This month in the SITREP, there’s a lot to like, including our top picks from the W&W release cycle, including a secretive Tudor collector meet-up, AI photos receiving undue buzz, an Australian special operator and watch nerd arrested for war crimes, the Iran War’s effect on the luxury watch market, managerial reshuffling at Breitling, the return of “Rolex Rippers”, and more. 

In a rare display of openness from a Swiss watch brand, especially one whose parent organization is Rolex, Tudor invited collectors from around the world to its headquarters in a suburb of Geneva. After an initial introduction from a Tudor executive, we were ushered into a large conference room where we placed our watches on the table. The watches on display represented at least 80 years of history. 

Omega & Breitling to the Moon, Arnie’s Arnie Up for Auction, a New DHS Secretary with a Quartz Chronograph, CJCS Caine with a New Breitling Unit Watch, a “Dream Girl” Rolex Robbery, & More Watch Crime

The goal was to find a so-called “superclone,” the highest tier of counterfeit watches that claim to mirror genuine models down to the weight, finishing, and movement. According to internet lore, the superclones are so good that even an expert watchmaker can’t distinguish them from the real thing.

For this Dispatch, we sat down with Greg Petronzi of True Patina to learn more about his life and work, as well as to explore some of the most common questions y’all might have for a watchmaker. 

The Use Your Tools ethos shared among those in our community might seem antithetical to the coverage of expensive luxury timepieces, but like most things, there’s more to the story. No matter how you got into watches or where your horological allegiances currently lie, it’s worth considering the impact Patek Philippe has had on the military, intelligence, and NatSec.

These past few weeks have a lot to offer, from intriguing astronaut watch developments to Jeffrey Epstein’s surprising timepiece ties to the Dutch Queen and her Rolex in military service to our usual assortment of watch-related criminal goings on, this time involving both Tom Cruise and a professional athlete. Referencing the seminal Baha Men reggaeton track from 2000, it is time to let the proverbial SITREP dogs out. 

Last week, professional climber Alex Honnold free solo climbed Taipei 101, a 1,667-foot-tall tower in Taipei, Taiwan. The feat was streamed live to millions around the globe and was quite the spectacle. Honnold is best known for his (even more impressive) June 2017 free solo ascent of El Capitan in Yosemite, which I would argue is one of the most significant athletic achievements of the modern era. I have never called myself a “fanboy” of anyone, but in an era where society rewards celebrities and influencers, it is refreshing to see a master of their craft be rewarded for their passion and efforts. I am a fan of Alex Honnold.

From one of the world’s most wanted men being captured after an Instagram account that has since been proven fake posted a Patek Philippe, to the proceeds of international espionage being used to buy luxury timepieces, to watch robbery at 35,000 feet, to machete-wielding Rolex thieves, we have a lot to get through. We'd better get started… 

In August 2025, a sensational Telegraph article written by Steve Bird and Sophie Fenton titled “Rolex founder was suspected Nazi Spy” generated some interest in the virtual hallways of Watches of Espionage. We tend to be agnostic regarding watch brands and focus more on the importance of how watches are used in intelligence and special operations. Still, the possibility of a link between Nazi espionage and the Rolex founder was certainly well within our purview.  

“Sketchy dudes wear Breitling” has taken on a life of its own. What started as an inside joke between me and our 250k Instagram followers has been parroted throughout the internet and mainstream watch publications. If I’m being honest, I am kind of sick of hearing it myself. But is the Breitling of today still sketchy?

Dubai is a contradiction. A booming metropolis in a lifeless and arid desert, which didn’t exist in its current form just decades ago. From Michelin-starred restaurants to vast malls and 6-star hotels, the overwhelming display of wealth and largesse is intoxicating. Emiratis maintain a conservative Arab culture, but Western practices (including alcohol consumption) are tolerated. Visitors from around the globe flock to Dubai to spend, make, and in many cases, store their wealth.

This month has been a big one, with Swiss and US officials finally reaching a much-needed tariff agreement that sucks less than the former 39% figure, a totally new Omega Planet Ocean that could end up on 007’s wrist, some intriguing watches in space, Oval Office clock drama that broke the internet, Keanu’s kindhearted letter to the FBI, a rare interview with the Rolex CEO, and more.

Forget The Insiders: The Only Rule Is To Wear What Matters To You - Over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal published an article, “Do Not Wear This Watch With a Suit! And Other Men’s Watch Rules to Know in 2025.” The article garnered significant attention, with many sending it in for our thoughts.

Tudor In The Terminal List: Dark Wolf, Tariff Drama Heats Up, Keanu’s Stolen Watches Coming Home, Hans Wilsdorf Revelations, Fake Cartiers, & Facebook Marketplace Watch Crime - It is once again time for the W.O.E. SITREP, or Situation Report, our monthly amalgamation of news and events related to watches, intelligence, national security, and the military.

What watches have historically kept this emerging bloc that’s challenging the Western order on time? President Trump recently met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska, a land mass that was purchased from the Russian Empire in 1867 for a measly 7.2 million dollars. 

Welcome back to the W.O.E. SITREP, or Situation Report, a monthly download of current events related to watches, espionage, the military, and national security, all coupled with our semi-informed commentary. 

