Georges Kern is emphatic. The Breitling Chief Executive Officer isn't slowing down on plans to expand his company's reach. Even as U.S. tariffs and economic headwinds challenge the industry, Kern is pushing ahead with planned launches of the Universal Geneve and Gallet brands in 2026. 

He's already orchestrated rapid growth and value creation at the historic Breitling marque since taking on the top job in 2017. Breitling was sold to private equity partners for less than a billion dollars that year. In late 2022, a change in majority shareholder valued the company at more than $4 billion, sources said at the time.  

But now with the industry facing a host of economic and political pressures, Kern's expansion efforts are being tested. In a candid interview, he says the luxury watch industry is poised for an eventual rebound. People won't delay purchases forever, he says, and when they're ready, he expects his growing stable of brands to have the right products to match the wants and needs of new clients.

Show Notes:

Show Notes:

5:00 Breitling's deal with the NFL 

5:50 Breitling watches

6:00 Morgan Stanley LuxeConsult Watch Market Report 7:10 Breitling Emergency 8:00 Breitling Top Time

10:21 Breitling Navitimer 

15:30 Panerai 

18:15 Breitling to Relaunch Gallet

22:30 Universal Geneve 

26:10 Hermés Bags 

27:00 Price of gold 

29:40 How the Swiss watch industry is dealing with tariffs 

32:20 What's up with watch prices? 

34:30 Swiss Watch Exports 

35:40 China Watch Market 

38:10 Carpe Diem 

Sylvain Berneron is in high demand, and so are his watch designs. Just last week, a 34-millimeter version of his debut time-only watch, the Berneron Mirage, came up for public auction for the first time, and bidding soared beyond the CHF80,000 high estimate to fetch a staggering CHF241,300, including fees. Having previously worked in the automotive industry with BMW, Berneron is a designer who has now chosen watchmaking as the canvas to express himself and his ideas. 

After departing the big brand corporate atmosphere of Breitling, he's enjoyed significant success so far with his own brand and has just unveiled his second collection - Quantième - and an annual calendar that brings a unique, yet superbly finished, movement architecture to the complication that aims to simplify setting and provide a stress-free experience for the user. Sized at just 38 millimeters in diameter and 10 millimeters thick, the dial design is both stunning and innovative in the way the time and date are displayed, while the platinum case features removable (and replaceable) steel elements that act as bumpers and guards for the precious metal. 

But this podcast is about business, and Berneron indulged us with a lengthy, candid, and exceedingly in-depth discussion about his plan for building a brand and sustainable company that bears his family name. He tells us why he's set up shop in a Swiss industrial park, the business strategy behind limiting production to less than 25 of each specific watch per year, and why he's turned down creative jobs at Rolex and tens of millions of dollars in financing from potential investors despite having barely a holiday or weekend off for the last half-decade. It's a deep dive into the business strategy and plan of a young, driven, red-hot watch brand that's trying to make it for the long haul. We hope you enjoy. 

Show Notes:

3:20 Berneron Quantième Annuel 

4:45 Berneron SA 

6:20 Panerai manufacture in Neuchatel 

13:00 BMW Research and Innovation Centre

13:40 Breitling 

18:20 Ben Clymer on founding Hodinkee and a professional life in watches

24:00 White label watch manufacturers in Switzerland include companies like Roventa-Henex 

25:50 Swiss watch components makers include companies like Acrotec, the biggest supplier 

32:15 Breitling Sells Controlling Stake to CVC Capital

32:50 Nicolas G. Hayek Sr. 

40:20 Building Resilient Teams: What Business Can Learn From Military Cohesion 

42:20 Employee Share Plans In Switzerland: A Regulatory Overview

47:00 Long-term commercial lease agreements in Switzerland: An Overview

49:00 Panerai 

51:10 Hands On Review Of The Berneron Mirage

59:30 Family Offices 1:11:00 Mountain Survival Tips for Beginners

1:12:03 Audemars Piguet Buys Key Supplier

1:16:30 GPHG Audacity Prize Awarded to Sylvain Berneron

1:17:00 Why Using Your Last Name Is The Last Way To Name Your Company (Forbes)

1:18:56 Business Ethics Key Principals (Investopedia) 

