HODINKEE Podcasts

This week on The Business of Watches, we unpack the results and go behind the scenes for the voting process for the biggest industry awards of the year - the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG). 
And we're lucky enough to have someone who was in the room as the votes were cast and the jury debated which prizes should go to which brand or watchmaker. Mark Kauzlarich, Hodinkee senior editor, served on the GPHG jury for the first time in 2026 and presented the award for the GPHG Gemset Watch Prize. 
Mark walks us through his week in Geneva and how the jury process plays out and what winning a prize means for those fortunate enough to be awarded one. We also discuss what's at risk for those participating and how the GPHG might attract an even bigger slice of the industry in the future. And finally, Mark gives us the highlights from some of the important watchmakers and brands he visited as the top takeaways from another record auction weekend. 
Show Notes:
1:51 GPHG Nominated timepieces 2026 (GPHG website)
2:44 Musée d'Art et d'Histoire GPHG Vernissage  (MAH website)
4:25 The Faces of the 2026 Jury (GPHG) 
4:48 Pierre Salanitro (Salanitro website) 
5:14 francoisjunod.com 
6:03 Wes Lang (weslang.com) 
8:20 Nominated Timepieces (GPHG) 
8:46 In-Depth: The Blancpain Grande Double Sonnerie (Hodinkee) 
10:46 Hands-On: Furlan Marri Disco Diamonds Onyx – A New Affordable Entry Into Subtle Gemsetting (Hodinkee) 
11:40 Introducing: The Baltic x SpaceOne 'Seconde Majeure' – A Jump Hour à Paris (Live Pics)
13:33 A Visit To The Three Chopard Manufacturing Sites In Switzerland (Fratello) 
16:05 Introducing: Chopard Brings Back The Original Happy Diamonds And Happy Sport (Hodinkee) 
17:48 Furlan Marri's New Mechanical Chronograph Is The Final Evolution From Kickstarter Brand To Something Much, Much Bigger (Hodinkee) 
18:35 This episode is brought to you by Watches of Switzerland. Listeners get $200 off a first order of $1,000+ on full-price items with code HDKPOD-Holiday-200 (case-sensitive) at checkout. Click here to shop the promotion. US only. Online only. Valid through 1/4/27, while supplies last, and subject to availability. Cannot be combined with other offers. Exclusions apply. See full terms at watchesofswitzerland.com.
22:50 Chopard Watchmaking Apprentice program (Chopard website)
25:30 Ferdinand Berthoud (website) 
26:40 Petermann-Bédat (website) 
28:30 The Rexhep Rexhepi Chronograph Flyback Next To Some Classics From Patek Philippe And A. Lange & Söhne (Hodinkee) 
32:04 F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Resonance "Régence" (Phillips) 
35:12 Auctions: Three Big Takeaways From The Geneva Fall Auction Season (Hodinkee) 
39:50 GPHG Livestream (Hodinkee)
43:10 The 2026 GPHG: Rexhep Rexhepi Wins The Aiguille d'Or For The RRCHF
44:06 Cleguer Horology Launches with the Inspiration One Souscription and a new "Innate" Escapement Geometry (Monochrome) 
45:30 Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Chronograph Mystérieux 'Mineral Blue' Reinvents The Central-Counter Chronograph (Hodinkee) 
46:42 Audemars Piguet Launches Possibly Its Most Complicated Watch Ever, The '150th Heritage' Pocket Watch' (Hodinkee)
48:25 La Vallee Cosmo (Instagram) 
55:02 Happenings: Watches of Switzerland to Host First Public Exhibit of 2026 GPHG Winners In London (Hodinkee)
58:05 Churchill's "Democracy is the Worst Form of Government… (Richardlangworth.com) 

 

This week on The Business of Watches an extended chat with a duo whose business is watch market data. Charles Tian is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of WatchCharts.com and Hamza Masood is the head of business partnerships at the U.S.-based company.  They're both longtime technology executives who have turned a passion for watches into a business. That venture is WatchCharts and it gathers and analyses secondary market watch prices to show demand trends, price movements and the relative health and desirability of brands and luxury groups in the sector. Its customers include retailers, watch dealers, collectors and brands. 
With the U.S. investment bank Morgan Stanley, WatchCharts data is used to produce in-depth reports four times a year on the state of the secondary market. The report for the third quarter, published in mid-October, shows the fifth straight quarter of overall market gains of more than 1%, suggesting stability and recovery. Still, the growth is slowing and is the weakest since mid 2025. And while the gains are more widespread among watchmakers, with prices for 28 of 35 brands tracked posting quarter-over-quarter gains, the overall WatchCharts index is still about 28% below its all-time peak, a record hit in the post-pandemic euphoria of April, 2022. 
As for outperforming brands, the usual suspects of Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Cartier continue to set the pace. A. Lange & Sohne prices along with Tudor and Vacheron Constantin are recent stand outs and Rolex is still, by far, the biggest factor on the secondary market, even as the mighty Crown shows signs of demand leveling off while inventories reach record highs. As geo-politics continue to add uncertainty to the market for pre-owned watches, can the gains keep coming and who's most vulnerable if demand takes a dip? 
Show Notes:
 
