At Baselworld, a small group of watch publications, including WatchTime – the only U.S. representative, was granted an interview with Dr. George Daniels, the legendary British watchmaker and creator of the co-axial escapement. At 84, Daniels still plies his trade, developing technology for Omega and creating his own watches, most recently with his former apprentice, British watchmaker Roger Smith. What follows are excerpts from the interview.

Q: Did you ever foresee that your idea, the co-axial escapement, would become the heart of a major brand [Omega], as it is today?
A: I always hoped so, because it was the result of a great deal of hard work over many years.

Q: As an English watchmaker, do you take any particular pride in creating an escapement that has been so significant in the Swiss watch industry?
A: It shouldn’t surprise that it’s an English invention. The English have always been concerned with timekeeping because they’re surrounded by water, and they have to navigate. To do this, they need accurate timekeepers, and the most accurate timekeepers were invented by the English. We’re very proud of that and we try to keep up the tradition. My duty is to make sure that expertise doesn’t [fade away]; it’s got to increase. I am concerned not with watchmaking but with horology, which is a specific type of timekeeping, and with chronometry. The people who worked in the early days of the development of mechanical timekeeping were all artists as well as inventors, and many were born in Britain, I’m pleased to say.

Q: Do you still make watches under your own name with the co-axial escapement?
A: Of course, and I use only co-axial escapements in them. It makes all other escapements old-fashioned. I have also invented two other escapements that are now coming onto the market, so there should be plenty of horological activity in the next 10 years.

A Daniels wristwatch

Q: Do you see any British watchmakers today who are particularly inventive, or looking toward the future as you did with your invention?
A: It’s always a short list but there are several young men who are brilliant. And they are carrying on the tradition of British watchmaking. So there is an obvious future, but how [large a role they will have in the watch world], we don’t know.

Q: As one of the most famous British watchmakers, what have you done to keep the tradition alive in your country?
A: Well I invented three new escapements and 105 watches, all without any assistance. Now we have a new young team coming on, and I think they will do great things. We [the British] haven’t done too badly.

A Daniels pocketwatch

Q: What can you tell us about these two new escapements?
A: They are conceived essentially to run without lubrication, because lubricant is very bad for the escapement. It’s all about progress. I’ve been wearing this watch [shows the watch on his wrist], with the co-axial, for 20 years. I have a Patek Philippe, even thinner than this, that I fitted with it 35 years ago, and it’s still working perfectly. The only thing that’s worn out is the winding gear. I call that progress. I’ve stayed in horology because I wanted to see progress and I am getting what I want.

Q: Do you believe that innovations and new technologies like silicon can bring something to watchmaking?
A: I don’t believe they’re necessary, no. There is no evidence that they are. Clocks and watches have been made of brass and steel for a thousand years, and they’re still running perfectly. We don’t need these things. I don’t accept these materials as being the least bit useful in haute horologie. In fact, you only have to look at the drawings, see the shapes of the components and how they engage with each other and you’ll realize that they [will not last] for long periods. Of course, manufacturers use such materials to improve the performance of a watch, but it doesn’t matter how much attention you give [to the material], if the escapement doesn’t work without lubricant, it isn’t going to get you anywhere at all. You might as well stay with the old-fashioned.

Q: Aside from your own inventions, do you feel there has been anything developed in horology since your career started that has improved the art of making watches?
A: It depends on the date… there are tourbillon watches that will keep better time than non-tourbillon watches. But here I’m talking about pocketwatches. Tourbillons in wristwatches aren’t very useful for anything, really. [The accuracy is] all dependent on the hairspring and the escapement. Breguet invented the tourbillon, and you can’t criticize him, because Breguet was a genius.

Q: Are there other inventions that you would still like to develop for the watch industry?
A: I think I’m a broken reed, a spent force; I can’t think of anything new to invent. It’s a very tight field and it’s not easy to think of new ideas. One always tries, of course. My chronograph is one of the novelties this year; it’s very simple. It works well, but it’s not significant. The real question is, how does one now amuse oneself?

Q: What are your opinions on some of the modern, innovative but odd timepieces, some of which don’t actually show the time? Are they watches or just machines?
A: I’ve never really thought about it. I don’t know, really. If it keeps time, it’s a watch, I suppose. Congratulations… that’s a question I’ve never heard before. I’ll have to give it some thought.

The watch world calendar year kicks off with the SIHH and Baselworld spectacles, where the great majority of new releases or “novelties” are introduced to the press and the public. The early summer watch and jewelry shows in Las Vegas – JCK and Couture – typically pale in comparison, at least when it comes to new watch introductions. But that is not always the case.

Occasionally, a watch that either wasn’t ready in time for Basel or Geneva — or whose maker for whatever reason did not attend either show — will debut to the watch press in Sin City. Such is the case with Bovet’s newest limited-edition haute horlogerie piece commemorating the 80th anniversary of the prestigious Italian design firm Pininfarina. Founded in 1930 by automobile designer Battista “Pinin” Farina, the firm, based in Turin and today headed by Battista’s grandson Paolo Pininfarina, is well known to car enthusiasts. The classic and modern automobiles it has designed include the Alfa Romeo Spider, Maserati GranTurismo, Cadillac Allante, Volvo P70 and numerous coveted Ferraris, including the 612 Scaglietti, the 550 Maranello and the new California.

Bovet owner Pascal Raffy and his watchmaking team in Fleurier, Switzerland, collaborated with Paolo Pininfarina on the watch, which marries some of the Italian company’s signature design elements with those of the watch brand, which is known for its pocketwatch-like crowns at 12 o’clock. The result is the Bovet Tourbillon Ottanta by Pininfarina, of which only 80 pieces (and only 80 movements) will be made.

The watch is powered by a rarity: an automatic movement with a tourbillon. The movement, Calibre 16BA01, has 514 total components and uses an off-center, bidirectional microrotor milled from a single block of platinum. The tourbillon also has a feature never before seen: instead of making its revolution in the typical 60 seconds, it makes it in 80 seconds, a technological feat that is a nod to the 80 years of Pininfarina. To accomplish this, Bovet’s engineers created an intersection in the going train, effectively dividing it into two separate reduction trains after the third wheel, one of which transmits energy to the seconds crown and the other to the tourbillon cage. The latter showcases a hand that traverses points representing eight decades in Pininfarina’s history rather than counting off the seconds per minute. A lacquered crown at 3 o’clock, concentric with the tourbillon cage, indicates the seconds.

The Tourbillon Ottanta also incorporates one of Bovet’s newer developments: its 46-mm case — made of brushed titanium and steel with black DLC — is in the brand’s Amadeo style, which means the case can be rotated to show either the “dial side” or “movement side” in the front. (The case is also available with a bezel and caseback in white or rose gold.) The dial side displays hours and minutes by central hands and has a power reserve indicator at 9 o’clock and a big date display, made up of two concentric disks, at 6 o’clock. An instantaneous date-change system was developed specially for this watch. The movement side offers a view of the microrotor as well as a subdial at 12 o’clock with a single hand that indicates hours, half-hours and quarter hours, in the style of some of the earliest pocketwatches. The moving tourbillon cage is easily visible from both sides.

