What’s ticking? All the latest news from Rolex, Tissot and more what's ticking? Swiss watchmaking is a multifaceted beast. Here, Tissot does the digital time warp; one of its neighbouring Jura Mountains blue-bloods fast forwards to the materials future; while Germany’s finest ‘uhrmacher’ slides into top gear. The Crown hits the town In a shock move announced on 25 August, in the absence of any direct descendants, Jörg [...]
Tudor launches new versions of its ‘FXD’ Pelagos diving watch London Time Setting sail with the elite Alinghi Red Bull Racing, Tudor has launched two new versions of its ‘FXD’ Pelagos diving watch. There is now a ‘time-only’ and a stopwatch-fitted ‘chronograph’ (pictured right), each inspired by regatta racing. Expect to see the Chrono model on wrists at the America’s Cup, whose 37th edition is off the [...]
Into the blue: Three great watches that are beautiful in blue Taking inspiration from the sea and the sky, these are some of our favourite new watch releases from Switzerland and beyond, all looking beautiful in blue. Oris Aquis Pro 4000m The historic watchmaker of Holstein has progressed in leaps, bounds and huge splashes in recent years – from designer savvy to in-house mechanical nous. This [...]
How Swatch hopes to recapture the MoonSwatch magic with new Blancpain collab September 5, 2023 The groundbreaking, plastic-fantastic, injection-moulded Swatch watch was a fashion-forward crutch for Switzerland’s ailing giants 40 years back. It bolstered household names like Omega, Longines, Rado, Tissot et al, all desperately consolidated by the late Nicholas Hayek following the devastation wrought in the Seventies by cheap, electronic quartz tech’ from East Asia. Ironically, at the hands [...]
Versace owner Capri snapped up by Coach’s Tapestry in £6.6bn mega-deal to challenge LVMH August 11, 2023 Tapestry, the American fashion giant behind luxury brands such as Coach and Kate Spade, has agreed to buy Capri the owners of designer Versace in a $8.5bn (£6.6bn) deal. The merger will form a larger fashion conglomerate which will rival the likes of LVMH, the multibillion pound business behind designers such as Louis Vuitton and [...]
The XX factor: New military-inspired watches from Breguet June 15, 2023 After five years, Breguet has finally relaunched its iconic pilot’s watch, the Type 20/XX, sure to instantly reopen connoisseurs’ wallets. Two new versions – the military-inspired ‘20’, and a dapper ‘XX’ more suited to civvy street – are each powered by a brand-new flyback chronograph movement, which Breguet has been working on for the past [...]
UK unveils new arts fund in bid to boost ‘gangbusters’ creative sector by £50bn June 14, 2023 Ministers have unveiled plans to boost the UK’s “gangbusters” creative industries by up to £50bn. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has revealed a plan to give a multimillion-pound boost across film, music, fashion and gaming, which could see the arts sectors grow by £50bn by 2030. The ‘Creative Industries Sector Vision’ [...]
The fashion crime of rucksacks over suits is growing in the Square Mile June 10, 2023 A couple of years ago an American woman caused an international incident when she admitted to covertly chucking her husband’s cargo shorts in the bin, such was her dislike of them. The following week was littered with opinion pieces about the maligned shorts, from other women owning up to doing the same to loud-and-proud cargo [...]
Everyone is talking about quiet luxury but there’s a problem June 9, 2023 Unless you have spent the first five months of 2023 on retreat or continuing your Second World War service for Imperial Japan, you will know that one of the most significant trends in the fashion world has been “quiet luxury” or “stealth wealth”. The concept is that the smartest of the smart are now dressing [...]
Sainsbury’s bets on style with plans for a new online fashion marketplace May 21, 2023 Sainsbury’s is reportedly planning to launch a new online marketplace for high street fashion brands in a move which will pile pressure on department stores like John Lewis. Looking to diversify its product range whilst capitalising on a strong web traffic presence – and vast distribution networks – Sainsbury’s is looking to stock a range [...]