Talking Time With Tim

A discussion of watches, watchmaking, and style with Tim and Bart Grönefeld, the horological brothers of The Netherlands. This recording covers the brothers’ early years in a watchmaking family, formal training, and their development of today’s Grönefeld watches. Hobbies including cars and watch collecting also are mentioned.

Tim introduces watch collector and car enthusiast, Blake Machado. Blake is the co-founder and principal of Cars & Bids, an online auction platform for collectible cars of the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. As a watch enthusiast since childhood, Blake can recall his many grail and milestone luxury watches since long before he was able to drive. Blake describes buying his dream car – a Ferrari 430 Scuderia – and planning to buy his grail watch, the second generation Vacheron Constantin Overseas Self Winding.

Tim welcomes watch collector, car expert, and luxury asset specialist Drew Coblitz to the show. Drew explains the current explosion of prices for all luxuries from digital art to supercars to watches. Brands including Porsche, Ferrari, McLaren, Lamborghini, Richard Mille, Rolex, and Omega are discussed.

Romain Gauthier of Romain Gauthier watches discusses starting an independent watch brand, learning from Philippe Dufour, designing the Logical One, and much more. This is a solo sit-down with the engineer-entrepreneur whose watches are famous for uncompromising finish and technical virtuosity.

Tim talks with Devon Works founder, Scott Devon, about designing and building luxury watches. As the creator of the Devon Tread series of luxury watches and the Devon GTX supercar, entrepreneur Scott Devon lives the life many watch collectors imagine. From his pioneering GPHG nomination – the first for an American watch – to associations with Marvel’s Avengers and Disney’s Star Wars, Devon – a grocery magnate – has been an unlikely success story for American watchmaking. Scott talks about building watches, brushes with movie stars, ambitions to join forces with Big Tech, and his plans for an upcoming smart watch.

In this feature, Tim explores the reality that luxury watches rarely achieve investment status. While fun to own and collect, watches are -- at best -- a limited store of value. Conventional stocks, bonds, and professionally managed investment vehicles almost always come out ahead when compared to the long-term performance of luxury watches. However, depreciation is the best friend of the savvy watch collector, and buying used watches is the best way to avoid depreciation, enjoy more watch than you could afford new, and buy a watch at close to its sustainable market value.

Episode 11 - Tim recounts times that watch brands including Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Audemars Piguet reduced the material or artisanal qualities of their watches in the interest of cost cutting.

Max Büsser On Watches; The Watch Business: Cars & Passions

“Grail Watches”: Tim Recalls All of His Grail Watches Through the Years

Tim Mosso and Josh Thanos have been brothers-in-arms since WatchBox’s formative “Watch-u-Want” days. Herein, they discuss Josh’s experience buying, selling, and collecting luxury watches. From SevenFriday to Rolex and Audemars Piguet, Josh’s collection spans watches of all styles, brands, and prices. If you wonder what it’s like to build a career in the luxury watch industry, this podcast offers fifteen combined years of firsthand experience.