What Can A Tragic Accident Teach Us About The Watch Industry & The Risks Of Exploration? Earlier this month, Baumgartner, aged 56, tragically died instantly when he reportedly fell unconscious in midair and flew a motorized paraglider into the side of a pool near the Italian coast. 

The One-Stop Shop For “Hey W.O.E., Which Timepiece Is Right For Me?”  Every day, we field questions from the community about which watch to buy. It’s easy enough to answer: “Pick the watch you like the best that you can also afford most easily.” It’s sound advice, but in many cases, there’s simply more to it. The watch world has not only grown by leaps and bounds in recent years but also fundamentally changed. Legacy luxury brands from Rolex to Omega are still there, as are value leaders like Seiko and Citizen, but now, there is a brave new world of “microbrands” to explore as well. So, where do you fit in?  For the aspiring watch dork simply trying to make an informed buying decision they can feel good about, we set out to create a comprehensive resource with everything you need to select the right watch the first time around. Keep in mind that everything you see here is tailored for the W.O.E. community and those who subscribe to the Use Your Tools ethos. If you clicked through for a list of 36mm dress watches to suit your Old Money mood board, this ain’t it. If you’re looking for useful advice and some of our picks for great tool watches at different price points and from a wide range of brands, you’re right where you belong.  Advice For Buying A Watch (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Starting with the 10,000-foot overview, Advice For Buying A Watch is our general guide that answers some of the most common questions we receive across our social channels. If the last new watch you remember was that Fossil you got from your parents for eighth-grade graduation, this is where you start: a step-by-step rundown for newbies presented in an easily digestible format. If you’ve ever wondered about what kinds of brands to look into first, buying watches as investments, or the types of watches to consider, we have the answers.  What Should I Buy For My First Watch? OK, you’ve done your research, noted our advice for buying a watch, and you’re ready to pull the proverbial trigger. In What Should I Buy For My First Watch, we share some of our top picks in the most popular tool watch categories while also addressing price points from $50 to $10,000, meaning everything from the legendary Casio Duro to attainable Seiko models to Tudor and even Rolex and Omega. It might seem crazy to buy a luxury watch right out of the gate, but it happens more often than you might imagine. If you’ve ever considered buying a vintage watch as your first serious timepiece, we also share some of our thoughts on that process. The Best Military Watches For Land, Sea, & Air Assuming you’re a dedicated student of the Use Your Tools ethos, it would be fair to say that military watches are another great place to look when buying a watch. For The Best Military Watches For Land, Sea, & Air, we compiled a comprehensive list of true military watches as well as watches well-suited to military or other hard use in the most common operational environments. Sure, a solid Digital Tool Watch (D.T.W.) like a G-Shock can do pretty much anything any of these watches can do, but a growing subset of the military and the Intelligence Community value the combination of utility, heritage, and mechanical intrigue presented by analog timepieces, so we stick to analog options.  Best Watches Under $1,000 - Ask The Experts  (Photo Credit: Brock Stevens) If you’re looking for even more options from people who know as much as anyone about the Use Your Tools lifestyle, Best Watches Under $1,000 - Ask The Experts is your guide to some great choices under $1,000, with all of the picks coming from members of the W.O.E. community. Our pool of experts is diverse, including former Navy SEALs, watch industry pros, W.O.E. himself, and a US Navy Diver. If you’re newer to watches, it makes a ton of sense to toe the waters with a less expensive watch, and today there are tons of great options under $1k to consider from brands like Marathon, Sangin, Seiko, Tornek-Rayville, and more.  Best Watches Under $5,000 (Photo Credit: Jason Heaton) Looking to the community once again, Best Watches Under $5,000 is packed with more expensive picks from Jason Heaton, former Navy SEAL Rob Huberty, former SAS operator Chris Craighead, fire captain Asha Wagner, and more. If you’re newer to watches, ponying up for a watch costing $5,000 might seem crazy, but every one of the watches recommended in this article is backed by someone deeply familiar with using watches for their intended purposes. The higher price point also brings in names like Tudor, a brand we’ve often called the modern tool watch leader, thanks to models like the Pelagos FXD.  Knowledge Is (Watch-Buying) Power  While it’s not always a core aspect of buying a new watch, the more you understand about watches in general, the better off you’re going to be when it’s time to make a purchase. Here are a couple of helpful guides to increase your baseline horological knowledge, especially as it relates to tool watches. The Dive Watch - Everything You Need To Know You will notice that many of the watches we cover are dive watches, and this is not an accident. We are fond of any watch built and used for a specific purpose, but the influence and utility of the dive watch is difficult to overstate, having been used by countless military members, SpecOps, Intelligence Officers, and regular civilians. In The Dive Watch - Everything You Need To Know, our dive expert Ben provides a primer on the basics of what constitutes a dive watch, how water resistance works, the best straps and bracelets for diving, and how watches have been used both historically and today by military and commercial divers. If your journey into watchmaking has you considering a watch meant for undersea use, this is a must-read.  Get The Most Out Of Your Watches This Summer Use Your Tools is our ethos year-round, but the warmer months are when most watches encounter the types of risks that could see them irreversibly damaged. In Get The Most Out Of Your Watches This Summer, we share our recommendations and best practices for keeping your watch in working order for the beach, swimming, hiking, irresponsible firework usage, outdoor sports, and—for a select few—diving. Because it doesn’t matter whether it’s a Rolex Sea-Dweller or a Casio Duro if the crown is unscrewed as you scream “watch this” and drunkenly cannonball into your local swimming hole. An Overview Of The Watches Of Espionage Strap Collection Along with a passion for watches, many nerds also develop an interest in straps, which are the easiest and least expensive way to change up the look and feel of your favorite watches. In An Overview Of The Watches Of Espionage Strap Collection, we provide our general thoughts on the most popular strap types while also discussing the W.O.E. strap collection in great detail. Whether you’re looking for the ideal hook-and-loop strap to pair with your tool dive watch or want a refined French-made suede strap for your vintage Rolex GMT-Master 1675, anyone who loves watches should know their straps.  Final Thoughts - Buy What You Want  Buying a watch is a deeply personal experience. We are dedicated to helping you make sense of the watch landscape, but all we can do is provide our advice, personal experiences, and the recommendations of others who know what it means to use a tool watch. At the end of the day, this is on you. If you’ve absorbed everything here and still want to pick up an Invicta on Amazon Prime Day, do your thing. Remember, we don’t make the rules, and our community is for anyone who understands how to Use Your Tools. 

