WatchTime New York: America’s Luxury Watch Show Draws More Than 700 Guests


WatchTime hosted its largest and most luxurious consumer event to date, WatchTime New York, on October 23rd and 24th at Manhattan’s Gotham Hall, drawing an enthusiastic crowd of more than 700 guests over the course of the two-day event.

Twenty luxury watch brands, from internationally renowned manufacturers to up-and-coming independents, displayed their newest timepieces at the show, some of which were being seen by the American public for the first time. Guests had the opportunity to try on watches as well as mingle with watch company executives, industry experts, and fellow watch aficionados. The two-day program also included several exclusive presentations and watchmaking demonstrations.

The sponsoring brands were A. Lange & Söhne, Armin Strom, Ball, Bell & Ross, Blancpain, Breguet, Carl F. Bucherer, Emmanuel Bouchet, F.P. Journe, MeisterSinger, Moritz Grossmann, Mühle, Nomos, Pierre DeRoche, Porsche Design, RGM, Tutima, Ulysse Nardin, and Visconti. Porsche Design used WatchTime New York for the launch of its all-new 1919 Datetimer Series; Armin Strom created an exclusive white-gold/blue PVD version of its Skeleton Pure Water model exclusively for the show.

Jeff Kingston (right) gives a behind-the-scenes tour to collectors.

The large and diverse crowd of attendees at the sold-out VIP cocktail party on Friday the 23rd included professional boxer and commentator Paulie Malignaggi and actor Dwayne Hill (Mean Girls). The all-day session on Saturday the 24th was highlighted by “On My Watch,” WatchTime editor-in-chief Joe Thompson’s candid talk and Q&A session on his 40 years covering the watch industry; watch expert and brand consultant Jeff Kingston’s guided “timepiece tour” of the event and “Inside Basel & Geneva” multimedia presentation; and an informal “Watches and Whisky Happy Hour” in which guests could talk watches and sip Dalmore single malt Scotch with social media sensation Anish Batt, founder of watch-and-lifestyle site WatchAnish.com.

WTNY 2015 - RGM Booth
RGM founder Roland Murphy shows his collection to guests.
A guest enjoys the Tutima collection.

Guests also enjoyed hospitality from an array of other brand partners, including BMW, which offered chauffeur service to VIP guests; Delta Airlines, which hosted a life-size first-class cabin with flight attendants serving wine; SLH Hotel Group, which provided discounted rooms for out-of-town attendees; and men’s lifestyle blog French Morning, which sponsored a tasting of M. Chapoutier wines.

WTNY 2015 WatchTime Staff, Anish, Jeff
l-r: Anish “Watch Anish” Bhatt, Joe Thompson, Sara Orlando, Jeff Kingston

“It was a pleasure to meet so many watch enthusiasts and WatchTime fans in person at the event,” said Joe Thompson. “The great turnout for both days was another reminder of the deep, passionate interest that so many of our readers have for this hobby and this industry.”

“WatchTime New York exceeded all the expectations we had for a first-year event,” added Sara Orlando, publisher of WatchTime. “I want to thank everyone who attended, and especially all of the watch sponsors and other brand partners who played a key role in making the show such a smashing success.”

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