Pininfarina’s influence is notable in the monochromatic gray/anthracite color scheme; in the eight engraved phrases (each reflecting one decade) on the case’s middle section, expressing Pininfarina’s design philosophies; and in the “alcantara-style” velour lining inside the rubber strap, which evokes the luxurious feel of a Ferrari’s interior leather. There is no shortage of other decorative elements, either, including clous de Paris patterns on the bridges of the tourbillon cage as well as sandblasted, chamfered and hand-polished surfaces and circular graining on various elements throughout the movement. Screws, the power reserve hand, and the balance are in a blue PVD that matches the color of the Pininfarina logo. The rim of the balance wheel evokes the shape of an “8” inside a ring representing a “0” — another nod to the anniversary, as is the 80-hour power reserve offered by the two barrels.

The other feature of the Amadeo case is that the wristwatch easily converts into a pocketwatch or freestanding miniature table clock. The wearer simply presses the two pieces on either side of the bow above the winding crown to release the upper section of the strap, and then uses a minute-repeater-like slide to release the lower section. Atitanium chain that comes with the watch can be attached to the upper part for use as a pocketwatch and the pivoting lower bezel at 6 o’clock forms a stable support for use as a clock. No tools are necessary, and the straps can be just as easily replaced

With two faces on the reversible case and the two additional formats, Bovet claims, the Tourbillon Ottanta can be regarded as four timepieces in one — which is good, because only a few of these watches will make it to U.S. shores, and at a price of around $300,000, they are likely to become as exclusive as some of the classic sportscars on which Pininfarina made its name.

The fourth season of AMC TV’s Emmy-award-winning drama series Mad Men premieres in late July, and the show’s fans have the date circled. The series, which follows the lives and careers of Madison Avenue advertising executives in 1960s New York, has not only wowed critics and fueled revivals of that era’s fashions and classic cocktails — its famous attention to period details has provided substantial fodder for watch enthusiasts.

Some examples of the ongoing discussions and debates:

• The show’s use of real companies as clients for the fictional Sterling Cooper advertising agency is well established, even in throwaway lines of dialogue. A Season Two episode shows young copywriter Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss) on a blind date in a restaurant. When Peggy and Carl, her date, discuss what their families do, he remarks that his sister works as a secretary for Bulova in Flushing, Queens. As pointed out on the International Movie Database (www.imdb.com), this is a gaffe: Bulova was indeed based in Queens in 1962 when the scene takes place, but not in Flushing: it was in Jackson Heights (specifically, 72-20 Astoria Boulevard). The headquarters moved to Woodside, Queens in 1982.

• In a Season Three episode, which takes place in 1963, account executive Ken Cosgrove (Aaron Staton) struts into his colleague’s office beaming about the gifts he has just received from a satisfied client: tickets to the Mets game (the Mets were, of course, a very new team in 1963) and the new watch that he is wearing, which he proudly refers to as a “Hamilton Electric.” The first Hamilton Electric watch was released in 1957, and remained popular until the first quartz models rendered them obsolete in 1969. Ken’s Hamilton watch only makes a brief appearance onscreen, but some believe it may be a Hamilton Ventura, which at the time would have been a very hot item, as it had been seen on the wrist of Elvis Presley.

Ken Cosgrove shows off his new Hamilton Electric, a gift from a satisfied client.

• Of course, the most popular topics involve the series’ leading man, the dashing, enigmatic Don Draper, played by Jon Hamm. The foremost question on the minds of TV watch watchers is, “What is Don wearing?” In fact, the character has worn two distinctly different watches since the series began. In the first season, Don sports a watch in a round steel case, with a white or silver dial surrounded by a black outer ring. Speculation has abounded about this watch, with various Internet sources guessing its identity: an Omega (either a Seamaster or a Suveran), a Rolex Cellini, a Universal Genève Polerouter, even an Elgin. Since there has been no definitive word from anyone associated with the show, this discussion continues.

An Omega? An Elgin? A Rolex Cellini? The manufacturer of Don Draper’s watch from the first season has not yet been definitively identified.

• In Season Two, sharp-eyed viewers have noted that Don begins wearing a noticeably different watch, with a rectangular case that appears to be yellow-gold. While this one also sparked some debates, its identity is easier to definitively discern. In an interview with AMCtv.com, the show’s prop master, Gay Perello, reveals that she and Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner wanted to give Don a new timepiece during that season (presumably, for storyline reasons, one that would reflect the big raise that Don gets when he makes partner at Sterling Cooper). They chose a Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso, which Hamm at first didn’t care for, calling himself “more of a round watch face guy.” However, when Perello showed him the Reverso’s features and he started flipping and playing with the two-sided case, he began to really like it. The watch (by most accounts, a Reverso Classique) also proved an appropriate model for Don’s wife Betty (January Jones) to have his initials engraved on the caseback, a scene written into a later episode. The only controversy left here is whether or not it was even possible to purchase a Reverso in the U.S. in the early 1960s. Despite the fact that the watch was introduced in 1931, the question of when JLC watches were distributed in the States seems to be a subject of some debate.

Don upgrades to a Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso after making partner in the series’ second season.

• Betty’s own watch — a gift from Don in the Season One, which took place in 1960 — has also sparked a fair amount of speculation, with several sources guessing that it is a ladies’ Benrus, and other Mad Men fans saying that the Benrus was far too inexpensive a watch for a classy, affluent guy like Don to give his wife as a present. Most significantly, the watch may be an anachronism: the sticklers on IMDB.com are certain that it is a quartz watch, which obviously would not have existed in 1960. How does one identify it as a quartz model without being sure about the brand? Another mystery for the watch community to unravel. Perhaps Season Four will provide some answers, or at the very least, some more helpful, close-up camera angles.

What sets Jean Dunand apart from other luxury watch brands — aside from its extremely limited production and lofty price points — is the fact that each collection has a totally different look, with no “house style” and very few unifying brand characteristics. The only common principle behind each Jean Dunand model, as voiced by the brand’s owners, Thierry Oulevay and Christophe Claret, is that duo’s love of the Art Deco era and its distinctive design principles.

The Jean Dunand Palace, the new model that made its debut at Baselworld, lives up to those principles in a decidedly new and direct way. It is the first Jean Dunand watch in a square case and it takes its name from London’s Crystal Palace, the steel-and-glass architectural marvel built for the Great Exhibition of 1851. The watch takes its design cues from the Industrial Revolution era of 1880 to 1930 — a half-century that gave birth to automobiles, airplanes, skyscrapers, jazz and, of course, the wristwatch. The era also saw the rise of Art Nouveau and the most iconic structure built in that architectural style, France’s Eiffel Tower, whose recognizable latticework is among the many aesthetic tributes to the Industrial Revolution found in the Palace, in both its case and manufacture movement. (Needless to say, the period also coincides with the life of Jean Dunand, the Art Deco pioneer for whom the brand is named.)

Claret and Oulevay were inspired by numerous sources in their development of the watch. One was the Charlie Chaplin film Modern Times, with its classic scene of the Little Tramp literally caught up in the gears of industry. The arrangement of the gears, wheels and bridges, viewed through the transparent caseback, is an homage to that famous factory scene. Another influence was the oval-shaped “Milwaukee Mile” racetrack, which hosted the pioneers of auto racing in the early 1900s. The oval shape is used on the linear GMT indicator on the lower left of the watch and the linear power-reserve indicator on the lower right. The arrow indicator of the former makes two passes through the two vertical 12-hour scales on either side of the oval: when it reaches bottom, the arrow snaps back to the top and reverses itself 180 degrees to chart the 12 hours on the opposite side.

