storied and well-respected Swiss watch manufacture that formed in 1832 and has continued uninterrupted to this day. From the first wrist chronometer in 1911, to groundbreaking flyback chronographs in the 1930s, to the world’s first hi-beat wrist chronometer in 1959, Longines holds their own in the watchmaking world.  My favorite period for watches is the 1950s through the 1970s and Longines was one of the top accessible brands during that time. In 1954 Longines began a marketing strategy of product families, launching the Conquest line of watches. In 1957 they introduced the Flagship line, adding to what would become a large group of watch families, many of which are still made today. Other lines that came later include the Admiral, the Ultra-Chron and the Grand Prize. The Grand Prize line was named in honor of the multitude of watchmaking awards and honors that Longines had accumulated over the decades. It was a rela...

Monochrome Teams up with Angelus for their Latest Montre de Souscription Limited Edition One thing that we’ve learned quite clearly over the last decade or so is that there are a lot of different ways to release a limited edition watch, particularly a collaborative limited edition. Our friends over at Monochrome have a particularly interesting way of doing it, with their Montre de Souscription series, which makes limited edition watches available on a “subscription” basis, a throwback to a very old way of selling watches. This is essentially the offer of a pre-order with money down, that allows the watchmakers to begin working on the pieces to be sold later. The concept has evolved and become quite common, but in the early days of watchmaking this was the only way that fine watches could be made and that everyone involved could make a living at it, so the term has come to evoke classical watchmaking in a very real way. For their part, Monochrome has chosen to work with some very es...

Photo Report: In the Sands At The Dakar Rally We left the road nearly 30 minutes ago, our convoy of Land Rover Defenders now following an invisible line through an orange-walled canyon. There is a faint two-track resembling a trail taken by other vehicles, but it weaves an erratic line around rock piles, small dune formations, and the occasional caravan of slack-jawed dromedaries. There's seemingly little rhyme or reason to this wayfinding. The lead vehicle doesn't follow the track, choosing instead to break trail on a more direct line towards a serrated ridgeline that appears to encircle the valley in the shape of a horseshoe. We unload from the dim, air-conditioned cabins, eyes scrambling to re-adjust in the bright midday sun. "Is this it?" someone calls out from a rolled-down window of one of the vehicles in the rear. There are precious few indicators from the surrounding desolation that we've arrived at the course of one of the most legendary off-road races ...