/ How the luxury watch industry has changed in 50 years – according to Carson Chan, chief adviser at the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie who turned his passion for car mechanics towards timepieces

“I began my interest in watches when I had to stop tinkering with cars as I moved back to Asia,” says Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) chief adviser Carson Chan. It was the disassembly and reassembly of kit watches that appealed to Chan’s love of mechanics and jump-started his almost 20-year career in horology, across various roles in the auction, watch house and now advocacy spaces. “I’m very blessed to work in an area which I enjoy,” Chan muses. “As soon as I saw the opportunity to combine my work and my hobby, I jumped right into it. Some worried whether it would kill the hobby but for me, it was something I really enjoyed, and I would do it all over again if I could.” Chan’s career coincides with an interesting period for the watch industry. Starting with Bonhams Asia in 2000 as an auction representative, he rose to become CEO of the Asia operation, all while becoming more involved with a then-minuscule independent watch house named Richard Mille – ideally placed to watch its rise to prominence ever since, taking other independent houses with it. Why having prominent parents is ‘a double-edged sword’ for Emily Lam-Ho “At the beginning no one knew about the brand, you could easily get [a watch],” Chan reminisces. “But Richard Mille was a master of marketing and a phenomenal leader. I learned the most with Richard and am proud to have been a part of the brand as it took off. We still see each other every once in a while – he’s very humble, if you go to him he’s always happy to help.” Beyond brands, however, Chan has also seen monumental changes in the way a watch should be thought of. Over the last 50 years, he explains, the labels of a pilot’s, racer’s or diver’s watch have become less helpful, as precision timing instruments took their place. The advent of the smartphone and smartwatches linked to the atomic clock meant that accuracy was no longer a challenge to be solved by mechanical pieces. “Whatever brand is selling their watches based on functionality is out of touch with reality,” Chan puts it bluntly. “Any function you name, my phone can do it better, more accurately, more inexpensively. The need for a watch no longer exists and one should look at mechanical wristwatches as art pieces.” Why are watchmakers obsessed with creating the world’s thinnest timepiece? Chan cites the example of the 2022 re-edition of Cartier London’s 1972 Pebble watch; at the time, only six were released – five yellow gold and one white gold. Cartier announced the relaunch in October this year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the watch, and after Bonhams auctioned one of the 1972 versions at US$255,000 in 2021. This time, there are 150 pieces available at a whopping 40,000 euros (US$42,600) apiece. The announcement of the relaunch came at the tail-end of a year where Cartier saw success with new designs such as the soft diamond cushion Coussin de Cartier and the Masse Mystérieuse, which pays homage to Cartier’s history of building mysterious clocks. Chan also surmises that the 36mm Pebble comes at the height of a circling back to smaller watches. “Between 2005-15, big watches were in vogue, coming up to 47mm,” Chan explains. “If you wore a watch [like the Pebble] that was closer to 34mm it would be frowned upon, but the original [Rolex Day-Date President] in 1972 was 36mm. Without the market acceptance of smaller watches, why would you relaunch the Pebble or the [Vacheron Constantin Historiques 222, at 37mm]? This could be the beginning of another decade or even two where smaller watches are in vogue for men.” How James Suckling became one of the world’s leading wine tasting critics For Chan, who was one of the first to buy the Pebble and received it in November, the value and the significance of the relaunch lies in the design more so than its mechanical function or time-telling precision: “The Pebble brings back a heavy focus on aesthetics and design. We’ve seen the frenzy after the relaunch, but if you Google ‘Cartier Pebble’ you won’t find anyone talking about the movement so much as about the design and rarity of the watch or how the square-in-circle is a very Cartier thing. I think the person who plans to buy a watch should know what they are buying and why.” The need for a watch no longer exists and one should look at mechanical wristwatches as art pieces Carson Chan, chief adviser, Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) Knowledge is the key variable according to Chan: “You can win the lottery and then throw a bunch of money at it, but without knowledge it’s not going to be fun. A good collection should have a theme, it will reflect your creativity with your budget. Limitless budgets help, but I know people with those budgets whose collections are not that interesting because they lack direction or theme.” “The best collectors,” Chan concludes, “have a collection that is more than the sum of the individual pieces. The collection must become more valuable because of your input.” Chan’s current role with the FHH, perhaps more than any other in his past, is where he has most been able to directly equip new collectors with the knowledge to enjoy the art. During his time, the federation launched the FHH Certification to recognise the knowledge of watch enthusiasts and professionals, with three levels of recognition – Watch Adviser, Watch Specialist and Watch Expert. Separate from his efforts with the FHH, Chan is keen to tap into digital means to engage with the growing watch-collecting population. He plans to build the WatchProfessor Academy, an extension of his @watchprofessor daily Instagram quizzes, where visitors attempt to guess a watch’s brand based on its design. Competitors can join a leader board, and answers are supplemented by interactive information that tells them more about the watch they are trying to guess. “I think it’s important,” Chan says, “that the information is accessible or out there in order for the industry to grow. These platforms are not trying to sell you a watch but should help you gain the tools to appreciate it more.” Empowerment on your wrist: why bolder, larger women’s watches are 2023’s trend Carson Chan’s most treasured timepiece Cartier Pebble 2022 Re-edition “It’s rare to have a watch that has not changed since its inception, which says something about the style and design. The attraction of the watch goes beyond accuracy and finishing because it’s closed, and the value is in how a historic design can still be relevant today.” XXIV hours in Carson Chan’s day Morning “I go to the gym first thing at around 7.30am. When gyms were locked down, I went hiking. I do a lot of community work, chiefly with the Swiss Chamber of Commerce, so meetings and work for that take up most of my morning. Otherwise, if the day revolves around watch brands, I visit them to understand, photograph, see, touch and feel the pieces. I believe that you have to physically hold and operate it to see what a watch is like for you.” Afternoon “Lunch is usually a business lunch, sometimes with the brands or others in the industry. Afternoons I get on conference calls with Switzerland around 3pm to 5pm as that’s their morning.” Evening “I try to be home for dinner with my family when I can but there are [now] weeks [with endless events since] Covid-19 restrictions [came down to 0+3 in October]. ” Night “Afterward, I’ll come back to work on my vintage bike. Weekends too, because in my workshop there’s coffee, music and air conditioning.” Want more stories like this? Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.