More Tariffs, Al Capone’s Patek, CIA Recruiting Ads, The Pope’s Apple Watch, Rolex Rippers Getting Busted, & More 

Bremont Ambassador trains Chinese Pilots?, Rolex-Wearing National Security Advisor Ousted, A Legendary CIA Director's Pocket Watch Up For Auction, Rolex & US Watchmakers Respond To Tariffs, & Trump Watches Are Finally In The Wild By Benjamin Lowry For most of the industry, the talk of the past few weeks centered around the novelties unveiled at Watches and Wonders and one watch in particular, the Rolex Land-Dweller. At W.O.E., we generally don’t care about new releases (until we do), and while we admit the Land-Dweller represents significant horological innovation, it’s not our thing. Inspired by a couple of new releases, we addressed our feelings for modern Tudor in a separate article (read HERE), and our intention for this month’s SITREP are to chart a course as far from the already-stale release cycle as possible. You’re welcome. If you’re new here, the SITREP (Situation Report) is our monthly recap of all things watches, espionage, military, and National Security. To put it mildly, these past few weeks have been eventful, including some Bremont brand ambassador controversy, plenty of tariff talk, the ousting of National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, a Cold War DCIA’s complicated Breguet up for auction, the first public appearances of a Trump watch, and a confession from a naughty, Breitling-wearing CIA Case Officer. To quote Samuel L. (MFing) Jackson in Jurassic Park, “Hold onto your butts.” It’s going to be a spicy SITREP. A Legendary Cold War DCIA’s Complicated Breguet Hammers For €208,000 (Photo Credit: Monaco Legend Auctions) Allen Dulles was a former member of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) who later served as the first civilian DCIA and oversaw the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, the 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état, the Project MKUltra mind control program, the U-2 spy plane program, and the 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion. Like many from the early days of CIA, Dulles was also apparently a watch nerd who ordered an extremely complicated Breguet pocketwatch in 1962. (Photo Credit: Monaco Legend Auctions) Designed and produced as an exhibition piece, the watch “...features a one-minute tourbillon, split-seconds chronograph, and minute repeater, with the gilded movement made in collaboration with the Victorin Piguet workshop in Geneva, as confirmed by Breguet’s President of the Archive.” The watch hammered for €208,000 (or about $237,300) last week and represents a rare and intriguing intersection between the world of high horology and espionage, perhaps only rivaled by the Patek Philippe presented to the Dalai Lama by two OSS officers during WWII. Either way, this is further proof that the phenomenon of watches of espionage is nothing new. If you were the lucky bidder to take home this historic piece, hit us up. We would love to talk to you! Rolex-Wearing Former Special Forces National Security Advisor Mike Waltz To Leave White House Mike Watlz (left) wearing a Rolex GMT-Master II alongside Sebastian Gorka, the Deputy Assistant to the President, Senior Director for Counterterrorism. It’s been a tough couple of months for Mike Waltz, Trump’s National Security Advisor, who inadvertently added The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg to a signal chat exposing the White House’s Houthi war plans in an incident that would become known as “Signalgate”. In addition to his political activities, Waltz is also a decorated US Army Special Forces officer who has earned a whopping four bronze stars (two for valor) during his military service. Unfortunately, Signalgate was a pretty big deal, and no amount of high-speed SpecOps training can save Waltz this time, with several sources recently revealing White House plans for Waltz’s impending exit from the influential National Security Advisor role.  Waltz’s Rolex even made it into one of Signalgate’s more celebrated images. Waltz is also a dedicated Rolex man who has been photographed wearing more than one GMT-Master II, which is always great to see. While many Rolex sports models have associations with the military and special operations, the GMT-Master is aligned with Army Special Forces, in particular, having been worn by legends, including Billy Waugh. Bremont Ambassador Controversy A Bremont marketing image used to advertise an event featuring former RAF pilot Sam Cowan. (Photo Credit: Bremont) A few weeks back, Bremont released a video with former Royal Air Force pilot Sam Cowan recounting his experience ejecting from a fighter jet over the North Sea, ultimately earning the coveted MBI watch that is only available to Martin Baker ejectees. A brand close to our community, the video and subsequent announcement for a 24 April event at Bremont’s Mayfair boutique advertising a “conversation” with Cowan (and “television’s Ben Shephard”) are right in line with what Bremont is all about. But all was not as it seemed. The Bremont MB1 is only available to pilots like Cowan who have ejected using a Martin Baker ejection seat. (Photo Credit: Bremont) Our DMs lit up with messages and links to allegations calling into question Cowan’s suitability for such an honor, particularly from pilots with an affinity for Bremont. According to at least one report/blog, Cowan is allegedly one of several Western military pilots to have trained fighter pilots from the PLAAF, the Chinese Air Force, in air-to-air and air-to-ground combat techniques that could, without a lot of imagination, conceivably be used against Western powers including the US and Cowan’s own Great Britain. We would like to think Bremont was unaware of Cowan’s employment history, but either way, the lack of due diligence or concern for endorsing an individual associated with what many have labeled “treasonous” actions amounts to a bad look for a brand owing much of its prominence to its associations with the military. A Medium article from December 2024 identified Cowan and other pilots engaged in training PLAAF pilots. (Photo Credit: Medium) Bremont has since pulled the video and removed related Instagram and Facebook posts, but this apparent lapse in judgement is yet another challenging moment for a brand that is already in rough shape following a significant 2023 investment by American billionaire Bill Ackman, the ensuing exit of the founders, Nick and Giles English, and new watch designs that are, to say the very least, not landing with fans. All of that