1:19:02 Simon Sinek 

1:21:35 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

1:23:10 MB&F

1:23:20 Simon Brette

1:23:25 Xhevdet Rexhepi 

1:23:28 Rexhep Rexhepi 

1:23:30 Petermann Bédat

1:24:50 When Art Is Putting Yourself In Danger (CBC) 

1:26:30 The Art of War (Sun Tzu) 

1:27:06 Trust The Process (Simon Sinek) 

1:31:49 The Transformative Power of Sabbaticals (Harvard Business Review) 

1:37:00 Luxury and Socially Valued Behavior (Columbia Business School)

1:38:05 Germany's Car Industry Crisis 

1:39:00 Hans Wilsdorf Foundation 

1:41:00 Inside Rolex (Ben Clymer)

1:45:00 Patek Philippe Calatrava Collection

1:45:45 Fiasco (Wikipedia) 

1:46:20 Batman Two-Face 

1:53:00 Fathers Give Watch Collecting Advice (Hodinkee)

1:55:20 Christopher Ward

1:55:45 Swatch Group 

1:58:00 MoonSwatch Phenomenon (Hodinkee)

Welcome to the first episode of a brand new podcast for Hodinkee. It's called The Business of Watches, and it's hosted by me, Andy Hoffman. Each episode, delivered once every two weeks, will feature conversations with authors, CEOs, industry insiders, and fellow journalists as we uncover the business behind your favorite watches and watch brands. 

Want to subscribe so you never miss an episode? This new show is being published to the original Hodinkee Podcasts feed, so you can subscribe wherever you find your podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or TuneIn.

Episode 01 - Rolex, The Making Of A Status Symbol With Author Pierre-Yves Donzé

Notoriously secretive when it comes to its operations and accounts, there haven't been a lot of business-focused books on Rolex, the biggest and most successful Swiss watch brand. At least until now, that is. Academic and professor of business history at Osaka University, Pierre-Yves Donzé is the author of The Making Of A Status Symbol, A business history of Rolex translated and published in English this year.  We wanted to start our new podcast, The Business of Watches, by talking about the most important Swiss brand, and Donzé serves as an ideal guest, explaining the decisions and events that shaped Rolex into what it is today. 

The episode is full of revelations, from how Rolex dealt with the business challenges of a strong Swiss franc and the arrival of quartz, to how the brand overtook Omega in sales, and the critical role the U.S. has played in the company's history and success. Thanks so much for listening, and be sure to drop by the comments section if you have any thoughts or questions on the episode. We'll be back in two weeks with another episode of The Business of Watches. If you have any questions for an upcoming Q&A episode, please leave them in the comments below. 

This episode of The Business of Watches is brought to you by Panerai. Click here to learn more about the Luminor Collection.

Show Notes: 

3:40 The Making Of A Status Symbol, A Business History of Rolex (Manchester University Press)

5:25 Pierre-Yves Donzé

7:25 Rolex 

10:30 Hans Wilsdorf

15:00 Rolex Kew A

16:01 COSC

18:10 Aegler SA and Rolex

20:50 UK taxation during WWI

24:30 Rolex Oyster case

26:00 Panerai 

28:05 Rolex company history 1926-1945

30:50 Rolex Cosmograph Daytona

32:00 André Heiniger

33:50 Hans Wilsdorf Foundation

35:20 Rolex Explorer Ad 1960s (Ad Patina)

36:38 J. Walter Thompson 

39:20 Arnold Palmer (Rolex Magazine)

40:30 Mark McCormack 

43:30 Omega 

45:00 Placido Domingo 

47:00 Rolex Oysterquartz

51:26 Rolex Lady-Datejust

53:30 Rare interview with Rolex CEO Jean-Frédéric Dufour about Watches and Wonders (NZZ)

1:00:30 Rolex Land-Dweller Business History

It's the last day of the show, and James is joined by Malaika, Mark, and Tim to discuss our general impressions of the show, Tim's experience as a first-timer, and some of the highlights we saw from a day full of meetings with Sinn, Bulgari, Laurent Ferrier, Parmigiani, and more. We hope you loved the episodes, and if you want more podcasts about the fair and all the new watches, let us know in the comments.

