We discuss the current landscape of movement suppliers and how it came to be. We cover how movements are selected by watchmakers, along with the drama that often surrounds the ever-popular “in house” vs “mass produced” discussion. We offer some thoughts on how, why or if movement design, finishing and construction should figure into a purchasing decision. Correction: On this podcast, we claimed that Czapek's SXH5 movement is designed by Czapek and produced by Chronode. That is incorrect. The movement is in fact in-house – both designed and produced by Czapek themselves. Most components are manufactured by Czapek, while some are supplied by third-party partners before being finished and assembled by Czapek. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
Earlier this summer, we asked you – our listeners – to participate in a short survey in order to hear your perspective on the current state and future of the watch industry. The responses poured in, and on today's episode, we delve into what you shared. A massive thanks to those who responded. Your responses were incredibly thoughtful, helpful, and surprising. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
Live from Geneva Watch Days, we discuss how the show has evolved from a collector focus to a major industry event, along with the consequences of those changes. And we cover some of the week's high drama, including how and why we were kicked out of the Beau Rivage hotel. Things are getting real here in Geneva – stakes are high. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We take a deep dive into the current state of the secondary (pre-owned) watch market with our friend Hamza Masood of WatchCharts – the world's most comprehensive, transparent and trusted source of watch market data. It’s a service we at Collective subscribe to for its valuable insight not just into the pre-owned watch market but what that data can tell us about the watch industry at large. And that’s exactly what we discuss with Hamza – what exactly is going on in the pre-owned watch market and more importantly what does it tell us about the industry at large, and of course, the implications for collectors. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We look at the shifting landscape of watch retail – specifically the rise of single-brand boutiques, the trade-offs of those changes, and what the future looks like. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
On this special episode of Openwork, we discuss Hodinkee’s recent announcement that they’re shutting down their retail business – with the exception of limited editions – to refocus on editorial. This is big news that touched off an immediate and widespread response within the watch community. It also has significant implications for the watch industry at large, reshaping Hodinkee’s role within it and more broadly putting magnifying glass on the turbulent landscape of both watch media and retail. Links: Announcement from Ben Clymer (founder of Hodinkee): https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/a-note-on-the-future-of-hodinkee Wall Street Journal "They Built a $100 Million Watch Empire. Then the Market Tanked." https://www.wsj.com/style/fashion/hodinkee-luxury-watches-ben-clymer-b4078322 Ben Clymer's réponse to Wall Street Journal: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/benjaminclymer_they-built-a-100-million-watch-empire-then-activity-7199372365619707904-H6CB/ Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
Our conversation with Tony Traina of Hodinkee takes a look at the current health of and sentiment toward the watch industry. We look at how brands, retailers and watch media contribute to the current state of the industry, and what they can do to improve things. Links: Rescapement Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry – monthly export data Watches of Switzerland – quarterly earnings and annual report (FY ending April 2024) Morgan Stanley 2023 Swiss Watch Industry Report – Revolution Magazine analysis We’d also like to hear from you on those topics. In particular, we’ve created a short survey at collectivehorology.com/survey to get your thoughts on watch collecting – what you’re into, what needs to change, and how you see the future. And to thank you for completing the survey, we’re offering a very special gift. More details at collectivehorology.com/survey. Thank you for making the time. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
This episode is a very frank and unfiltered conversation with Aren Bazerkanian, founder of Havid Nagan – the upstart independent brand that took the watch world by storm in 2022 with its debut watch the HN00. We recorded this conversation in January of this year at a time when Aren was navigating challenges with Swiss watch production. In particular, one of his key suppliers experienced a leadership change and increased costs, rendering the economics of his second project the HN01 Lucine unsustainable. As a result, Aren did what many start up businesses have done time and time again – pivot. In particular, he refunded all customers who placed pre-order deposits, while he identified new suppliers and productions partners, and not to mention developed an all new watch. Aren documents this in greater detail and transparency at his site havidnagan.com. As Aren navigated this uncertainty, Asher and I debated whether to air this episode at all. However, now that Aren has set Havid Ngan on fresh footing, we all agree – including Aren – this conversation sheds greater lights on and insight into the realities his business had to navigate and the principles he used to do so. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