said, we’re Bremont fans, and no one would be more excited to see the brand return to its former glory. Important note, we have not independently verified the reporting on Cowan’s involvement in training Chinese pilots, but you can read the original research HERE. Rolex Responds To Tariffs With Price Hikes WOE’s recently acquired “Bruce Wayne” GMT-Master II was almost even more expensive. Sources tell us that the hottest topic of conversation at Watches and Wonders in Geneva wasn’t the new releases, but rather the rapidly evolving US tariff situation and the staggering 31% figure imposed on Swiss exports, including watches, in April’s opening days. Since then, a less aggressive but still significant 10% number has been put in place, but the Swiss are still responding, with Rolex recently promising a 3% price increase in the United States as of 01 May, paired with a 1% reduction in margin for authorized dealers, according to WatchPro. If the world’s most valuable and influential watch brand is immediately instituting a price hike in response to US tariffs, it’s reasonable to expect other prominent Swiss watchmakers to follow in the Crown’s footsteps. Being a watch nerd is about to get (even) more expensive. This also points to a potential part-time solution, where the tariffs' cost will be passed on in part to the consumer, but also absorbed by the brand and retail points of sale. One Of The Few American Watchmakers Discusses The Impact Of Tariffs Where Swiss viewpoints surrounding the tariff situation have been everywhere, we found it interesting to hear from an American watchmaker, Weiss Watch Company, based in Nashville, TN. In the video on the The Watchmaker's Workshop YouTube Channel, Weiss founder Cameron Weiss argues that in the United States, watchmakers are forced to rely on imported Swiss movements and other essential components to do business. The dramatic change in pricing necessitated by the tariffs means that producing watches in the United States, which is already a challenge, will only become more difficult, which will then make the task of starting American watch brands more daunting. The tariff situation presents serious hurdles for US-based watch brands. For more on American watch brands doing varying degrees of watchmaking, from assembly and QC to constructing complete calibers, right here in the United States, click HERE. “It’s Trump Time” - Trump Watches In The Wild President Trump wearing his Fight Fight Fight model in a recent Instagram post on the brand’s Instagram page. After months of seeing nothing more than renderings on the website, the Trump watches, which were first covered in our September SITREP, have been photographed in the wild. Most prominently, the Fight Fight Fight model, a loose Submariner homage, was featured in a video on the Trump Watch Instagram page on the wrist of the President, who said, referring to the “red beauty”, “Wear it proudly on your wrist and everyone will know what it’s for, who it’s for, who it represents. It’s really going to be something special”, before declaring, “It’s Trump time”.   Deputy White House Chief of Staff Dan Scavino wearing what appears to be the Victory Ultimate Jewel in a recent post on his Instagram profile. From what we can tell, Trump watches, which start around $500, have been slow to reach consumers, but Dan Scavino, Trump’s Deputy White House Chief of Staff, appears to have skipped the line, having recently been photographed wearing a gold-tone Victory Ultimate Jewel with a gem-set bezel. At $1,200, you get genuine gold (plating), “semi-precious” gems in the bezel, real diamond indices, and a Seiko NH35 caliber. Unfortunately, this particular reference appears to be sold out. Even if it were in stock, you are limited to purchasing only three at a time. Bummer. Breitling Wearing Former Senior CIA Officer Pleads Guilty To Acting As A Foreign Agent Dale Bendler (right) wearing a Breitling Superocean Heritage, pictured alongside Felix Rodriguez. Dale Bendler, a former Case Officer who spent 30 years working at CIA, recently pleaded guilty to acting as a foreign agent and mishandling classified materials, according to Department of Justice documents. Bendler, who was working as a contractor with the Agency, “...worked with a U.S. lobbying firm and engaged in unauthorized and hidden lobbying and public relations activities on behalf of foreign national clients.” In addition, Bendler abused his access to CIA personnel and resources, including numerous classified systems, while also lying to CIA and FBI about his activities acting as a foreign agent. A Breitling Superocean Heritage similar to the one worn by Bendler. As a part of his plea deal, Bendler faces a maximum penalty of seven years in prison as well as the forfeiture of $85,000, far less than the “hundreds of thousands” he is accused of receiving in his role as a foreign agent. It’s unclear whether the watch is related to Bendler’s nefarious acts, but the former Case Officer was photographed wearing a Breitling Superocean Heritage alongside CIA paramilitary officer Felix Rodriguez, who allegedly “liberated” Che Guevara’s Rolex after his death. Remember, we don’t make the rules. W.O.E. In The Press Now and then, our exploration of watches, the military, and intelligence intersects with popular media, and W.O.E. recently provided comments for an article on GQ’s website discussing the role played by G-Shock watches in Warfare, a recently-released film from Ray Mendoza and Alex Garland showcasing the heroic actions undertaken by a Navy SEAL platoon during the Iraq War. We’ve commented on W.O.E. in Hollywood before, but suffice it to say that having an on-the-head watch selection in a film, like the G-Shock models worn in Warfare, adds depth and realism to characters portraying members of our community. For more on G-Shock’s relationship with the US Military, click HERE. Final Thoughts It’s hard to believe, but this is already our ninth edition of the SITREP series, a brief overview of watch and espionage events we believe you’ll find informative and interesting. If you enjoy these articles or have ideas for events for us to include in future SITREP editions, please do not hesitate to let us know in the comments. Speaking to April specifically, there was a lot to unpack, including some big Bremont ambassador drama, Trump watches in the wild (finally), an incredible vintage Breguet owned by Allen Dulles, a treasonous former Case Officer, and so much more. Check back next month for more. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watch Industry SITREP - March 2025

