HODINKEE Podcasts

This week on The Business of Watches, a brand we don't talk about a lot on this channel - Jacob & Co. Complicated, audacious, and expensive, Jacob & Co. watches hold a unique position in the industry. The brand enjoyed a strong 2025, growing sales and volumes, according to estimates by Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult, bucking the industry trend. 

And the brand recently got some high-profile exposure on the wrist of the Roland Garros winner with French Open champion Alexander Zverev wearing Jacob & Co. during his matches and on the podium.

We sat down in Geneva with Benjamin Arabov, the Chief Executive Officer of Jacob & Co., to talk about the brand's operations and strategy. You might be surprised at how Jacob & Co. watches are produced, the size of its production, and how the brand is being impacted by the war in the Middle East.

Finally, looking ahead to next week's episode, number 30 in the history of The Business of Watches, we're planning a special Q&A episode and will gather some of the Hodinkee team, including Editor-In-Chief James Stacey and Editors Mark Kauzlarich and TanTan Wang, to answer your business-related questions. Want to offer up a question? Please drop it in the comments on this episode's page on Hodinkee.com. We're looking forward to hearing from you and answering your questions on all things watches and business! 

Show Notes 

0:40 Rolex And Cartier Are In Another League – A Deep Dive On The Pains And Gains In Morgan Stanley's "Swiss Watcher" Report (Hodinkee) 
1:13 Chopard plans to cut jobs in Val-de-Travers (Le Temps) (French, paywall) 
2:59 Chopard plans to cut around 30 jobs (RTS Info) 
3:20 Swiss Watch Export Data for April (FHS) 
4:35 Jacob & Co. 
5:45 CEO Benjamin Arabov Triples Sales In Five Years (Bilan French)) 
10:20 Jacob & Co. Collaborates On Exclusive Watch With Salman Khan (Watch Pro) 
13:46 Concepto Watch Factory (company website) 
14:35 Jacob Arabo / Arabov (Wikipedia) 
15:17 Astronomia Regulator 
18:50 Our Favorite Guilty Pleasure Watches Of 2018 (Hodinkee) 
21:15 Godfather II Watch (Jacob & Co.) 
25:01 In-Depth: How The Five Time Zone Shaped Modern Watch Culture (Malaika Crawford Hodinkee)

This week on The Business of Watches, we're talking to the man behind one of the more successful new watch brands in recent years, Studio Underd0g. Richard Benc is just 33, and since 2020, he's built his irreverent, approachable-priced, design-driven brand to a significant size, producing about 14,000 watches last year.  

And he's done it all, not from Switzerland or Hong Kong, but from the U.K. Benc has grown his business with intent, making strategic investments in his supply chain, including buying full control of the assembly and after-sales service company that builds Studio Underd0g's distinct timepieces. Studio Underd0g is now the biggest assembler of mechanical watches in the U.K. and isn't only selling watches with drops and collabs, but is building up stock to make more watches available on its website. Next up for Benc and his brand is a new physical, public, and retail location. The 'D0ghouse' will open in Maidenhead this month and serve as a public showcase for the upstart brand and its operations. It's another big step for the company that comes with its own set of fresh opportunities and challenges.

And Benc gives us a tease on what may be coming next - there will be a new 04Series of watches that will take the brand to a place it hasn't been (mechanically) before. 

Show Notes 

0:40  Business News: Secondary Market Prices Climb, James Marks Jumps To Sotheby's, Christie's Grabs Cartier Watch Record (Hodinkee) 
0:50 WatchCharts.com 
1:49 The Cartier Crash And The New Value Of Imperfection  (MenWith Magazine) 
2:42 This Record-Setting Patek Is The Priciest Watch Ever Sold In Asia (Maxim) 
3:28 Visit Brighton (Great Britain) 
4:40 Studio Underd0g 
6:10 A Minions Children's Watch (eBay)
9:17 Hong Kong Watch and Clock Fair 
9:23 Inside The EPHJ (Hodinkee Swiss 101) 
11:33 Studio Underd0g 01Series Watermelon 
13:40 Assembled In Great Britain (Studio Underd0g) 
17:10 Studio Underd0g Buys Horologium (Watch Pro) 
22:30 The Business of Watches Podcast: Christopher Ward CEO Mike France 
24:50 Studio Underd0g 02Series 
25:08 Studio Underdog 03Series 
29:03 A Fresh Passion Fruit Collab From H. Moser And Studio Underd0g (Hodinkee) 
41:27 A Quirky Watch Brand Studio Gets Serious (New York Times) 
42:54 Alliance of British Watch and Clock Makers Bellwether Report