Vintage motorcycles, particularly those made by Indian, inspired the unusual winding mechanism, which transmits power to the barrel by means of a tiny linked chain reminiscent of that on a motorbike. The movement plates are designed to evoke a reinforced cast-iron structure, supported by little pillars. Through the sapphire viewing apertures in the sides of the case, the side-view of the movement resembles a city skyline, or perhaps the foundations of a skyscraper. The apertures are framed by arches that echo those at the base of the Eiffel Tower; the machined, engraved pattern on all four sides of the case suggests the cross-pieces used in the Tower’s construction and in that of other engineering marvels such as the Grand Canyon’s Navajo Bridge. Flourishes inspired by the pistons, nuts, bolts, and gears of locomotives and early submarines, and by the imagery of Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, are also evident in the movement design. The type font used in the nameplates is from the Art Deco era. Simply put, this is a watch that begs for close examination under a loupe.

The Palace movement and an Indian motorcycle

The Palace movement viewed through the side of the case

Palace case detail, and the inspiration

At 38 mm x 36.4 mm and 12.42 mm thick, the movement, Calibre CLA02CMP, made at Claret’s ultra-modern atelier in Le Locle, Switzerland, is as big as some wristwatch cases. It’s manual-wound, with a one-minute flying tourbillon and a monopusher chronograph (operated by a pusher in the crown at 3 o’clock) that counts up to 60 minutes. It’s made up of over 700 individual parts, including 53 jewels. The massive case is 48.2 mm x 49.9 mm, with a titanium caseband and lugs. The bezel, and caseback are available in either rose gold or white gold. The power reserve is 72 hours and the watch is water-resistant to 30 meters. This ticking touchstone to a bygone era — price yet to decided but sure to be in the six figures — is slated for a fall release.

The Palace crown with coaxial chronograph pusher

Every year, Richemont Group’s luxury watch brands, plus a handful of large, independent brands, exhibit their new watches at SIHH in Geneva’s labyrinthine Palexpo Center. This year, 38 small, independent watch brands put on their own show called the Geneva Time Exhibition (GTE) at the International Geneva Conference Center, in the heart of downtown, near the famed Place des Nations.

On my final day in Geneva for this year’s shows, I visited the GTE and was pleased to find a number of truly creative pieces, and some downright fascinating horological inventions, among the offerings. The spirit of experimental watchmaking appears to be alive and well, despite the rough economy, and not only at the more established luxury brands. What follows are a few of the watches that caught my eye. Prices were not yet available, so I’ve included links to the manufacturers’ sites for further information.

CLERC

The Hydroscaph, the new divers’ model from Clerc, incorporates the brand’s trademark locking system, where a knob at 10 o’clock turns the bezel to the desired position and then locks it into place to prevent unintended changing of the setting for a timed dive. Its case, made of grade-5 titanium and composed of more than 75 parts, has Clerc’s distinctive octagonal shape and measures nearly 50 mm in diameter. The watch has an automatic movement with hours, minutes, seconds, power-reserve display and either a large date or second time zone. A serious diver’s watch, it is water-resistant to 1,000 meters and has a helium-release valve. Clerc also introduced a limited-edition tourbillon version of the Hydroscaph in a rose-gold/black titanium case. That one has a retrograde seconds function at 1:30 and a power-reserve indicator at 5 o’clock, along with its central attraction, an S-shaped, skeletonized, vertical tourbillon bridge, visible through the openworked dial. It is water-resistant to 500 meters and has two barrels holding a power reserve of 120 hours. (www.clercwatches.com)

Clerc Hydroscaph

Clerc Hydroscaph Gold Tourbillon

RITMO MUNDO

Ritmo has finally introduced an automatic version of its dual-time-zone, swiveling-case Persepolis model. The Persepolis Automatique has the same patented orbital case (a colossal 54 mm in diameter and 18.5 mm thick) as its predecessor, which was equipped with two quartz movements, but now includes two Swiss-made mechanical movements to display two distinct time zones, one on each side of the Reverso-like two-sided dial. On each dial, the time and date are positioned in the upper right segment, allowing a view of the mechanical movement behind it. The case is available in five versions, including a new titanium version and some with diamonds. (www.ritmomvndo.com)

Ritmo Mundo Persepolis Automatique

HD3

Combining design touches from historic pirate vessels with a modern “steampunk” sensibility, the new Bi-Axial Black Pearl model is the newest showcase for the bi-axial tourbillon concept first used by watch designer Fabrice Gonet in HD3’s Vulcania line. The large square, multi-part case combines titanium and black PVD. A nautical-cannon-style hatch at 9 o’clock opens up to show off the tourbillon cage in side view as well as a nameplate engraved with the owner’s name. The tourbillon does a full rotation every minute on its first axis and every 30 seconds on its second. A skull-and-crossbones flag adorns the titanium PVD plate that covers the hatch. On the other side of the case is a specially designed crown reminiscent of a frigate’s tiller. The sapphire caseback is decorated with a compass rose motif. The unconventional time display consists of the hours on the “treads” of a wheel at 9 o’clock and minutes on a disk at 12 o’clock. The power-reserve display is in the form of a sextant; the watch holds 80 hours of energy. Only 11 pieces of the Black Pearl are available, each with three strap options: rubber, black alligator leather or black vintage leather with red stitching. (www.hd3complication.com)

HD3 Black Pearl

LOUIS MOINET

Louis Moinet’s new Meteoris collection consists of four tourbillon watches — each a unique piece — with rare meteorite dials. The Mars model is the first to use Martian rock from outer space in a watch dial; it has an 18k white-gold case with 56 baguette-cut diamonds. The Rosetta Stone’s dial is from the oldest known meteorite ever found on earth, estimated to be over four billion years old; it comes in an 18k rose-gold case. The mineral used for the Asteroid is from Itqiy, a mysterious asteroid found near the sun; the case is of white gold with diamonds. And the final model, Moon, which has a rose-gold case, is the first tourbillon watch equipped with a dial of authentic lunar rock. All include Louis Moinet’s exclusive manual-wound tourbillon movement, which connects the carriage to the barrel with a hand-drawn, beveled vertical bar. The barrel is openworked, allowing the watch’s owner to see the motion of the barrel spring and thus keep track of the power reserve. The 47-mm case is made up of 50 parts and is water resistant to 30 meters. The exhibition caseback offers a view of the “octopus-spring” winding mechanism, wherein a single spring activates the pull-out pieces, levers, and clicks. (www.louismoinet.com)

Rosetta Stone model from Louis Moinet’s Meteoris collection

VOLNA

The design of this brand, launched in 2006, is inspired by the look of Soviet-era Russian submarines. Its new limited-edition models, called Typhoon Siberia, are the brand’s first to use grade-5 titanium — known for its exceptional shock resistance, light weight and anti-allergenic qualities — for its cases. The Siberia’s masculine, 46.5-mm case contains a chronograph movement, with hours on a subdial at 12 o’clock and minutes on a subdial at 3 o’clock. The date is indicated in a window at 8 o’clock. The watch includes Volna’s signature feature, a “safety indicator” window that confirms whether or not the double crown has been securely screwed down to make the watch water-resistant. Another brand trademark is the red Super-LumiNova used on the dial’s hands, applied numerals and oversized indices. Two versions of the Typhoon Siberia are available, one with a polished satin finish, the other with two layers of black carbon finish over the titanium for a higher degree of hardness. Each is limited to 125 pieces. (www.volnawatches.ch)