I love Rolex, but after buying my first new Rolex GMT from an AD, I am not sure modern Rolex is the brand for me. The Crown’s customer experience may be an existential threat. I’m a simple man. Give me an old steel Rolex—Submariner or GMT—with drilled lug holes and an aluminum bezel, and I am happy. That's all I need. While I wouldn’t describe myself as a “Rolex man,” as that sounds a little fanboyish, I admire the brand for all the right reasons. Over the past century, Rolex has established itself as arguably the world's most iconic brand, and not just in horology.   Rolex is a universal sign of accomplishment, and the Swiss brand has deep and decades-long ties to the W.O.E. community. While it's easy to forget this fact when walking into the brand’s luxurious boutiques today, the brand's DNA is in tool watches for adventurers, explorers, and warfighters. For generations, Rolex was the watch of choice for those who have made real and meaningful contributions to society. I fear that that is no longer the case today. Rolex GMT-Master II “Bruce Wayne” - Reference 126710GRNR The Call - “We Have Your GMT Available For Pickup” A few months ago, I got “the call” from a local authorized dealer saying they had a new Rolex GMT-Master II reference 126710 with a black and grey bezel, dubbed the “Bruce Wayne” by watch nerds. I was excited.  While I own more than a few Rolex sports models, this would be my first modern steel Rolex.   I have long believed that the Rolex GMT, any reference, is the ultimate CIA Case Officer’s watch—a classy and refined tool that signals to others you are a man of culture, yet don’t mind getting your hands dirty. The watch for the proverbial “Ph.D who can win a bar fight.” I own two older references, and the GMT-Master is unequivocally my favorite watch. When the call came, I said yes without hesitation. Rolex GMT on Billy Waugh’s wrist, legendary Army Special Forces turned CIA Paramilitary Officer. (Photo Credit, Recoil Magazine & Tom Marshall) Buying A Rolex In 2025 I had “expressed interest” eight months prior, shortly after the announcement of the new color scheme, and I was added to the dreaded “waiting list.” I had a significant relationship with the dealer and was confident I would eventually be allocated one, but didn’t push the issue. I had all but forgotten about the watch, and the strong desire I felt from the hype during Watches and Wonders had faded, but I was still excited. It sounds messed up, but I was lucky that the sales associate deemed me worthy enough to spend $11,000 on a timepiece. Picking up the watch was a special and curated experience, it always is.  Escorted to a VIP room, you are offered champagne and time is taken to explain the functions and to size the bracelet. Despite what the haters will say, the quality and craftsmanship of modern Rolex are phenomenal. In contrast to the older references I treasured, the tolerances, wearability, and aesthetics are unmatched. The black/gray GMT is arguably the most subtle GMT reference of the past 10 years. To the casual observer, it appears to be closer to a Submariner than a bicolor GMT.  Rolex GMT-Master II “Bruce Wayne” - Reference 126710GRNR Buyer’s Remorse? Leaving the store, I glanced down at my wrist and was caught off guard by the shiny, polished center links. The new watch was in stark contrast to the older references I was used to wearing. I felt something that I had never felt before with a watch—was it buyer's remorse? While the aesthetics of the modern “tool watch” felt off, it was something else that nagged me. Why did I buy this watch? It wasn't to mark a specific achievement or a significant life milestone, the reality is I bought it because the sales associate called me and told me I could. I’ve worn the watch on and off over the subsequent months, and while I appreciate the watch for what it is, I've come to realize that it isn’t the watch itself that I question. It is the process of buying a Rolex that is disenchanting, it sours the experience.  Vintage Rolex GMTs hit different (Photo Credit: Rupley / W.O.E.) The Myth Of The Rolex Waitlist Aspiring “Rolex men” have two options: you can visit the authorized dealer (AD) regularly to build "rapport" (ass kiss) with the salesperson in hopes of one day being granted an allocation, or pay the absurd grey market prices to a second-hand dealer. Both are equally disheartening and damaging to brand equity, even for an icon like Rolex. Visit any Rolex boutique and you will quickly learn that they don’t actually have watches for sale, at least not for you. The watches on display are for "exhibition only,” meaning you can try them on but can’t buy them even if you have the cash. Instead, prospective customers are encouraged to provide their contact details to “express interest” in a specific watch, which theoretically adds their name to the notorious and misunderstood “waitlist”. But this whole concept is bullshit. I know this because I have cut the “list” many times. I said this was my first modern Rolex, which is only partially true. Over the past few years, I have used my connections to buy several new Rolexes for friends, those who were waiting on the “list” but couldn’t get an allocation themselves. Most, if not all, boutiques have several coveted steel sports models for sale in a safe in the back; they just don’t want to sell them to you. Rolex headquarters in Geneva (Photo Credit: Rolex SA) The reality is that Rolex in Geneva does not dictate how and who boutiques sell watches to, and each store has their own process. This results in inconsistencies, and while some stores may maintain lists and allocate watches in sequential order, most simply sell them to clients with significant sales history or, in many cases, people they simply like. The most sought-after pieces, like the Daytona and Titanium Yacht-Masters, go to friends of the store owner, and individual sales associates get whatever’s left over. In my experience, even simple sports models like the steel Submariner and GMT will go to long-time clients over those looking for their first real watch, an approach I would argue is fundamentally flawed (Photo Credit: Rupley/W.O.E.) Rolex - The Existential Threat According to Morgan Stanley’s annual Swiss watch industry report, Rolex controls over 30% of the retail market share, with the runner-up being Cartier with a mere 8%. But nothing lasts forever, and I would go as far as to say the current customer experience represents an existential threat for Rolex. If I am disenchanted with the Rolex customer experience, how does the prospective buyer feel? The increase in demand and inability to quickly scale production to meet demand is not Rolex's fault, but the disappointing customer experience is, or at least it should be.  