0:51 WatchCharts.com (website) 1:04 Charles Tian blog posts on WatchCharts.com 
1:10 Hamza Masood blog posts on WatchCharts.com 
2:19 Luxury Watch Prices Rise Again, But Record Inventory Clouds The Outlook (Forbes) 
6:22 WatchCharts Rolex Market Index 
7:10 $2K to $5K Watch Market Index  (WatchCharts) 
8:25 Vacheron Constantin Index  (WatchCharts)
10:07 A. Lange & Sohne Index (WatchCharts) 
13:25 F.P. Journe Watches: Prices, Rarity and Why Collectors Chase Them (NYU Ed - possible AI content) 
13:40 F.P.Journe Élégante (Journe website) 
14:41 Girard-Perregaux Laureato Collection 
15:20 This episode is brought to you by Watches of Switzerland. Listeners get $200 off a first order of $1,000+ on full-price items with code HDKPOD-Holiday-200 (case-sensitive) at checkout. Click here to shop the promotion. US only. Online only. Valid through 1/4/27, while supplies last, and subject to availability. Cannot be combined with other offers. Exclusions apply. See full terms at watchesofswitzerland.com.
20:30 Everywatch.com 
20:48 Chrono24 Chronopulse 
23:41 Fungibility definition (Wikipedia) 
25:32 WatchCharts Q1 Market Report 
28:40 Business News: Independent Watch Retailer Collective Horology Sues Trump And Administration Over New Tariffs 
31:40 What Does AI Mean For The Watchmaking Industry (Watches and Wonders 2024 - YouTube) 
35:01 WatchCharts Value Retention 
41:53 Hands On: The Tudor Northflag (Hodinkee) 
44:50 IWC (Website) 
48:02 Editor's Picks: Our Favorite Pilot Watches (Hodinkee)
50:22 WatchCharts Full Year Report 2025 including impact of price of gold analysis  
54:30 Rolex Certified Pre-Owned (Watches of Switzerland) 
1:00:18 JLC Introduces Its Second Vintage Capsule Of 'The Collectibles' (Hodinkee) 
1:01:55 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) 
1:08:12 WatchCharts Marketplace

 