Volna Typhoon Siberia with titanium/black carbon case

LOUIS CHEVROLET

Unbeknownst to most, the man for whom today’s Chevrolet cars are named was not only a pioneer in auto racing and automotive design: he also had watches in his blood, born to a watchmaking family in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland in 1878. Today, Louis’s name graces this young Swiss watch brand, whose models are influenced by automobile aesthetics and incorporate Chevrolet’s lucky number “8” in their designs. Its most eye-catching piece at the fair was the Driver 1911 Concept Watch, a space-age timepiece with sleek curves, sculpted to evoke the silhouette of a vintage Chevy Corvette. The watch contains two movements, visible through the “hood” of the watch in the style of an eight-cylinder racecar engine. The “dashboard” elements, built to be viewed at a 45-degree incline in the manner of a so-called driving watch, include the main dial with hours and minutes flanked by a power-reserve indicator and service indicator (with a hand counting down from 20,000 hours to the watch’s next servicing), designed in the style of odometers. The company intends to release the Driver 1911 in a limited edition of 100 pieces at the beginning of 2011 to mark the 100th anniversary of the Chevrolet Motor Car company founded by the brand’s namesake. (www.louischevrolet.ch)

Louis Chevrolet’s Driver 1911 Concept Watch

ROBERT ET FILS 1630

A young brand named for a legendary Swiss watch family (Abram Robert, one of Switzerland’s first known horologists, was keeper of the town clock in Le Locle in 1630 and his descendant, Josué Robert, was official watchmaker to the King of Prussia in 1725), Robert & Fils makes watches with restored, historic movements and intricately crafted, artistic dials, using traditional artisan techniques like hand-painting, lacquered engraving and grand feu enameling. Among its featured attractions were the three unique pieces of the “Au Fil de l’Air” collection, each showcasing a hand-painted, grand feu enameled bird scene on an 18k-gold dial: the golden oriole, the kingfisher and the duck. The automatic Robert et Cie movements in the watches were originally made in the 1960s and decorated and restored in 2009; each is equipped with a 22k rose-gold, hand-engraved oscillating weight. The cases are 39 mm in diameter, fluted, and made of rose gold. (www.robertfils1630.com)

Robert et Fils 1639 Au Fil de l’Air collection

LINDE WERDELIN

Linde Werdelin expands its SpidoLite SA family with the addition of two new models, one in all-black titanium with DLC coating and another in rose gold with black DLC details, each a limited edition of 88 pieces. These watches feature a 1970s-vintage NOS automatic movement modified in the Andersen Genève atelier of Danish watchmaker and AHCI founding member Svend Andersen (hence the “SA” initials in the model’s name). The SpidoLite is recognizable by its drilled-out case with polygonal facets, based on the notion of removing all the case’s nonessential areas. The result is a large watch (46 x 49 mm) that is nevertheless very lightweight. The design also allows for the movement to be seen through the partially skeletonized dial. An even clearer view of the retouched vintage caliber (renamed AS 1876), with its blue-gold rotor plate inscribed with the logos of Linde Werdelin and Andersen Genève, is available through the sapphire exhibition caseback. (www.lindewerdelin.com)

If, in the wake of the Tiger Woods scandal, you were wondering about the status of his endorsement deal with TAG Heuer, you need only check the company’s Web site for the answer. As this is written, the TAG Heuer home page features a statement from brand CEO Jean-Christophe Babin that “The partnership with Tiger Woods will continue,” while acknowledging that the use of his image in certain markets will be downscaled, “depending upon his decision about returning to professional golf.”

Whatever your view on TigerGate, you have to admire the company’s commitment to its deal with Woods even as new details of his troubles emerge (although one might assume that marketing execs at Rolex, the watch giant that had Woods under contract before losing him to their competitors at TAG, might be breathing a sigh of relief right about now).

Of course Tiger is not the first celebrity watch endorser to encounter scandal and/or controversy. Considering some of the misadventures of other such high-profile figures, and the lack of long-term impact they have had on these stars’ careers and marketability, TAG Heuer’s decision to ride out the Woods tsunami seems to make sense.

TAG had, in fact, hitched its marketing wagon to an even more scandal-prone sports figure several years ago. Track-and-field athlete Marion Jones became known as “the fastest woman alive” after her impressive performance in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, taking home five gold medals. Jones became a media darling and a centerpiece of TAG’s “What are you made of?” sports-watch advertising campaign. It all fell apart in 2007, when Jones admitted taking performance-enhancing drugs before the games and lying about it to two grand juries investigating the infamous BALCO case that involved baseball player Barry Bonds and several other prominent athletes. Jones took the worst hit of them all: she forfeited all of her medals and served a six-month jail term. She’s no longer a TAG Heuer ambassador, but is pondering a return to professional athletics as a hoopster in the WNBA.

Speaking of the Olympics, who can forget champion swimmer and high-profile Omega endorser Michael Phelps, and his historic eight-gold-medal performance at the 2008 Beijing games? Or, for that matter, the infamous video of Phelps doing bong hits at a party less than a year later? The 23-year-old phenom released a statement apologizing for his “youthful and inappropriate” behavior and the whole mess, predictably, blew over rather quickly. The tarnishing of Phelps’s squeaky-clean image lost him his endorsement deal with Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes breakfast cereal, but Omega apparently never even got cold feet about continuing their relationship.

Then there is Emmy-winning actor Kiefer Sutherland, star of “24” and frequent presence in Baume & Mercier ads. Sutherland, a notorious Hollywood hell-raiser since his early days in films like The Lost Boys and Stand by Me, was busted for DUI in September 2007 — while on probation for a previous offense — and served a 48-day jail sentence. L.A. being L.A., however, Sutherland’s stretch behind bars was tailored to minimize disruption to the filming of his hit TV show “24”. The show’s high ratings continue and Sutherland is still doing endorsements, though his B&M campaign has concluded.

Another Baume & Mercier spokesman, actor David Duchovny, became a late-night punch line when he entered rehab for an addiction to Internet porn, a life-imitating-art twist straight from the Triple-X-files of the sex-obsessed character he currently plays on the Showtime series, “Californication.” Both Duchovny’s marriage and career appear relatively unscathed by the scandal: his wife, actress Téa Leoni, has stood by him, and B&M signed him for a major campaign in 2009.

Even a golden boy can sometimes stumble onto some bad press. Movado scored a coup when it signed New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, he of the three Super Bowl rings and matinee-idol looks, to be the face of its 800 Series Chronograph; it even released a special Tom Brady limited edition of that watch. But Brady disappointed many of his fans when he broke up with his girlfriend of three years, actress Bridget Moynahan, shortly after getting her pregnant. After dating and eventually marrying supermodel Gisele Bündchen (coincidentally, a celebrity endorser for Ebel, another watch brand in the Movado Group) and leading his team to an undefeated regular season and Super Bowl appearance in the 2007-2008 season, the star QB’s caddish behavior was mostly forgiven. Today, Brady’s Pats are gunning for another championship, and Movado is still in his corner.

A new luxury watch brand called Nubeo has created an entire watch line, called Black Mamba, to capitalize on the fame of NBA star Kobe Bryant. Leading the Los Angeles Lakers to another title this year has largely erased the public’s memory of Bryant’s escapades of 2003, when the married star was accused of raping a 19-year-old woman in a Colorado hotel room. The sexual assault charge was dismissed but Bryant was publicly shamed for his admitted adultery. It remains to be seen how personally involved Bryant will be in the marketing of Nubeo’s watches and how much of an audience they will find.

The jury is also still out on the endorsement fate of actor Nicolas Cage, still appearing in ads for Montblanc. It has recently been reported that Cage, who had accumulated a fortune in his long career, is now essentially broke, owing millions to the IRS for unpaid taxes and suing his business manager to the tune of $20 million.