According to most estimates, there are approximately 1,800 authorized dealers or “retail partners,” with the largest segment in the United States at over 300. Every day, thousands of people walk into these stores eager to learn about the brand and maybe even buy a watch to commemorate an accomplishment or milestone. Newcomers' dreams are immediately deflated. Rolex Store Locations in North America (Credit: Rolex SA) Rolex Prospective Customer Experience Online reviews will often report the sales associates as aloof, disinterested, and even arrogant. Some will even suggest that the customer buy other watches or jewelry to “build a relationship” with the store. I have met some great sales associates and think that many/most of them are good, honest, hard-working people. But I have also experienced this dismissive attitude firsthand, at Betteridge in Vail and Tourneau in Pentagon City, to name a couple. For my generation, Rolex was known as something luxurious but, eventually, and with hard work, obtainable. But I fear that this is no longer the case. Each year, millions of potential customers leave one of the boutiques demoralized, promised that their name is on a list (it's not), and never hear anything. Play this out over decades, it is bound to have a real impact on one of history's greatest brands. Rolex may lay claim to hearts and minds for now, but what about the next generation when they become wealthy enough to play in this arena, having come up in an age where they weren’t “good enough” to “deserve” a Rolex, whether they had the money or not? Vintage Rolex sign, Tawila District in Aden, Yemen (Photo Credit: Unknown) Would Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of Rolex, be pleased with the brand positioning, attainability, and waitlist of 2025? For a man who was inspired by accounts of the Second Boer War in South Africa, where warfighters used wristwatches to coordinate operations and dreamed of putting a watch on every wrist in the world, I don’t think so. Those potential customers walk next door to another brand and are welcomed with open arms and often recruited as lifetime customers. No one has sold more Omega watches than Rolex, and Omega stores are often within walking distance of Rolex. This is no accident.   (Photo Credit: Rupley/W.O.E.) The Solution - Rolex Must Control The Customer Experience & Allocation The cynical take is that this scarcity is contrived by Rolex to drive value.  While this is undoubtedly true with limited pieces, I speculate that with “regular” watches like Datejust and the Submariner, Rolex leadership would prefer to produce an amount that is just below demand. It is important to note that it takes time to build production capacity, and the skyrocketing demand since the pandemic could not have been foreseen. By most estimates, Rolex produces and sells approximately 1.2 million watches per year at an average price of $13,000. Rolex is set to open another production facility in 2029, which should increase annual output, which in theory should make these more obtainable. But is that what’s really going to happen? Rolex mockup of its new production facility, slated to open in Bulle, Switzerland in 2029. (Photo Credit: Rolex SA) Rolex SA Must Control The Customer Relationship But the real crux of the issue is that Rolex delegates the customer interaction and, more importantly, how to allocate specific watches to specific clients, to the “official Rolex retailers.” While Rolex does carefully curate and dictate the store layout, design, and presentation of the watches, Geneva is still disconnected from the customer. For a luxury brand, the customer experience, or even prospective customer experience, is arguably the most important part of the sales cycle. This results in people like me being escorted to the front of the line, while people like you aren't even on “the list.” Allocations become lopsided and inevitably, “flippers”—those who purchase watches to immediately sell for a profit—receive allocations. Of course, this cycle inevitably perpetuates the grey market. While I would never “flip” a watch for profit based on principle, it is easy to empathize with those who do. That GMT that I was allocated could be sold on the grey market for approximately $17,800, netting a $6k profit after taxes. That’s real money, enough to buy a brand new Omega Seamaster Diver 300 just with the proceeds from a single flip. A second-hand dealer's display of Rolex and other luxury watches. (Photo Credit: Reddit) To combat this and preserve the integrity of its product and reputation, corporate Rolex must ensure that a significant portion of its watches are allocated to new customers. In short, a young professional looking to commemorate his promotion with his first real watch, a new Rolex GMT, should be prioritized over someone like me, at least some of the time In 2023, Rolex acquired Bucherer, one of the largest points of sale with over 100 retail locations and the largest brand presence in the United States. This acquisition offers a unique opportunity to pilot these programs and refine the customer experience. Titanium Yachtmaster prototype “leaked” on the wrist of the helmsman of the Great Britain SailGP Team, Sir Ben Ainslie (Photo Credit: Ineos Britannia Team/C. Gregory) Final Thoughts - The Rolex Dichotomy Despite everything I said above and in contradiction, I still officially “expressed interest” in the Titanium Yacht-Master. Released in 2024, it is a stark contrast to the more polished trend at Rolex but is also one of the hardest watches to get in the catalog. The muted titanium and black indices on the bezel have the look and feel of a true modern tool watch. If I do get the call for a Titanium Yachtmaster, I will be ecstatic that the sales associate deemed me worthy enough to spend $14,800 on a watch.  If that sounds like sarcasm, I can assure you it's not. If that sounds like a fucked up way to live your life, trust your instincts. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watches as Tools of Money Laundering and Illicit Finance

