Hodinkee Joins Forces With Watches Of Switzerland

So how did we get right here? Nicely, it is a lengthy, winding story – however suffice it to say, Hodinkee has all the time been a enterprise that folks appreciated and revered. Famously, we obtained our first acquisition supply over ten years in the past, after we had been all of three folks. As an alternative, we raised cash and went out on our personal. That was round 2015 or so. Across the identical time, I obtained an e mail from a good friend in Europe saying I ought to speak to some of us on the largest UK retailer as a result of they had been serious about the U.S. market. I did – and people folks had been Brian Duffy and David Hurley, then, and nonetheless now, the fellows behind the Watches of Switzerland Group. We obtained alongside nice, and I keep in mind pondering then, “Wow, if these guys got here into the U.S. – it could actually, actually shake issues up.” And it has. And all for the higher – as a result of it’s important to keep in mind simply how, properly, unhealthy watch retail was within the U.S. 10 years in the past. Certain, you can get watches extra simply, however the product was typically commoditized, with poor experiences for the buyer extra frequent than was deserved. Watches of Switzerland, after they got here into the U.S., helped change that and, with it, your entire retail scene right here. With Watches of Switzerland in place, others needed to stage up, and so they did. The U.S. market is now the most important, and most secure, marketplace for watches on the earth.