It stands to reason that luxury watch companies, who target their wares to a decidedly adult, sophisticated clientele, would be more forgiving about their celebrity ambassadors’ brushes with scandal than a brand that caters to kids, teenagers or a more general audience. And yet, sometimes one of them will pull the plug on a celebrity contract for reasons that are less about public image and more about the bottom line. Case in point: actress Sharon Stone, spokesperson for Christian Dior’s Christal watch, who made a somewhat ill-advised statement about the 2008 earthquake in Sichuan, China that killed more than 68,000 people. Citing China’s treatment of Tibet, Stone asked facetiously, “Is that karma…when you are not nice that bad things happen to you?” The suggestion that the victims may have had it coming was enough to infuriate the Chinese media and to convince Dior, with hopes of expanding its brand further into the huge and growing Chinese market for luxury goods, to remove the outspoken star’s image from all of its marketing there.

So what is the moral of the story here? Perhaps it is this: When it comes to endorsing a luxury brand, you may cheat on your spouse, drive drunk, smoke weed, and dodge taxes — but you may never break the all-important commandment: Thou shalt not jeopardize sales in emerging markets.

With its marketing blitz for the 40th anniversary Moon Watch, the opening of its own boutique on New York’s fashionable Fifth Avenue, and the long-term renewal of its official Olympic timing deal, 2009 has been a big year for Swiss-watch powerhouse Omega. WatchTime recently conducted an exclusive interview with the brand’s president, Stephen Urquhart, in the New York boutique, shortly after the Olympics announcement, to discuss that and a variety of other topics of interest to watch aficionados.

WT: How and when did Omega get involved with Olympic timing?

SU: In the old days, there were several brands involved. In 1932, the IOC [International Olympic Committee] decided that Omega was a brand that could take care of the timing. Of course, it wasn’t like it is today. In the first 100-meter event, the timekeeper was standing over the course with a hand-held stopwatch. Except for a few years since then, Omega has always done it. Vancouver in 2010 will be our 24th. Omega has also participated in many of the technical developments, like the photo-finish cameras, the touch-pad and the kick-pad for swimming, a whole list of things. There’s been a long, great relationship between Omega and the IOC. And with this new arrangement, the brand is now extended as the official timekeeper and data handler until 2020.

At the Olympic timing signing ceremony: L to R Swatch Group Chairman Nicolas G. Hayek Sr., Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek Jr., IOC President Jacques Rogge, and Omega President Stephen Urquhart.

WT: After the failure of the city of Chicago to get the games, I think people might be interested in knowing what is involved as far as dealing with the International Olympic Committee. What did Omega present to them to get the nod as official timekeeper?

SU: We didn’t have to present anything. If we weren’t there, they would have to create a whole new structure. They’d need three, four, five other companies to time the games. It’s not like they could just find a new sponsor, like Burger King or something. They know our technique, they know our expertise; frankly, we’ve had a pretty faultless track record, thank God. That’s the most important factor. We just basically held discussions about the technical things on the one hand and the marketing plans on the other. We basically discussed the small print. I don’t think there was ever any doubt that Omega would continue in this role.

WT: Had you competed with any other companies in the past for this?

SU: In the past, yes. The Swatch Group took it back in 1996. Omega was doing it until 1988. As you know, Omega back then was going through a difficult period. It did the 1992 winter games but the ’92 summer games went to a Japanese brand. In 1996, it was actually the Swatch brand [that was chosen to be the timer]. Mr. Hayek felt that it was a big commitment, marketing-wise, and at that time Swatch was perhaps better positioned to take it over. Also, the games were in a U.S. market [Atlanta], where he felt he really needed to push Swatch. One of the first things that I pushed for when I took over Omega in ’99 was to get Omega back in that role, especially when we knew that the games were going to be in Beijing. Beijing is a very important market for Omega. Now we’re there until 2020 — from Beijing to Vancouver to London, Sochi, Rio, and then who knows?

WT: Since we’re looking forward to Vancouver now, what is involved in the timing of the games? What kind of preparations does Omega make?

SU: I would say there are two aspects. There’s the timing aspect and then there is the marketing and the hospitality aspect. With the timing aspect, it’s probably more complicated to time the winter games than the summer games because there are more venues. In the summer games you have sailing, which is complicated, and some other different sports. But in the winter games, the environment is tougher. You have different terrains, like in the mountains, where you have to lay cable, and you have to deal with the weather. Unlike in the summer, there is not one major stadium where most of the events are held. In Beijing, for example, we had the Bird’s Nest and the Water Cube where a lot of the events took place, and where we had offices. In the winter, all that’s really set up is a bobsled run. The rest is all out in nature, all in a hostile environment. Some people say the winter Olympics are not as big as the summer ones; that’s true. But the importance of the timing is as big, if not bigger.

WT: So your timing devices have to be sturdier for the winter games?

SU: They have to be adapted for the environment, sure. I’m no expert, but I’ve seen a lot of them. I’m not sure if the devices are sturdier or maybe that some of the fiberoptic cable has to be protected when it’s minus 30 degrees. On the marketing side, we have two facilities, one in Vancouver and one in Whistler, where most of the skiing will take place. Omega has a strong presence in Vancouver; the Fairmont Hotel was commissioned as our headquarters. We’ll have all our hospitality events there and we’ll have a big shop — a shop as big as this one, in fact.

WT: You mentioned some of the timing innovations that the company’s come up with over the years. Have any of those made their way into Omega’s wristwatch designs in any way?

SU: To be honest, not really… Of course, in the old days, back in 1932, the watches they used to time the games were the same watches people wore in their waistcoats — mechanical pocket watches with stopwatch functions. Obviously, today, timing the Olympics is a different ballgame. The technology used for that obviously can’t be used in watches. However, we have incorporated some of the same production techniques — the machining and such — into the regular wristwatch line. So you could say that has been useful.

WT: Is Omega releasing any special limited-edition watches to coincide with the Vancouver games?

SU: Well, to be clear, making a limited-edition watch is not the primary reason Omega is timing the games. It’s more of a side project — nice to have, but its importance shouldn’t be exaggerated. The Chinese consumers were very enthusiastic about these limited editions during the Beijing games, so we thought it was important to release a big collection in China — probably even a little too big, in my opinion. But they sold very well because the Chinese wanted limited-edition watches. In Vancouver, we will have a watch, the piece that you’ve seen, and those people who want a commemorative item can get it. It is a pretty standard model, with a bezel in maple-leaf red, aimed very much at the Canadian market, which is very different than that of Europe or even the U.S.

Omega’s Limited Edition Seamaster for the Vancouver Games

WT: What is distinct about the Canadian watch market?

SU: I think it’s a little bit more classical, a little sportier. The price factor is important. The price level in Canada is, maybe, not as high as the east or west coast of the U.S., or of Europe. Maybe I’m wrong, but we’ll see. There will be 2,010 pieces, of course.

WT: The other big event that Omega is involved in this year is the 40th anniversary of the moon landing. How’s that doing for the brand, and what is Omega’s current involvement in the space program?