As The Industry Trends Toward Luxury, Tudor Embraces Its Tool Watch Heritage With Watches and Wonders 2025 Releases Last year, we compiled a list of Watches and Wonders releases for the W.O.E. community (Read Here), and we planned to do the same thing this year, but the reality is that there aren't many releases that embrace our “Use Your Tools” ethos. In 2025, whether we like it or not, the watch industry has trended toward luxury, precious metals, horologically intriguing complications, and smaller case diameters. Said differently; jewelry. However, even as much of the industry leans away from the utilitarian ethos that serves as an integral part of the culture of our community, one brand continues to carry the proverbial torch: Tudor. This is still the way. While big brother Rolex was unveiling the Land-Dweller, an integrated bracelet “sports” watch starting at $13,900 that feels infinitely more jewel than tool, Tudor’s 2025 collection remained true to the brand’s modern ethos, producing luxurious yet utilitarian watches informed by the brand’s impressive heritage in diving and the military. To be clear, other brands are striking the balance between utility and luxury with certain models situated within broader collections. However, no brand in its price tier is as dedicated to the tool watch as Tudor in 2025. While a horologically significant development and overall cool watch, the Rolex Land-Dweller probably isn’t going to be the next watch trend among the military elite. (Photo Credit: Rolex) This position is no accident. Tudor’s 70-plus-year relationship with the military and adventurers, secure spot within the Rolex organization, thriving modern unit watch program, and willingness to experiment in both design and technology all contribute to making Tudor the tool watch leader of today. Perhaps the best encapsulating demonstration of this is Tudor’s collection of 2025 releases, unveiled last week at Watches and Wonders in Geneva. Tudor’s 2025 New Releases   Tudor’s novelties weren’t what anyone expected, but they do speak to the brand’s tool watch focus. (Photo Credit: Tudor Watch) Where IWC led with an expanded Ingenieur offering including a perpetual calendar, Rolex provided the Land-Dweller as well as a green dial for the Sprite GMT, and A. Lange & Söhne unveiled a full “Honeygold” Odysseus, Tudor continued to do what it does, leaning into more adventurous use cases with watches like the Tudor Pelagos Ultra, a 1000-meter-rated diver, a suite of new Black Bays including the new 43mm Black Bay 68, and a white (“opaline”) dial for the Black Bay Pro. Tudor Pelagos Ultra - Because We Can A 1000-meter dive watch isn’t a tool everyone needs, but it feels like a tool. (Photo Credit: Tudor Watch) In our previous look at Tudors of Espionage, we argued that the standard 42mm Pelagos is the apex predator of Tudor’s collection (credit to Jason Heaton for coining the term), which makes the new Pelagos Ultra the apex predator of apex predators. No one needs 1,000 meters of water resistance. Even the deepest diving commercial saturation divers rarely approach 1,000 feet or approximately 300 meters. The Ultra is large by any standard at 43mm and contains a helium escape valve which allows expanding helium atoms to safely escape during a saturation dive’s days-long decompression process without making the watch explode. (Read more about this process HERE.) The blue Pelagos text might not be to everyone’s taste, but we dig it. (Photo Credit: Tudor Watch) Why make a larger, 1000-meter member of the already dense Pelagos family? Because such a tool didn’t already exist in the collection, and Tudor still values the idea of having different tools for specific jobs. Will anyone actually use the Pelagos Ultra for extreme deep-sea diving? Probably not. But the Pelagos Ultra fulfills this use case, whether real or theoretical, like no watch in Tudor’s history, and that's cool. Other features include luminescent material in two colors, a METAS-certified Master Chronometer caliber, and a grade two titanium case and bracelet with a fancy diving extension system complete with a lume plot. While this may be a niche watch that no one asked for, we expect it to resonate with members of our community. Black Bay 68 The larger 43mm Black Bay 68. (Photo Credit: Tudor Watch) Another interesting release from Tudor I never would have predicted was the Black Bay 68, a larger 43mm addition to the pre-existing 37, 39, and 41mm options. Speaking generally, the Black Bay is Tudor’s modern recreation of its earliest “Big Crown” diving watches, but the range has expanded massively since its 2012 introduction to include a chronograph, multiple GMT models, and numerous colors. Why did Tudor go bigger when the entire industry seems to be going smaller? It’s possible Tudor saw a need for a Black Bay for large wrists or simply wanted people to have the option, but the more likely answer is: because Tudor can. In any case, the Black Bay is still one of the best “heritage-inspired” dive watches in its class, and the addition of the larger 68 will only make that argument stronger across a wider range of wrists. The new “Opaline” dial Tudor Black Bay Pro. (Photo Credit: Tudor Watch) There were, of course, several other updates from Tudor, including the addition of a five-link bracelet for the Black Bay Chrono, a new burgundy version of the Black Bay 58 that calls back to a prototype Tudor Submariner, and the welcome addition of a white-ish dial for the Black Bay Pro. I’m not sure any of these watches represented an answer to a specific consumer request, but they do speak to what Tudor is all about, real tool watches at the “entry to luxury” tier. Tudors Of Espionage (T.O.E.) Tudor tool dive watches new and old. