appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Josiah Ng

Even as we entered the dog days of summer, the world of high horology kept ticking. Phillips announced a very rare F.P. Journe for auction later this year; celebrities showed off their watches at Wimbledon; and brands rolled out new pieces in summery blues and titanium to make sure you are taken care of on your holiday.
Meanwhile, the industry saw a major shake-up as a former Audemars Piguet CEO unveiled a new brand, De Bethune appointed a new CEO, and US tariffs prompted small businesses – including a watch retailer – to take legal action to keep prices reasonable.
Pre-production F.P. Journe up for bidding

Phillips shows no signs of slowing down on what has been a banner year for its watch auctions. Building on the momentum for independent pieces after record-breaking sales in May, the auction house announced in July that the Geneva Watch Auction: XXIV in November will feature an extremely rare, pre-production F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance. According to Phillips, the original owner acquired the watch in 1999, a year before the model’s official launch, and it is completely fresh to market.
This piece is also one of just 10 pre-production examples from the independent watchmaker. Its serial number, 022/99R, suggests it was the first commercially available version of the piece, as numbers 1-20 were for original supporters of the earlier Tourbillon Souverain Souscription, and 21 was a model for François-Paul Journe to present personally to clients and retailers.
François-Henry Bennahmias’ N3W5; De Bethune’s new CEO












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by THMG (@thmg_official)



Almost a year after François-Henry Bennahmias’ announcement that he had founded The Honourable Merchants Group, the former Audemars Piguet CEO announced on July 1 that he would also launch the watch brand N3W5 – pronounced “news” – using private funding under his group, according to Hodinkee, Robb Report and Business of Fashion.
“In an industry increasingly defined by logos and trends, we want to focus on the essential … the silent expertise, the creative decisions and the individuals whose contributions shape exceptional objects,” Bennahmias wrote on the brand’s website.

The debut of N3W5 came after late-stage talks to “invest in or buy control of Swiss independent brand De Bethune” fell through, according to Hodinkee. Founded by watchmaking legend Denis Flageollet, De Bethune is known for producing bold haute horlogerie pieces with its signature heat-blued titanium technique and unique lugs. The brand, primarily controlled by The 1916 Company, confirmed in July that Antoine Pin, former CEO of Tag Heuer, would take the helm ahead of its 25th anniversary next year.
New releases

Blue dials are in vogue as the summer heat draws people to the shore. Both Czapek and IWC Schaffhausen have put aquatic hues on their integrated bracelet sports watches, releasing the Antarctique Frozen Meteor in “cosmic blue” and the Ingenieur 35 in “pool blue”, respectively.
Longines went slightly dressier, offering its elegant Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve with a light opaline blue dial. Elsewhere, Parmigiani Fleurier and Hublot pushed the envelope by combining blue tones with advanced materials. The former dropped the Mineral Blue edition of its Tonda PF Sport Chronograph Ultra-Cermet, featuring the brand’s particular blend of ceramic and titanium. The latter eschewed a dial altogether, using blue skeletonised elements for the Big Bang Sapphire Sky Blue housed in a polished, transparent sapphire case.

Having a tough yet well-designed titanium watch was also key for brands this summer, as Hermès offered four varieties of its popular square time-only piece, the Cape Cod. Temporal Works, co-founded by Mark Cho and Elliot Hammer of menswear purveyor The Armoury, followed up on its initial Series A releases with the titanium Rambler in black sesame and red bean dial colours. Last but not least, Italian microbrand Echo/Neutra continued to expand its blasted titanium rectangular hit by adding the Ros’Antico salmon-toned dial to both the Rivanera and Rivanera Piccolo models.

H Moser & Cie also unveiled a titanium Endeavour, but there’s much more going on under the hood. The Endeavour Minute Repeater Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton Cosmic Rain combines a minute repeater with a flying tourbillon in a skeletonised piece that also features a dial with delicate strips of mother-of-pearl. Meanwhile, Ulysse Nardin gave us a new edition of the Blast Moonstruck in titanium and rose gold, with five astronomical complications including a tidal indicator and sun and moon positions.
Watch-spotting at Wimbledon and beyond

After the Fifa World Cup 2026, all eyes were on sunny Wimbledon as the world’s aces gathered for the grass court grand slam. While Linda Noskova and Jannik Sinner took home the top prize for women’s and men’s singles, respectively, our eyes were partially on the wrists of the many A-list spectators there. David Beckham sported a tight array of recent Tudor drops, Roger Federer sported a vintage Rolex Datejust, and Prince William sported his Omega Seamaster Diver gifted to him by his late mother Princess Diana.