SU: We’ve been heavily involved in the space program since 1969 and even before. I’d say the last few years we’re really been pushing it a lot because that link is so important to Omega. Every year we’ve found some kind of anniversary to commemorate, like the space walk, et cetera. But this year, I’ve got to admit that it was incredible to see the enthusiasm for the 40th anniversary because it wasn’t there as much for the 30th in 1999. Maybe it has something to do with the new President, the connection of Obama to Kennedy. I don’t know, but I felt that this year we put forth a tremendous effort. We made an incredible investment; Omega had never done such a big program for the Moon Watch before. The JFK television commercial was fantastic. It seemed as though every TV station had big, long programs on the moon story. I don’t remember seeing those 10 years ago. Maybe the fact that we were in the middle of a financial crisis made this a message that the American people related to… nostalgia for a better time, some good news, not some damn broker saying that the stock market will go down.

Stephen Urquhart with Buzz Aldrin celebrating the 40th anniversary of the moon landing.

WT: I saw that television commercial with the JFK footage a lot in prime time; you don’t see that much from watch companies. What made you decide to use that medium?

SU: We had a fabulous message and we had a fantastic person to deliver the message, that being JFK. The Kennedy foundation was very open to our proposal to use him and I think it’s a great, great message.

Omega’s print ad featuring JFK

WT: What’s going on with the NASA programs now, as regards Omega?

SU: We have a good rapport with them, of course. [Apollo astronauts] Gene Cernan, Tom Stafford, and Buzz Aldrin are around the world doing events. For the moment NASA is very happy, because their needs are still met with our Speedmaster. We’ve talked with them about their needs, maybe, for going to Mars, but we don’t know when that’s going to happen. Maybe they’ll need a watch that keeps time differently, because Mars has different time than Earth — a day is not 24 hours there. That would be an interesting and fun project. But I think for the moment their priority is not the watch, but how to get there. Mars is not going to be so easy.

WT: Getting to the regular Omega line, when you launched the Hour Vision line with Caliber 8500 a few years ago, you said that the intention was to move Omega into using more in-house movements. How has that plan been progressing?

SU: We’re on schedule. We’ve introduced a ladies’ caliber, an in-house movement with our co-axial escapement. Coming up in a year or two is the chronograph version. I’ve said this many times before, but I reckon that within three years — except for the Moon Watch, which will still have it’s original movement, and a few quartz models for ladies only — that Omega will be 100 percent in-house, using our own co-axial movement.

WT: And they will all be based on Caliber 8500?

SU: Yes, and the results of that movement have been incredible. The co-axial escapement that we launched 10 years ago has been getting very good results. There were some issues with it in the beginning, as you know. Originally we integrated the co-axial into an existing movement. But Omega caliber 8500 was completely built from scratch — built around the co-axial escapement as opposed to building the escapement into the movement. We’re very confident that we now have the best technicians working on it. We have about a three-year track record in the market now, and the results have surpassed all expectations.

WT: So the next in-house movement is a chronograph movement; is that a module on the 8500 or a totally new movement?

SU: It’s a completely new movement, not a module at all. So we will have ladies, men’s and chronograph, all in a couple years’ time. We already have the chrono movement, and it’s testing nicely. I even wear one when I’m at home.

WT: What other new products and developments can we expect to see from Omega next year?

SU: We have a collection that’s very categorized — four family lines, each one with its own profile. This year we did a relaunch of the Constellation line. It was completely redone, launched recently in China and now we have it here in the U.S. It’s the same watch, but it looks completely different, with a new dial design. The new Aqua Terra is a fantastic watch; that one uses the new 8500 and 8501 movement. We have the new Seamaster Planet Ocean Liquid Metal Limited Edition; a few pieces will come out this year. That will be a first for a watch brand.

Omega’s Seamaster Planet Ocean Liquid Metal Limited Edition

WT: Can you describe what “liquid metal” is?

SU: The press release will tell you better than I could. When I think of liquid metal I think of that guy in the Terminator film! We also have the De Ville with Hour Vision, the complications, all our technical pieces. Of course, we’re going to come out with new models. But we’re not selling to a restricted number of customers. We have a large customer base, both geographically and demographically.

WT: So, to get the big picture, as you speak about the worldwide appeal of the line, is there an overall plan on how to navigate the rough economic climate, specifically in the U.S.?

SU: There’s not really a plan. I think we just continually try, for the last few years anyway, to be consistent. The consumer, I think, appreciates and realizes that we are a brand of substance. We’re not the only one — but the few brands out there that are doing okay are the brands that have substance. They are consistent in their message, they don’t panic, they don’t start giving incredible discounts and incentives, or coupons in the mail. I won’t mention anybody. The problem we have is mainly at the retail level; retailers are in trouble because they’re short of cash, and they have too much stock of many brands, but not Omega. They can’t buy the same as they could before. This, you have to accept. Our own shop here, which we opened in April, is doing very well. The consumer is still there, but obviously a bit more cautious. We wouldn’t be investing in a shop like this if I didn’t believe that.

If you were looking for reasons to be more upbeat about the U.S. economy this week, there were a few to be found. You could have watched Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke on the TV news proclaiming that the recession is over. Or you could’ve had a lot more fun by attending this year’s largest-ever “Inside Basel-Geneva” watch collectors’ event in New York, hosted by WatchTime and noted watch expert Jeff Kingston.

Attendance at the event, held September 15 at midtown Manhattan’s luxurious Grand Hyatt Hotel, was at a record high despite the rough economic climate — over 200 guests came to hobnob with fellow watch enthusiasts, get up close and personal with more than a dozen sponsoring watch brands, enjoy a three-course dinner, and to watch Kingston’s presentation of the horological highlights from this year’s Basel and SIHH watch fairs.

The sponsors were a plethora of luxury watch producers, from large, established marques to up-and-coming boutique and artisan brands. They included Cartier, Piaget, Vacheron Constantin, IWC Schaffhausen, A. Lange & Sohne, Montblanc, Carl F. Bucherer, Martin Braun, F.P. Journe, H. Moser & Cie, and the trio of Linde Werdelin, Armin Strom and Ladoire from the artisan group Totally Worth It Watches.

Guests enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres while visiting the exhibitors’ tables to meet watch brand representatives and admire the timepieces on display. Afterward, the crowd sat down for dinner and the evening’s main event. After an introduction by WatchTime editor-in-chief Joe Thompson, Kingston took the stage with a multimedia presentation that showcased dozens of new watches introduced at Basel and Geneva this year, along with personal interviews with watchmakers and watch company executives conducted at the shows. At the end of the evening, attendees left with an armload of gift bags from the various sponsoring brands.

The 2009 “Inside Basel-Geneva” tour comes to Chicago on September 29 before wrapping up in Dallas on October 1. You can register for those events by clicking here.

Here are some scenes from the evening. You may click the images to view larger versions.

Guests arrive and the room begins to fill

Guests appreciate the fine timepieces on display

WatchTime staff were on hand. Below, editor-in-chief Joe Thompson with a guest

Publishing director Wolfgang Blum (left) with guests

Joe Thompson (left), Jeff Kingston (center), and managing editor Mark Bernardo (blue sportcoat) meet guests

Click here to view more images from WatchTime’s Inside Basel-Geneva 2009 New York

In 1999, Richard Mille left his position as CEO of the Mauboussin watch and jewelry house to launch his own watch brand. His first model, the groundbreaking RM 001 — with its ultramodern design and technically fascinating movement made by Renaud et Papi — set the stage for the line, which has since become one of the leading “artisan” watch brands on the market.

