In Search of a Place and Time that Likely Never Existed

 “Here's the story they don't want to tell: eight companies make 95 percent of the whiskey in America...And all those different brand names are just that. Brands. Perhaps no word sums up the death of truth in America better than the word brand.”

― Wright Thompson, Pappyland: A Story of Family, Fine Bourbon, and the Things That Last

Regular readers will note that I have, over the years, tried in vain to reconnect with my father (who shuffled off his mortal coil some 16 years ago). These same regular readers will also note that I have held onto the idea of Mido as, I had hoped to be a communication device, a way to connect to him. And in truth this has probably been a fool's errand. Which, I suppose, makes me a fool on a fool's errand. With that said, I did something that - in truth? I will probably do again, and again in some variation. I tried to lay hands to a watch that would be like the Mido (if not identical, at least ring true in feeling) to the same Mido watch that he received the day before I made my grand appearance. That day was July 10. The watch pictured above is a "Franken" watch in the most craven of terms. It was, in fact, until recently not a watch at all. It was purchased some three years ago on Ebay (sorry, but their fawning and showering of money on "A Blog to Watch" does not even remotely guarantee you're getting what you paid for). In this happy instance? It arrived as advertised - a case, dial, crown and set of hands from a former watch maker. "Just add movement"! 

But alas, Betty Crocker was not a watch maker, and this attempt to reconnect to the old man was as fraught with misteps, misunderstandings, and frustration as my teens. 

I am by no stretch the most gifted watch writer out there. Ben Clymer, when he actually takes the time to write someting? Is beyond eloquent. Wei Koh - if he could pause on the name checking / dropping and stop looking for the $10,000 word?  A wonderful story teller. If and when The Rake can solve their distribution challenges? I'm all in.

But there is something that I maybe know a bit about. And that's longing. I have sat at the table, sharing stories about what led me here. Robert-Jan Broer coined a phrase (albeit trying to explain my blunt speech at a "recruitment event" held by Ebner to get ahold of large amounts of watch journalism content at bargain basement prices. A friendly note to Ebner about 10 years overdue - next time serve actual food, not stale bread with dubious smelling sandwich spread and tap water. This was during BaselWorld some years back. And I had looked around the room, looking for the person that didn't belong, and realized it was me. And I asked the question - "Why do we write about watches? Is it money? Presents from brands? Comped travel to fun destinations? Is that really why we got started in this?"

My point was - and continues to be - it had evolved into a business that traded on ego and appearance.

And in fact? Only Robert Jan and I gave actual answers!

He asked me -
"Do you mean, what was the trigger?"
In essence? What had gotten all of us interested in watches in the first place.

Now in fairness, I don't remember his answer as I was getting the "stink eye" from another now well-known and well established Dutch watch media mogul. But my answer was - "Mido".

So we're going to dive into my latest dive down the Mido rabbit hole over the coming week - so stay tuned.

Re-re-re-reformaton

So, I had an interesting 36 hours in Gotham. Wendy and I had an amazing dinner with probably the hottest chef in Brooklyn right now, and took in the AMAZING Luna Luna exhibit at The Shed - which I highly recommend you check out if you're in town!

But as is often the case, I ran into watch fans and brand insiders. Conversations turned to watches, and then the watch media writ large. And then on to the very specific topic of Hodinkee. The question of "what's going on at Hodinkee?" came up. Considering the ups and downs of the past few months, one friend asked me why so many people were leaving. I replied that this was not "new" news, as there had recently been a turnover over the past few months, with two new folks on the Masthead. He informed me that someone very senior was on their way out as well, and then mentioned that the Masthead had shrunken by two. I checked and he was correct. The "second in command" at least in terms of the Masthead's hierarchy was gone without any mention. This made sense as he was (if memory serves) part of the investment group that gave up the ghost, and as Watches of Switzerland had ridden in on their white horse to rescue Hodinkee, it made sense that he was no longer there. But then a second look revealed that Anthony Traina was no longer (visibly) connected to Hodinkee either.