Our eyes were also on Andrew Garfield, who matched an IWC Ingenieur 35 Pool Blue to an all-blue outfit, and on singer-songwriter Raye’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Mini – the artist co-wrote “Suzanne” with Mark Ronson for Audemars Piguet’s AP x Music programme.

Elsewhere, John Mayer attended the Social Impact Summit in Los Angeles on July 22, where he was awarded Philanthropist of the Year while wearing a Vacheron Constantin Overseas Dual Time “Cardinal Points”, a rugged titanium piece unveiled at Watches and Wonders this year. French Formula One driver Esteban Ocon wore the UltraFino Carbon Skeleton Red from rising sports watch brand Bianchet – known for its cutting-edge case construction and thin tonneau cases – at both Wimbledon and the UK premiere of Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Small businesses take new US tariffs to court

Since US President Donald Trump slapped sweeping tariffs on the country’s trade partners in April last year, it has sent shock waves through the watchmaking industry, with duties on Swiss imports once standing as high as 39 per cent. The rate fell to 15 per cent in November last year, but Washington announced additional tariffs of 12.5 per cent on July 24, citing insufficient measures against forced labour.
Switzerland, which prohibits forced labour by law, has since refuted the US allegations. Economiesuisse, a Swiss business association, deemed the justification given for the new tariffs neither understandable nor justified, Reuters reported.

In response, small businesses have banded together to sue the Trump administration. According to The New York Times, one of them is the California-based Collective Horology, whose lawyers are arguing that the US trade representative did not sufficiently investigate the forced labour claims and issued its broad findings and resulting tariffs in bulk.
In January, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry reported a 1.7 per cent decrease in Swiss watch industry exports in 2025 compared to 2024. It was the first year of decline after Swiss watchmakers saw growth in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
In a statement to Robb Report, Collective Horology co-founder Asher Rapkin said, “Importing a Swiss watch today costs at least 12.5 per cent more than it did before April 2025, compounding with a stronger Swiss franc. That’s made it harder for authorised dealers to stock inventory, harder for independent makers to meet demand, and harder for collectors to invest with any confidence, because no one knows what the rate will look like six months from now.”


Style Edit: Rolex’s timeless commitment to tennis shines at the US Open

Student Academy Awards 2026: Oscars body champions emerging film talent at TIFF

Style Edit: Tudor expands the Ranger collection and brings back the Northflag

Style Edit: Masterpiece by King Fook showcases daring Cyrus timepieces

Timepieces

5 top watch moments in July, from Wimbledon celebrity wrist game to a rare F.P. Journe for auction

Phillips is auctioning a pre-production F.P. Journe; Andrew Garfield sports the IWC Ingenieur 35 Pool Blue at Wimbledon; Longines releases the Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve in light blue. Photos: Wirelmage; Handouts

Phillips is offering a rare, pristine pre-production F.P. Journe dating from a year before the model’s 2000 launch, in its November auction. Photo: Handout

De Bethune founder and watchmaker Denis Flageollet at The 1916 Company’s showcase of De Bethune watches in Central. Photo: Handout

Longines Conquest Heritage Central Power Reserve in light blue. Photo: Handout

Temporal Works Series A Rambler “Black Sesame” (left) and “Red Bean”. Photo: Handout

H Moser & Cie’s Endeavour Minute Repeater Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton Cosmic Rain. Photo: Handout

Andrew Garfield wears an IWC Ingenieur 35 Pool Blue on day six of the 2026 Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London on July 4. Photo: WireImage

Raye sports an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Mini during the Wimbledon men’s singles final in London on July 12. Photo: AP

John Mayer, seen here with actor Michael J. Fox in Los Angeles on July 22, sports a Vacheron Constantin Overseas Dual Time “Cardinal Points” piece. Photo: AFP