Richard Mille watches are characterized by their futuristic styling inspired by Formula 1 racecars — a passion of its founder— and their use of modern, sometimes exotic materials in its movements, most of which are equipped with tourbillons. For many watch aficionados, the ones who covet RM watches despite high prices and long delivery times, the brand has changed the perceptions of what a mechanical watch should look and feel like on the wrist. I sat down with Mr. Mille for a wide-ranging conversation on his products, his philosophy, and the watch industry in general. He has passionate opinions on all three, and is not afraid to share them. What follows are the highlights.

WT: Your training is in business rather than watchmaking. At what point did you want to design your own watch?

RM: In my career, I had become fed up with marketing obligations. I realized that the only way to do what I wanted to do was to launch my own brand, with no limits or constraints other than technical ones. The paradox I saw was that many watchmakers were giving themselves limits: their only dream was to do replicas of 18th- or 19th-century watches. Today, watches are made by machines, so I said to myself that if we have to use machines, let’s do contemporary watches. Yet I also wanted to use the best of the watch culture, which is to say, a lot of hand craftsmanship. I never wanted to impose a price limit on my developments; the prices are the results of my choices. I don’t give a damn if a movement takes four months to be assembled, because I’m not obsessed by volume. I release the 20 or 30 pieces, and of course they are very expensive.

WT: You had faith that no matter what they cost, the watches you were going to make would find an audience?

RM: I was sure I would sell a few dozen pieces; I didn’t know that the public would demand a few thousand, and more! Even with everyone talking about a financial crisis, I am up 17% from last year at this time. Three years ago I did 1,500 pieces. Last year I did a few more than 2,000. This year I might do 2,300 or 2,500. In the long run my objective is to do between 3,000-4,000 pieces, probably not more than that.

WT: Which interest came first for you — auto racing, aviation, or watches?

RM: Racecars are already influenced greatly by aeronautics, in the areas of materials and aerodynamics. In making watches, as with both cars and planes, you have the same problem of transmission of power. You have the same problem of rigidity. You have the same problem of shock resistance. In a car or an aircraft, you must solve those problems and that is exactly what I tried to do in my watches. I love watch culture, car culture, aircraft culture, space culture… but I am not prisoner to any of them. With my watches, the goal is a synthesis of all of these.

WT: Was there a moment when you were looking at cars and airplanes and realized that you, as someone in the watch business, could apply these techniques?

RM: Yes, but it was long before I launched my brand. I was always amazed, for example, that people in the watch business were still using brass in movement plates. Brass is not a very rigid material. I’ve seen that the baseplate has a tendency to twist, which is a problem when you have wheels with the tolerance of a micron. This is why I chose titanium [for my baseplates] — not because it was a sexy or new material but because it’s extremely rigid. I also used carbon nanofibers: it’s an amorphous material that can last for hundreds of years without moving one micron, so it’s ideal.

WT: Were you one of the first to use titanium inside a watch?

RM: I was the first to use it for the baseplates, yes. I was also the first to use carbon nanofibers.

WT: And you see both of these materials everywhere now.

RM: Yes, but in the cases, not the movements. Almost nobody uses titanium for base plates, or even carbon nanofibers. Audemars Piguet [which also uses movements from Renaud et Papi] is the only other company that does it, and I’ll tell you why. One, because it costs a fortune; two, because the manufacturing is very, very difficult. For the titanium baseplates I need, I have more than a 70% rejection rate. Some companies are using carbon Kevlar, which is very cheap; it is a tissue of carbon fiber with epoxy resin. It has nothing to do with carbon nanofibers, which are much more expensive. Carbon nanofibers are used on Formula 1 racecar brakes and space shuttles.

WT: Many watch companies market themselves as “traditional.” While you are certainly using traditional mechanical watchmaking methods, you emphasize the modernity, not shying away from the fact that you’re using modern, high-tech machines in the process. Do you feel you’ve influenced other brands to adopt this approach?

RM: I think so. I emphasize the modernity, but at the same time I respect the culture. All my models are hand-finished. Many companies make 18th-century types of watches, but manufactured by machines and finished by machines. My level of rejection is between 35 to 40 percent of the finished products. Finishing by hand makes the process much riskier.

WT: Your brand has become very associated with the tonneau-shaped case. Is there something about this shape that appeals to you specifically?

RM: Not really. Originally, I wanted to do a rectangular model. But to fit all the devices inside, I had to enlarge it into a tonneau. In my first drawing of the RM-001, the watch was rectangular.

Richard Mille’s first watch, the RM 001

WT: Did ergonomics also play a role in the design?

RM: From the beginning. I am crazy about ergonomics. People who buy my watches wear them because they are very comfortable. My new diver’s watch, the RM-025, is a big beast, but a beast that fits very, very well on the wrist. I push my people to the limit on this. It’s very difficult to make a watch ergonomic, but I fight like mad to do so, including with the crowns. We’ve all had watches that made you want to kill the designer because winding them was a nightmare. I’ve also fought against this marketing concept of “perceived value” — the idea that the watch must weigh a lot to have a value. To me, that’s nonsense. In fact, it costs much more to manufacture a watch in titanium than the same one in gold. It’s very difficult to work with titanium. When I came out with watches in titanium that were as expensive as a gold piece, people said I was crazy. But a lot of customers appreciated that it was very comfortable. Now it is accepted that a light watch can cost as much as a heavy watch. After all, who is going to say, “My car weighs five tons, so it should cost more than a car that weighs one ton?” Everybody is fighting against weight today. And to fight against weight costs a fortune.

The RM 025: a “beast” engineered for wrist comfort

WT: You’ve also not expressed a great interest in making a movement from scratch.

RM: Well, the truth is that most of the so-called manufactures are, in fact, assemblers. They buy their parts from here and from there. The other day I was at the Vaucher factory in Fleurier, and I saw bridges being made for a brand that I will not name that everybody says is a manufacture. My philosophy is that I don’t pretend to do everything myself. Nobody is doing everything from scratch because everybody is chasing down balance wheels here, springs and bridges there, and then they assemble them. When you visit most of these companies, where do you see the big machines that [make these parts]? Nowhere. So it’s a big lie.

WT: Do you believe the word manufacture gets thrown around more often then it should in the watch business?

RM: Exactly. And I am lucky enough to work with by far the best true manufacture in the world, which is Renaud et Papi. I work with them from the beginning through the finished watch. When they did the RM 001, nothing like it existed in the market. It was the first time in watch history that a watch was made with a baseplate composed only of tubes. They all had to be adjusted, vertically and horizontally perfect, so the wheels would work with the turbines in this construction. This was an incredible challenge. It was all from scratch. And when you start a piece like that, you don’t always know when you’ll finish.

WT: So it starts with your idea and Renaud et Papi makes it a reality?

RM: Exactly. It’s like with Formula 1: you always deal with the best professionals. I have the best crown maker in the world. I have the best sapphire crystal maker in the world. I have the best people making dials. Because I don’t care about the cost. Collectors understand that. I am not ashamed to say that from the beginning I have worked with Renaud et Papi. But I was the one who came to them, saying, I want this, this, and this.

WT: Richard Mille watches are among the more “masculine”-looking watch lines out there. What made you decide to release ladies’ models like the RM 019 Celtic Knot tourbillon watch?

RM: From the business point of view, I wanted to control my company’s growth. The extreme pieces I’m doing with Renaud et Papi are very limited in volume. They cannot deliver more than about 300 pieces a year. Also, I do not want to be a prisoner to only one style. As with the RM 001, I wanted the tourbillon to represent only about 20 percent of what makes the watch interesting. Today, the tourbillon alone isn’t that interesting to anybody. People buy a tourbillon watch from me because I give them something else. They will buy this piece, the ladies watch, not simply because it’s a tourbillon but because it’s beautiful: the base plate is in onyx. Look at the engraving on the back. The decoration in three dimensions is also a masterpiece. On the watch I did for Boucheron [the RM 018], it’s the same. The tourbillon device is exotic, but [the most interesting features are] the wheels, which for the first time in watch history are made from precious stones. This one will be only 30 pieces, each one unique from the others.

