The Spectator: Eric Wind on The Rise of Independent Watchmakers

Eric Wind recently wrote about the rise of independent watchmakers on The Spectator.

“Over the last four years one of the biggest trends in watch collecting has been the rise of the “independents” - the independent watchmakers with eponymous brands like Philippe Dufour, F.P. Journe, Roger Smith, as well as the new kids on the block like Rexhep and Xhevdet Rexhepi and my friends Petermann Bédat. These independent watchmakers typically have years of experience working for other watch companies such as Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and A. Lange & Söhne before starting their own brands.

These watchmakers have gone from being the nerdy kids in the front of the class - they literally had a small area at the now defunct Baselworld annual watch fair where you could go up and talk to any of them at essentially any time as they tried to sell you their watches - to being the coolest cats in the room. The “independents” have gone from having watches readily available for sale to waitlists that can extend beyond 10 years. Their prices have skyrocketed and now these independent watchmakers are being treated as living artists such as Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst, and countless others who can command huge premiums for their work…”

Read Wind’s full article below:

https://thespectator.com/life/rise-independent-watchmakers-auction-watches/