This week on The Business of Watches we regroup and recount the events known as New York Watch Week. From INDIES.NYC, to the FHH Forum to WatchTime and Windup NYC, Griffin Bartsch and TanTan Wang hit the highs and lows of what is now considered the premier calendar week event in the U.S. watch world.
The U.S. market's rapid ascension to top dog among timepiece destinations is fully confirmed with more than CHF 4.3 billion worth of watches being imported from Switzerland in 2025, accounting for 17% of overall Swiss watch exports. It's an elevation driven by a surge in enthusiasm and interest in the post-pandemic era with publications like Hodinkee - started way back in 2008 - laying the groundwork for a new generation of watch enthusiast, collector, and buyer. 
But is the growth sustainable and is the industry catering enough to American tastes and needs? Is the U.S. market strength a fleeting diversion or is it in it for the long haul? Hodinkee editors Andy, Griffin and TanTan weigh in on the products and activations conjured by some of the world's biggest watch brands in the largest market for luxury and premium timepieces. Who's getting it right and who's missing the boat? What should brands be doing to win the hearts and minds of the U.S. watch consumer in 2026 and beyond? 
Show Notes:
0:48 New York Watch Week (Hodinkee Instagram)
1:04 WatchTime New York  (website) 
1:05 Windup Watch Fair New York (website) 
1:07 INDIES.NYC (website) 
1:20 TanTan Wang @tantantalum (Instagram) 
1:21 Griffin Bartsch @cgriffinbartsch (Instagram) 
1:37 NARO NYC (website) 
2:38 Swiss Watch Exports To U.S. Surge In December Capping Volatile And Down Year For Industry (Hodinkee) 
6:08 MB&F Lounge New York City (website) 
9:35 Casa Panerai (NYC website) 
10:31 Former Urban Outfitters Building In Williamsburg To Turning Into A New Members-Only Club (Greenpointers)
12:36 Gerald Genta Watches (website)
12:37 Daniel Roth (website)
14:24 Hands-On: G-SHOCK Reveals The MRG-D5000 "Blue Rose Project" In Sapphire (Hodinkee)
15:40 This episode is brought to you by Watches of Switzerland. Listeners get $200 off a first order of $1,000+ on full-price items with code HDKPOD-Holiday-200 (case-sensitive) at checkout. Shop here: (US only. Online only. Valid through 1/4/27, while supplies last, and subject to availability. Cannot be combined with other offers. Exclusions apply. See full terms at watchesofswitzerland.com.)
17:18 Introducing: Frederique Constant Manufacture Classic Perpetual Calendar Burgundy Limited Edition (Live Pics) (Hodinkee)
17:20 Introducing: The Redesigned Oris ProPilot Calibre 111 (Hodinkee) 
18:15 IntroducingThe Urwerk UR-300 Time Quantum (Hodinkee) 
19:54 Introducing: Ressence Type 10 DN "Dark Night" (Hodinkee)
21:20 Hands On Impressions Of The Tudor FXD GMT "Zulu Time" (Worn and Wound)  
23:55 Blancpain Celebrates The 70th Anniversary Of The Ladybird Collection With The Mini "Lady B" Revival (Hodinkee)
25:19 Hands-OnThe Chopard L.U.C Time Traveler One Khaki (Hodinkee) 
25:30 Introducing: Ming x Massena Lab 57.09 'Secret Honey' (Hodinkee) 
26:41 Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, Founder And Chief Executive Officer Of Fears (Business of Watches Podcast)
29:06 Introducing: Stéphane Pierre Launches His Namesake Brand With The Impressive 'l'Impétrant' (Hodinkee)
29:11 Introducing: The Bradley Taylor Ardea (Hodinkee) 
31:12 Dan Royter Watches (website) 
31:25 FHH New York Watch Summit 
40:16 A. Lange & Söhne Brings A Glimpse Of History to New York City - Photo Report (Hodinkee) 
42:30 IntroducingThe Brew Metric Chrono Taxi (Hodinkee) 
45:40 Windup Watchfair NYC (Sparkling PR Instagram) 
48:09 Autodromo Group C Turbo Sport (Brand website) 
51:05 Brew - Metric Chrono Taxi - (Brand Website )
51:04 Kenneth Lam of Arken Watches (StandardH Podcast Youtube)
54:50 Javits Center New York (website)
56:20 Why Is Everyone Waiting Hours for Frozen Yogurt? Why Am I? (New York Times)

 

This week on The Business of Watches, an in-depth discussion with Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Fears Watches. Nicholas has packed a lot into his 39 years. For the last decade he's been helming the brand originally founded by his great-great-great grandfather, Edwin Fears, in Bristol, England way back in 1846. 
Incredibly, Bowman-Scargill wasn't even aware of the Fears brand and family connection when he decided to train as a watchmaker at Rolex in the U.K. That move into watches followed an ill-timed foray into investment banking on the eve of the Global Financial Crisis, in 2008. 
By the time Bowman-Scargill restarted the brand in 2016, it had been dormant for nearly four decades. Its revival has been an exercise in business challenges that have often been met by practicing the art of project management, a skill set that he and his fellow Brits are uniquely adept at, he says. Fears has now grown to about 15 people and returned to its roots in Bristol. From flirting with bankruptcy to implementing a dress code for employees and overseeing the design and production of a perpetual calendar model, Bowman-Scargill relays the dramatic tale of how the company has survived and thrived in the crowded and competitive arena of mid-tier priced timepieces. 
It's a heck of a story that offers heaps of insight for any watch enthusiast, collector or small business owner. From what he learned and has applied at Fears from his time at Rolex, to what's in the envelope that's only to be opened should he meet an unexpected demise, what kind of investors he's accepted to the family business, and how to bring that non-watch enthusiast customer to the brand, Bowman-Scargill serves up plenty of candor, wisdom and experience in this wide-ranging discussion. 
Show Notes:
0:48 New York Watch Week (Hodinkee) 
1:19 Bristol England (VisitBristol.co.uk) 
1:35 Edwin Fear (BBC News) 
3:48 List of Fears managing directors (Fears website) 
5:08 The Succession Planning Gap: Real Stats on Why Family Businesses Struggle to Prepare (Kreischer Miller) 
7:32 Corporate Governance (OECD) 
9:36 Carp Fisher magazines (The Carp Society) 
10:03 Master of the Universe - Investment Bankers (Prime Video) 
10:19 The Men Who Destroyed Deutsche Bank (Der Spiegel) 
10:47 The watches that bankers blow their first bonuses on (efinancialcareers.com)
12:45 Francis Bourgeois (YouTube) 
14:02 Rolex Service Centres in London
17:11 Moritz Grossmann history and founding of the German School of Watchmaking (company website) 
18:35 Fears Watch Company Limited (Companies House) 
20:07 The First Fears Watch - The Redcliff Date from 2016 
23:26 Fears Brunswick White 38 
27:30 Établissage (FHH) 
30:15 Mighty Mercedes Benz Models of the 1980s (Hagerty UK)
31:36 Inside Swiss Watch Manufacturing At the EPHJ (Swiss 101 Hodinkee) 
35:25 The Power of Dress (Psychology Today) 
42:35 Becoming a Civilian (Jason Heaton SWIMPRUF) 
42:53 Meet the Fears Garrick (Worn & Wound) 
48:02 British Watch & Clock Makers Alliance 
48:25 What Really Happened to the Costa Cruises' Costa Concordia (Cruise Critic) 
49:50 What is a Project Manager? (Project Manager YouTube) 
55:20 What is cash flow and how do you manage it? (British Business Bank) 
58:20 Chargeback Fraud: How It Works, Common Types & How To Prevent It (Unit21.ai) 
58:46 Being Fearless: The First Ten Years of Rebuilding a Watch Company by Chris Hall with Foreward by Mike France (Waterstones) 