For the ladies: RM 019 features a tourbillon, a black onyx baseplate and a diamond-studded “Celtic knot” dial design.

Made exclusively for the 150th anniversary of famed Paris jeweler Boucheron, the limited-edition RM 018 has a white gold case and wheels made from precious stones.

WT: Speaking of special projects, what motivated you, with such an ultra-modern brand, to create something as “retro” as the RM 020 tourbillon pocket watch?

RM: Because I was fed up to here that the pocket-watch was regarded as dead. I think it is very limiting to think that only wristwatches can be considered watches. Originally, all watches were pocket watches. So, again, I want to pay tribute to the watch culture, but in a modern way.

WT: You figured you were the one to bring the pocket watch into the 21st century?

RM: Exactly. I am the one who gives the kiss to sleeping beauty! [laughs] And it’s a magnificent piece. I could have done a pocket watch like your grandfather’s pocket watch, but nobody is interested in that. I think if the high-end watch business carries on like it has, it will become so boring that it will die. I am sincere when I say that. We must be open to the worlds of art, architecture, lifestyle… open to new concepts. A tourbillon or a minute repeater doesn’t really have any relevance to anybody today. As I said, I respect the watch culture. But to use the machinery of today to make 18th century watches, it’s like if you were in the automobile industry and using the technology to make replicas of the Ford Model T. [As a collector,] you’re better off going to an auction and buying a real one from the 19th or early 20th century. It’s very important to approach it as if you were in the arts. When the Cubists came, it was a rupture with existing culture, but at the same time it didn’t neglect the past.

WT: I also just realized that since this model is a pocket watch, and not worn on the wrist, the Tourbillon actually serves a function — which it does not do in a wristwatch.

RM: Yes. We have come back to the original purpose of the tourbillon!

Richard Mille’s RM 020 tourbillon pocket watch, with its square titanium case and detachable chain, is a modern interpretation of a vintage timepiece.

The RM 020’s two big barrels provide the watch approximately 10 days of power.

When attending gala events at glitzy venues like Cipriani at historic 55 Wall Street in New York City, it is not uncommon to see ice sculptures among the décor. However, the ones at last week’s “Shock the World 2009” event, hosted by Casio, would’ve given most anyone pause: inside them were watches, frozen in place like flies in amber.

Guests at the event soon realized the reason, as Shigenori Itoh, vice president of Casio’s Timepiece division (pictured below), demonstrated the brand’s flair for the dramatic. On stage for the media presentation, he pulled a lever to dump one of the carved ice blocks, along with the watch inside it — one of Casio’s G-Shock models — several feet to the floor, shattering it to pieces. Itoh picked up the watch, noting that, other than being extremely cold to the touch, it was not only unscathed but still functioning. Itoh revealed that the tough timepiece had been languishing in the ice for a full three days.

It was an appropriate opening act for the evening, which introduced a new crop of Casio G-Shock watches to a crowd of invited guests, who were also treated to cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and a special private concert by one of G-Shock’s most famous celebrity endorsers, Grammy-winning hip-hop star Kanye West.

The festivities also served as a reminder that those of us who spend much of our time following the world of luxury mechanical timepieces, and lauding the Swiss masterminds who work miracles with wheels and rotors, can often overlook the similarly impressive accomplishments of the Japanese Brainiacs who create their own types of horological wonders with circuits and microchips.

Casio, a Japanese company known for computing devices, entered the U.S. watch market in 1974. Its first release was a world first: an LCD watch equipped with a full auto calendar with leap year. Other firsts followed, throughout the digital-dominated 1970s and ‘80s and into the new millennium: the first watch with a databank and the first with weather-forecasting sensors (both 1984); the first with a GPS function and the first with a digital camera (1999); and the first with an MP3 player (2000).

Casio’s flagship watch, however, was conceived with a simpler goal in mind: it had to be indestructible — the ultimate accessory for an active lifestyle in the digital age. The guiding principle was what engineers referred to as the “Triple 10” concept: 10-year usage lifespan, 10-ATM (or 100-meter) water-resistance and 10-meter impact resistance. The original G-Shock (ref. DW500C) debuted in the U.S. in 1983 and has gained a large following ever since, one that the mechanical renaissance of the past two decades has not diminished. As new models with numerous functions — thermometers, altimeters, et cetera, all obviously powered by quartz movements — have been introduced throughout the years, Casio has continued to upgrade their technology, all with an eye toward increasing reliability and accuracy. First, it increased the watches’ battery life with solar technology (similar to that of the more well-known Citizen Eco-Drive) that uses renewable solar energy to power the watches’ functions. Then it became the first watch company to use the so-called Multi-Band 6 Atomic Timekeeping technology, a radio-controlled system that uses a tiny antenna to receive time calibration signals from six “atomic clock” transmission stations worldwide. These signals constantly adjust minuscule differences in the time once every 24 hours to achieve to-the-second precision. Most recently, the company introduced its 5 Motor Drive technology, which uses multiple tiny motors to independently control the chronograph hands in its analog models, which encompass some G-Shocks as well as models in Casio’s other brands like Oceanus and Edifice. A specially developed “Auto-hand” location technology checks and adjusts the watch’s hands once every hour.

Casio unveiled two new G-Shocks for 2009 at the event. One is the G-Rescue (Ref. G7900), inspired by search-and-rescue teams. The big hexagonal case has four huge screws and the biggest buttons ever on a G-Shock for easy operability even if the user is wearing gloves. This digital watch boasts the trademark G-Shock ruggedness and impact resistance (it’s able to withstand temperatures as low as -4 F and water pressure to 200 meters) and includes multiple adventure-oriented functions: a moon and tide graph, world timer, four alarms, a 1/100-second chronograph and a 12/24 hour format. The G-Rescue is available in black, white or red, and retails for a (very!) recession-friendly $99.

Below, Casio’s G-Rescue in red

There’s also a new ana-digi model, called the G-Aviation (Ref GW2500), Casio’s high-tech answer to the recent flurry of pilots’ watches. It includes several features that make it useful for aviators, including its “hybrid mount” case construction that withstands intense gravitational forces and vibrations that you’d encounter in a flight; an aircraft-console-like dial design with a 3-city simultaneous display; big, luminous hands and Arabic “12” for easy visibility; and an automatic LED light that you can activate by tilting the watch toward you. The G-Aviation comes on a resin band for $240 and a metal IP bracelet for $350.

The G-Aviation on resin strap

The G-Aviation on steel bracelet

Casio introduced other projects at the event, including new G-Shock models with metallic-color cases and straps; a new line of scaled down models called G-Shock Mini; and the design for the new Casio Concept Shop, a modern retail space at New York’s Tourneau Time Machine, the world’s largest watch store, with interactive, motion-sensor display cases. The company’s partnerships with Tourneau — and its significant presence at recent years’ Basel watch fairs — should leave no doubt that Casio intends to be a player in the low-to-mid-range quartz watch market for the foreseeable future.

G-Shocks are now available in metallic colors

The new Casio Concept Shop at New York’s Tourneau Time Machine

Two more G-Rescues, in black and white