This week on The Business of Watches, we're in La Chaux-de-Fonds to speak to Pascal Béchu, who heads not one, but two Swiss watchmaking brands, Angelus and Arnold & Son. 

They're both specialized, low-production, high-horology watchmakers, with very different back stories. While Angelus is a historic Swiss brand known for its repeaters, chronographs, and long power reserve movements, Arnold & Son celebrates the work and innovation of one of history's most important (British) watchmakers, John Arnold.

While quite different in their product and strategies, the two brands share the same parent company in Japan's Citizen Group, and both work closely with movement maker La Joux-Perret, with whom they share manufacturing and office space in La Chaux-de-Fonds. 

Pascal Béchu is in charge of both marques. He talks about the history and the future for both brands, some recent successes in the form of celebrity clients for Arnold & Son, and a GPHG prize for Angelus. He also discusses prices and the impact the strong Swiss franc and the soaring price of precious metals are having on corporate strategy and planning. 

Show Notes 
3:55  Arnold & Son 4:36 John Arnold (Fondation Haute Horlogerie) 
4:55 Longitude Act 1714 (Wikipedia) 
6:56 Arnold & Son Tourbillon Chronometer No. 36 (GPHG) 
7:10 John Arnold and Abraham-Louis Breguet (WatchAffinityUK) 
7:52 John Roger Arnold (Antiquarian Horology) 
8:00 The British Masters (Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry Oct. 2000) 
10:20 Angelus Watches 
11:07 Angelus Heritage 
12:48 Historic Swiss Brand Angelus Is Back And Presents The U10 Tourbillon Lumière (Quill & Pad) 
15:10 Angelus La Fabrique 
16:59 The Strange Allure Of The Monopusher Chronograph (Hodinkee) 
18:32 Angelus Instrument De Vittesse (GPHG) 
19:10 Angelus Télémètre Yellow Gold (GPHG) 
22:09 Angelus Flying Tourbillon Titanium Blue 
30:00 Angelus Tinkler (released at Watches and Wonders 2026) 
30:48 Ed Sheeran Named One of Time's Most Influential And Wears a Patek and Arnold & Son in photos (Hodinkee)

 33:30 Arnold & Son Globetrotter 
34:27 Arnold & Son DSTB 
35:50 Arnold & Son Constant Force Tourbillon 11 
43:50 The Business of Watches Podcast: La Joux-Perret CEO Jean-Claude Eggen

This week on The Business of Watches, we're talking to the head of what's now the largest U.K.-based watch brand, Christopher Ward. Under the direction of Chief Executive Officer Mike France, the Swiss-made, approachable-priced watchmaker has enjoyed outsized growth in recent years, due in part to popular and surprising releases like its Bel Canto chiming watch and its commitment to keeping prices in check.

But first, we're joined by Hodinkee Senior Editor Mark Kauzlarich to talk about the Audemars Piguet X Swatch Royal Pop collaboration and its launch day, which certainly didn't go according to plan at some locations where massive crowds overwhelmed staff and security and forced store closures. 

Show Notes: 