 
 

Is there room for another watch show? Is there demand? Is Las Vegas the ideal place to bring thousands of watch collectors together for a weekend of horological themed fun, discussion and entertainment? 
The folks behind The Escapement  are saying an emphatic yes to all of the above. They're putting on a new watch event in Las Vegas in 2027 running February 5-7 and they believe collectors and enthusiasts are primed for a fresh, in-depth and upgraded take on the watch meetup. 
Texas-based Neeshu Hajra is an enthusiastic watch collector who has decades of experience in the events business. Now located in the Middle East, Faheem Khan spent most of his career in the energy industry in London and now writes and curates the popular watch, philosophy and psychology driven Substack blog ScrewDownCrown. He's also the irreverent voice behind @kingflum on Instagram. Together, they're planning and organizing The Escapement with help from a few other big names in the industry that we dive into during the episode. 
 
We discuss what makes meetups work and why they had to pull plans to hold the inaugural edition of the event in Abu Dhabi and move to a more conventional location in Vegas where they hope to attract some 5,000 general admission ticket buyers and 750 VIP ticket clients. 
There's been some skepticism from industry naysayers as to the need and potential of the event. WatchPro's editor said the original gathering planned for Abu Dhabi gave him "Fyre Festival vibes," recalling the island music and entertainment party promoted by social media influencers that was the subject of dueling documentaries on Netflix and Hulu detailing its troubled outcome. 
During a wide-ranging interview, Hajra and Khan tell us how they're staging and financing this first show and why they believe the event, with industry notables including Rexhep Rexhepi and Eric Ku slated to speak and with brands attending ranging from Atelier Wen to Biver to Daniel Roth to Greubel Forsey to Lang & Heyne and Ming, will tell brand stories in a fresh new way, making the event a success with further editions for years to come. 

Show Notes: 
1:23 Nishu Hajra and The Trade Group (Exhibtor Online) 
1:32 Comic-Con International
2:45 Screw Down Crown / kingflum / Substack 
7:38 Middle East Forces The Escapement To Cancel Abu Dhabi Event And Move To Las Vegas (Hodinkee)
13:59 What's Happening in Abu Dhabi (Time Out) 
14:10 Etihad Arena Abu Dhabi 
16:30 Photo Report Dubai Watch Week (Hodinkee) 
18:58 A Visit With @NYCWatchGuy (Swiss Watch Gang YouTube) 
22:42 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas (website) 24:05 FHH (website) 30:02 Watch Anish (Instagram) 32:55 Wynn Las Vegas 
33:42 An example of an F.P.Journe Clock previously sold at auction (Loupe This) 
34:54 Phillips Watches 
35:44 Andrew Schulz (Official Website) 
36:49 Rubis Awards (website) 
37:05 Top Gamer and AI Techs Mike Capps and Ben Horesh Helm Everywatch (Forbes) 
43:08 Horologer Ming Executives Ming Thein And Praneeth Rajsingh Talk Design, Manufacturing, Pricing, And More (Hodinkee) 
46:02 HSNY Watchmaker Classes