Elite Traveler Summer 2021

INSPIRE 20TH ANNIVERSARY GUIDE TO RESPONSIBLE LUXURY

Below Urwerk UR-100V T-Rex watch recalls the extinct dinosaurs of eons ago. The solid bronze case is treated to create the carved scales that look like skin. The distinctive patterns and colors are unique to each watch thanks to the multi-processes involved in its making. Just 22 pieces will be made. $57,000, available at Westime, westime.com

Left This MB&F Horological Machine No. 9 (HM9) Sapphire Vision watch takes three-dimensional to new levels. The sapphire case enables viewing of the colorful, complex movement with two balances and hour and minute indications shown at the front of the cylindrical tube. $440,000, available at Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry, shsilver.com

Bottom This RM 65-01 Automatic Split-Seconds Chronograph was five years in the making and is the brand’s most complicated chronograph. It is crafted in Carbon TPT® that is shock resistant and almost indestructible, thanks to the 600 layers of parallel filaments from separated carbon threads. $310,000, available at Richard Mille, Las Vegas, richardmille.com

RISE OF THE INDEPENDENTS Easily one of the most important trends witnessed as the new millennium began was the rise and proliferation of independent watchmaking brands. During the latter years of the 20th century, while the big conglomerate groups were busy snapping up large and significant brands, new small brands were opening their doors, going virtually unnoticed at first. Urwerk founded its brand in 1997, followed by Richard Mille and F.P. Journe in 1999. A host of other independents came to life in the early 2000s, including Greubel Forsey, MB&F and others. These small brands are all about thinking outside the box. While many focus on keeping traditional, classical watchmaking at the forefront, others combine that passion with a desire to create something that has never been made before. Of course, the fact that there were new manufacturing processes at their fingertips that weren’t available years earlier came into play. Additionally, these micro brands were unencumbered by the bureaucratic red tape that often plagues large-group brands. This freedom enabled the independents to make radically different watches — spurring the second big trend of the 2000s: three-dimensional timekeeping.

Men’s watches

At the dawn of the newmillennium, watch brands were already embracing ideas on how to transform the world of wristwatches for the savvy and discerning customers of today. Unlike other luxury businesses that can turn out new luxury products in a short time, it takes years to go from an idea to a design, and then have the mechanics in place to finally produce a watch. Depending on the complexity of the timepiece, the process from concept to fruition can range from three to six years. That is why the executives, as well as the watchmakers and the research and development teams, are always thinking ahead. They regularly seek out newmaterials, new partnerships and visionary concepts so that they are in tune with the times when the new watches finally make their debuts. This, as well as the ever-evolving manufacturing and nanotechnology processes, keeps brands constantly on their proverbial toes. During the first two decades of the 21st century, we witnessed groundbreaking materials emerging, along with trailblazing concepts and precedent-setting designs.

by Roberta Naas

Photos Alex Teuscher Photography