1:30 Mark Kauzlarich 
1:50 Royal Pop (Swatch) 
2:40 Hands-On: The Swatch x Audemars Piguet Royal Pop (Impressions, Live Photos, And More) (Hodinkee) 
3:30 Sotheby's Sale of the Audemars Piguet 'Grosse Pièce' Shatters Records, Becomes By Far Most Expensive Audemars Piguet At $7,736,000 
8:00 Royal Pop Sales Resume After Launch Rush For Audemars Piguet X Swatch Collaboration Forced Store Closures (Hodinkee) 
12:05 Watch Spotting: The Watches Of Super Bowl LX (Hodinkee) 
16:48 Our Story (Christopher Ward) 
17:28 Christopher Ward showrooms 
20:39 Windup Watch Fair
22:10 Christopher Ward Forum 
26:30 How Christopher Ward Became a £100m Watch Brand (Esquire) 
28:29 Mike Pearson (Christopher Ward) 
36:41 The Christopher Ward 'C63 True GMT' Adds A Local Jumping Hour Hand GMT To The Lineup (Hodinkee) 
44:50 Business News: Christopher Ward To Roll Back U.S. Tariff Price Hit By 29% With Corporate Structure Shift (Hodinkee) 
48:47 Business News: Rolex And Cartier Are In Another League – A Deep Dive On The Pains And Gains In Morgan Stanley's "Swiss Watcher" Report (Hodinkee)  
49:50 Introducing: The Christopher Ward C12 'Loco' (Live Pics) (Hodinkee) 
52:53 Introducing: Christopher Ward Overhauls The Sealander Line With Design Refinements And Upgrades 
56:26 Trump tariff refunds begin but consumers likely to miss out (BBC)  
1:01:57 In-Depth: How One Chiming Watch From Christopher Ward Turned The Watch World On Its Head

This week on The Business of Watches, we sit down with Akio Naito, the President of Seiko Watch Corporation. Seiko's Credor brand, the ultra-premium offering showcasing artisanal creations, unique craftsmanship, and design, made its Watches and Wonders debut this year. We talk about Credor's positioning within the Seiko group and its expansion into international markets.

The biggest challenge for Credor, Naito says, will be increasing production for more markets, as the skills required to produce the timepieces are highly specialized and take years to master. We also get an update on Grand Seiko. Naito says the brand has increased its international sales by more than 15x over the past decade, driven largely by success in the U.S. market. Grand Seiko is continuing to update and improve its offerings, including a new ultra-accurate and ultra-luxurious dive watch in a more compact size that clients have been asking for.

We also hear about the growing interest and awareness of Grand Seiko's class-leading 9F quartz movement technology, which is becoming an increasingly popular choice for some clients.

But first, Hodinkee Senior Editor Mark Kauzlarich drops in for a fresh analysis on some of the record watch auction results from the spring sessions in Geneva. Pocket watches were hot, Journe was surging, and Patek showed continued strength with a record result for a rare Patek 2523. So what isn't hot right now? Tune in to find out. 

Show Notes

1:18 Auctions: The Five Results That Actually Mattered, From The Spring 2026 Auction Season (Hodinkee) 
1:34 Derek Pratt for Urban Jürgensen "The Oval" (Phillips) 
3:20 Akrivia AK-06 (Phillips) 
3:41 Louis Richard "Triple Detent Constant Force One Minute Tourbillon Chronometer" 
5:04 Patek Philippe Ref. 2523 "Polychrome Two-crown World-time", "Doppia Corona Policromo" (Phillips) 
6:10 Records Shatter at Sotheby's Hong Kong: Important Watches Auction Soars to HK$414.2 Million / US$52.9 Million 
7:25 Audemars Piguet Coussin Tortue (Christie's) 
8:22 Audemars Piguet Ref. 5503 (Phillips) 
13:33 Credor (company website) 
14:22 Interview: Seiko Watch Corporation President Akio Naito On Grand Seiko's Future (Hodinkee)  
19:38 Introducing: Credor Makes Its First Watches And Wonders Appearance With Three Novelties (Live Pics) (Hodinkee) 
20:00 In-Depth A Tour Of Grand Seiko, Part 1 (Hodinkee) 
21:10 Introducing: Credor's Revival Of The Locomotive, A Long-Overlooked Gerald Genta Design (In-Depth, Live Pics) (Hodinkee) 
22:53 Credor Studios (Credor) 
24:36 Watches And Wonders Attendance Climbs Despite Geo-Politics And Economic Challenges As Brands Make Case For Value (Hodinkee) 25:00 Credor History 
28:07 Introducing: Grand Seiko Shrinks Ultra-Accurate U.F.A. Ushio 300 Divers To Less Than 41mm Wide (Live Pics) (Hodinkee) 
30:26 Grand Seiko 9F Quartz