For the team's third day at Watches and Wonders, James is joined by Rich, Malaika, and Tim to talk over our highlights from another full day of fun at the fair. We get into everything from the latest Panerai models and the new (and very bleu) execution of the Chanel J12 to some deeper picks from Cartier and James' experience with a fun and colorful new travel-focused Club Sport model from Nomos.

We're back with Day 2 at Watches and Wonders as Ben, James, TanTan, and Mark recap another great day at the show and feature a fascinating conversation with Matthieu Humair, the CEO of Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation.

From the new Tag Heuer Formula 1 and the most complex wristwatch ever made to our hands-on experiences at Tudor and Rolex, it's a varied show with a wide range of watches (and some rather interesting tidbits about the show and its logistics). 

Welcome to the first episode of Hodinkee Radio at Watches and Wonders 2025. We will be recording and publishing daily podcast episodes to recap Watches & Wonders. Stay tuned for our takes on all the latest releases, takeaways from the show, and the general shenanigans that tend only to be captured on mic after a long day of seeing lots of watches and drinking (way) too much espresso. 

We've finished our first day at the show this year, and Ben is joined by Malaika, Rich, and TanTan to talk about the latest from Rolex, Patek, and A. Lange & Sohne. New releases like the Odysseus and the Rolex Land-Dweller and a couple of hot takes on the Patek Philippe Cubitus in 40mm. Enjoy!

We're back with another episode of Hodinkee Radio. In addition to the podcast feed, each episode also has video, so swing by Hodinkee's YouTube channel (or watch below). Only want the audio? It's being published to the same old Hodinkee Radio feed, so check your feeds or subscribe wherever you find podcasts (try Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or TuneIn).

For this episode, James is hosting, and he is joined by Rich and Mark to discuss their thoughts for the watch world in 2025. The trio chats about the continued popularity of vintage-inspired designs and what they're hoping to see from Omega, Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe, Cartier, and more. 

As this is the last episode of Hodinkee Radio in 2024, we wanted to thank everyone who has listened to the show, offered feedback, and more this past year. We'll be back soon with fresh episodes for 2025.

Show Notes: 

0:51 End of Year Episodes: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 
6:12 Urban Jurgensen 
6:54 Longines Heritage models 
10:51 Special Link From Bruichladdich 
12:40 Grand Seiko SLGW003 
14:22 Flight Qualitifed Omega Speedmaster 
19:50 Tudor Black Bay 58 GMT 
27:40 Rolex Sea-Dweller 
31:33 Cariter Coussin de Cartier 
32:00 Cartier Santos Dumont Rewind 
38:04 Shellman Side Slide Minute Repeater

5:09 Zenith Defy Revival Diver A3648
8:20 MB&F LM101 2021 Editions
13:43 Julien Tornare joins Hublot
15:33 Jaeger-LeCoultre Pop-Up at Hudson Yards NYC
16:40 Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris
18:36 Jaeger-LeCoultre Deep Sea Chronograph Reissue
22:04 Special Link From Bruichladdich
27:26 Grand Seiko Dive Watches
28:38 Blancpain Fifty Fathoms
34:15 Blancpain x Swatch Scuba Fifty
37:23 Dream Swatch Collaborations

For this episode, James is hosting, and he is joined by Mark and Rich to discuss the last year in watches. The conversation is wide-ranging and includes everything from the continued popularity of shaped cases to Daniel Craig leaks, fan service in watches, the need for fun, the continued role of the Moonswatch, and a handful of favorite releases from 2024.

We'll be back in a few days with part three of this series, in which we will look forward to the excitement of what we hope will come in 2025. Thanks so much for listening.

2:35 Cartier Crash 
3:11 Berneron watches 
3:45 Cartier Rewind 
5:35 The white dial Omega Speedmaster Pro 
6:01 Tudor Black Bay "Monochrome" 
9:42 Mark's story about buying a Moonswatch 
15:24 M.A.D.1S 17:02 Special Link From Bruichladdich 
17:39 Patek Philippe Cubitus 18:35 Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT 
30:35 Tag Heuer and F1 30:52 Doxa Sub 200T 
31:00 Greubel Forsey Nano Foudroyante EWT 
31:37 Impossible Watch Co 
32:07 Laurent Ferrier Classic Moon 
34:50 Laurent Ferrier Classic Auto "Sandstone" 
35:24 The John Mayer AP Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar LE 36:07 Grand Seiko SLGW003