I might be wrong on this, but I believe that Anthony first started as a contributor to Hodinkee and then joined the staff, leaving behind his job as an attorney. His first post that is still on the site is from 2021. What he has now moved on to in terms of work, those who will say don't know, and those who know won't say.  My understanding is that he still has his own outlet that is by all accounts quite well respected. And despite what Hodinkee's founder, Mr. Clymer has insisted in other forums regarding transparency, there was no announcement, no public "thanks for your service", just a scrubbing from the masthead. 

But if the rumors are true, there is another loyalist of long standing who is in the wind. This will leave James Stacey as the longest serving centurian in good standing.

In fairness, nothing is forever. As of right now, it is safe to say that the folks at Hodinkee (past and present) along with all of the famous pals who invested never thought that things would be like this. 

But what does this mean for the other, smaller outlets? Will more "spaces" open up at events like Watches and Wonders as there will clearly be a smaller headcount from Hodinkee? Don't bet on it. 

As for Mr. Traina, we wish you godspeed and the best of luck in your future endeavors. 

Meanwhile...Back At Hodinkee...

And then there were ten...

Things continue to shift in curious directions at Hodinkee.  After a very public announcement of a back to the roots shift to media only, and an imminent exit from retail, a visit to the masthead yesterday afternoon revealed the absence of at least one (possibly two) people who had been there recently. I checked again this morning to confirm it. And one very notable absence is that of the CEO, Jeffery Fowler.

Now for the faithful who follow the comings and goings in Watch Town, this stirs the usual amount of curiosity. Has Mr. Fowler indeed departed? If so, it wouldn't have been the worst thing in the world for Hodinkee to acknowledge his contributions and wish him the best moving forward. This is one of the curious things about Hodinkee's approach to communicating with their followers. There's an insistence of what a big happy band of brothers and sisters they are, and then an almost Stalin-like erasure of departed staffers previous existence. They disappear without a trace, which only serves to engender the expected amount of social media chatter and antipathy that inevitably leads to more bad pr. 

Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images & AFP/Getty Images 

Now back to the matter at hand - if, indeed, Mr. Fowler has left Hodinkee, it makes a certain amount of sense as his background is not media, it is retail. And seeing as (at least this week) retail is off the table at Hodinkee, then it might be time to refocus and seek out senior leadership that might better fit the new approach. 

While this is not meant to be an attempt to rub salt in the collective wounds of Hodinkee and its investors who are probably cuing up Mojo Nixon's (Rest in peace, Mojo!) classic hymn, "Where The Hell's My Money?" as they watch their investment circle the toilet bowl, it begs the question - who actually has their hand/s on the tiller of the Good Ship Hodinkee?

Now contrary to what naysayers will, well, naysay, it is possible to run a profitable watch media business. But that media business has to live in the real world. Over the years it has been baffling to comprehend how having a staff of so many people, producing (on balance) such a small amount of content, and essentially refusing to interact with the majority of the watch brands in the world could be seen as a recipe for success. The more long term question that the shot callers at Hodinkee have to answer is how to recapture that spark, how to connect with the many brands they have snubbed over the years, and how to make it profitable. >$40,000,000 is not typically the amount of money most investors are willing to walk away from, because it has now coalesced into its very own sunk cost trap.

Mr. Fowler, if you have indeed left the building, we wish you God's Speed in your next venture.

An Open Letter Answered... Sorta'

Much as I would love to think that my little missive to Rolex made any of this happen, I was very happy to read the news on the excellent Hodinkee site that it appears to be official - Tudor is coming back to the US later this year - possibly late summer.  I am convinced that this is accurate because it is being reported by perhaps the most trusted and professional person covering watches today - Ben Clymer of Hodinkee. 

For those of you wanting to get the best info. on this, I STRONGLY encourage you to check out the Hodinkee site -

www.hodinkee.com