Probably the question we’re asked most is how we design and develop our collaborative watches – how we identify brands, how the creative process works, and how we make decisions along the way on everything from design to finishing. So on this episode, we’re going behind the scenes on the making of our latest collaboration: The Armin Strom Gravity Equal Force P.03 Night Ops. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We share our biggest lessons from going inside the watch industry. We both made the transition from watch enthusiasts to industry insiders. We’ve had the opportunity to retail watches, design them, meet many industry luminaries, and even serve as GPHG academy members – and we’ve learned a ton along the way. We often get asked what that journey has been like, and what advice we’d give others who are looking to do the same or are just curious. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We discuss what happens when a founder leaves their brand. From Daniel Roth to Speake-Marin, there are examples of this all over the industry, with some interesting – if varied – results. We're joined by one of our oldest friends and an authority on independent watchmaking Roman (@timesromanau), host of the Independent Thinking podcast on Fifth Wrist Radio. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We're joined by Thomas Fleming (Fleming Watches) to talk about the realities of starting an independent watch brand. Everything from what it means to build the strategy, raise the funding and develop the branding for a company to how it feels to finally put something that you care about so much into the world. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We’re lifting the veil on selling and trading your watches. We cover the options available when you’re ready to move on from a watch, the trade-offs of those options, as well as why there are different cost structures depending on how you sell or trade your watch. In particular, we share how we as dealers look at buying and trading for watches, which will hopefully demystify things and more importantly help the next time you approach a dealer about selling or trading your watch. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We're live from the floor of Watches & Wonders 2024 to provide an insider take on this week’s goings on in Geneva – the mood of the fair, industry scuttlebutt, and how we see it all impacting the watch industry and collectors. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
On this episode, we pull back the curtain on one of the biggest weeks in the world of watches: Watches & Wonders. Together with Zach Kazan (Managing Editor of Worn & Wound), we talk about what it’s like to be retailers and journalists respectively at this industry event, what really goes on in all those meetings, and what we hope to see from the industry this year. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We discuss the tradeoffs involved in managing a fast-growing watch brand – in particular, how independent watch brand Czapek is navigating a period of intense growth and demand. Together with Xavier de Roquemaurel (CEO of Czapek & Cie.), we look at what’s going on behind the scenes to expand their operations, manage customer relationships, and plan sustainably for the long term. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
On this episode, we look at something both intangible and very consequential, and that’s the power of brands – what they are, why they matter, whether they should matter, and how they impact the watch industry and watch collectors. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
This week, we go inside watch pricing with Michael Margolis, owner of Horology Works – the US representative for Czapek, Singer Reimagined and Speake-Marin. Mike was also previously the North America President for Girard-Perregaux as well as North America Sales Director for Hublot. Together we look at the inputs that go into pricing watches, everything from labor and supply costs to marketing and currency exchange rates. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
We go inside watch journalism with Stephen Pulvirent, West Coast Editor at Large for Revolution and founder of Rime & Reason, a marketing and creative agency serving the watch industry. Stephen is also former managing editor for Hodinkee. Together we discuss the realities of watch journalism. Specifically, how editorial teams and media outlets make decisions about what to cover and how to balance brand relationships, including access, advertising and retail. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. You can find us online at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.
On this episode, we take a look at 2024 predictions. Rather than focusing on trends like case size, colors or materials, we make predictions about the watch business itself – from retail to risk-taking to media. Hosted by Asher Rapkin and Gabe Reilly, co-founders of Collective Horology, Openwork goes inside the watch industry. Thanks for listening to Openwork, a podcast from Collective Horology. You can find us at collectivehorology.com. To get in touch with suggestions, feedback or questions, email podcast@collectivehorology.com.