President Donald Trump announces new tariffs at the White House on April 2, 2025. Photo: AP Photo

Patek Philippe increased retail prices by around 15 per cent after the US announced sweeping tariffs in 2025. Photo: Handout

Rolex to Patek Philippe: inside Knicks star Josh Hart’s luxury watch collection

New York Knicks’s Josh Hart is a horophile. Photos: @jhart/Instagram; Handout

Josh Hart in game two of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden on May 21. Photo: Getty Images/AFP

Josh Hart holds the NBA championship trophy. Photo: @jhart/Instagram 

The Rolex GMT-Master II now has a Cerachrom bezel. Photo: Handout

The Rolex Yacht-Master 40 in Everose Gold. Photo: Handout

The Patek Philippe Nautilus Moon Phases in rose gold. Photo: Handout

The Pioneer Centre Seconds Spiced Aqua by H. Moser & Cie, with a steel case with black diamond-like carbon coating. Photo: Handout

5 hip-hop stars with the most expensive jewellery collections: Drake, Jay-Z and more

Drake (left) and Jay-Z are on the list of hip-hop stars with the most expensive jewellery collections. Photos: @montreality/Instagram

Kendrick Lamar has a number of exquisite pendants, crowns and watches in his US$4.8 million jewellery collection. Photo: AP

Rick Ross is known for having some of the most expensive watches in his collection. Photo: Reuters

Jay-Z, a collector of the extravagant timepieces, sports a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime 6300g at the 65th Grammy Awards in 2023. Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

Lil Uzi Vert had a 10-carat natural pink diamond surgically embedded into his forehead. Photo: @bars/Instagram

Drake’s chains, pendants and watches are worth nearly US$39 million. Photo: @champagnepapi/Instagram

Bangle watches are back, with versions from Cartier, Gucci, Chanel, Bulgari and more

Chanel Première Galon. Photo: Handout

Cartier Baignoire. Photo: Handout

Gucci Play. Photo: Handout

Graff High Jewellery diamond and ruby watch. Photo: Handout

Bulgari Serpenti. Photo: Handout

Van Cleef & Arpels Perlée Toi & Moi secret watch. Photo: Handout

Tiffany HardWear. Photo: Handout

Rolex and Piaget are leading the revival of stunning stone dials in luxury watches

Piaget Polo 79 with sodalite dial. Photo: Handout

Rolex Oyster Perpetual 28. Photo: Handout

Zenith GFJ Bloodstone (left) and Tantalum. Photo: Handout

Arnold & Son HM Red Gold Pietersite. Photo: Handout

Toledano & Chan B/1. Photo: Handout

Panerai, Ulysse Nardin and other brands are reinventing watches with unusual materials

The new Ulysse Nardin Super Freak model is a limited edition piece marking 25 years of the Freak collection, built around the house’s patented diamond-coated silicon architecture. Photo: Handout

Norqain Wild One Skeleton Chrono. Photo: Handout

De Bethune DB28xs Dark Sand. Photo: Handout

Panerai Submersible Navy Seals Afniotech Experience. Photo: Handout

Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Impact Sapphire. Photo: Handout

H. Moser & Cie Streamliner Pump. Photo: Handout

H. Moser & Cie Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Concept Tantalum. Photo: Handout

Magazines

Style

Luxury

Watches

Former Audemars Piguet CEO unveils a new brand, IWC and Longines lean into blue dials, and a US watch retailer sues over Trump tariffs on Swiss imports


Former Audemars Piguet CEO unveils a new brand, IWC and Longines lean into blue dials, and a US watch retailer sues over Trump tariffs on Swiss imports.


5 top watch moments in July, from Wimbledon celebrity wrist game to a rare F.P. Journe for auction

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Former Audemars Piguet CEO unveils a new brand, IWC and Longines lean into blue dials, and a US watch retailer sues over Trump tariffs on Swiss imports

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Pre-production F.P. Journe up for bidding

Former Audemars Piguet CEO unveils a new brand, IWC and Longines lean into blue dials, and a US watch retailer sues over Trump tariffs on Swiss imports

Pre-production F.P. Journe up for bidding