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) As we described in our detailed look at Tudors of Espionage, part of what forms modern Tudor’s DNA is its longstanding associations with militaries including the French Navy or Marine Nationale, the United States Navy, and numerous other military and government organizations. Perhaps the best example of this reverence for the military is the Tudor Pelagos FXD, a watch that was released in 2021 after being developed in close collaboration with the Commando Hubert Combat Swimmers, the French equivalent of the US Navy SEALs. A US Navy EOD Technician wears a Tudor Pelagos FXD during training operations in 2025. (Photo Credit: US Navy) More than slapping a unit logo on an existing watch for marketing’s sake à la Panerai, the FXD wouldn’t exist were a development process for a fixed lug dive watch not put forth by an elite maritime SpecOps unit. Several rounds of prototyping, extensive testing, and real money went into crafting a $4k dive watch that can only be worn on pull-through straps including the hook-and-loop strap that accompanies the FXD. The French Commando Hubert collaborated with Tudor in the development of the Pelagos FXD. An oddity in a world possessed by Submariners and Seamasters, the FXD has become successful in our community because it is two things: a legitimate diving tool watch and a respectable timepiece, powered by an in-house caliber and manufactured in Switzerland with a luxurious level of attention to detail that even watch dorks can get behind. The Shield Protects The Crown (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Another aspect that allows Tudor to continue to provide more utilitarian options compared to many “luxury” brands is its secure position within the Rolex organization. Tudor’s growth since its global relaunch in 2009 and the release of the Pelagos and Black Bay in 2012 has been explosive, but it’s important to contextualize Tudor within the greater Swiss watch industry. According to the recent report from Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult, Tudor accounted for only 1% of the Swiss industry’s implied retail market share. Further, from 2023 to 2024, Tudor reportedly recorded a massive 34% decrease in sales, so does this mean Tudor is screwed? While Tudor execs are no doubt concerned, Tudor is also Rolex, the brand claiming the top spot in the Swiss industry and a staggering 34% market share based on turnover eclipsing CHF 10.5B. Tudor exists in the shadows of Rolex in some respects, but that also comes with the security of knowing money ain’t a thing. A down year is a down year, but it’s hard to imagine Tudor pivoting from its core competency, which continues to be utilitarian watches. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) As we’ve described before, an internal adage within the Rolex organization is that the “Shield Protects the Crown”, but it’s important to remember the Crown is the thing with the gold and the jewels and is ultimately responsible for the bottom line. Tudor’s Modern Unit Watch Program US Secret Service CAT Tudor Pelagos (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Another aspect demonstrating Tudor’s position on tool watches and celebrating its military associations is the brand’s modern unit watch program, which has grown steadily since its inception several years ago. Tudor’s involvement in unit watches, customized versions of the brand’s standard models produced in small numbers for military units or government organizations, is significant because these programs are almost certainly not a key driver of revenue for a brand Tudor’s size. While other brands have expanded their unit watch programs, we would argue that Tudor is still the leader in this space, having completed unit-specific watches for some of the most elite forces in the United States and Europe, many of which have not been seen in the public. Many of these unit watches would have serious marketing value for Tudor, but the fact that the brand does not advertise or even acknowledge the existence of the program is clear evidence that Tudor is in this space for the right reasons. Tudor & Tool Watches A Tudor unit watch produced for the Diplomatic Security Service. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) We acknowledge that for most, watches with prices starting around $4,500 (for the standard Black Bay 58) aren’t going to be pushed to the limit in operational settings for either military or intelligence professionals. However, within the context of our community, many do exactly that, balancing the utility presented by their timepieces with a genuine appreciation for horology. For practitioners embodying the Use Your Tools ethos, modern Tudor presents an excellent option, being less expensive than big brother Rolex as well as competitors like Omega while also offering more watchmaking intrigue compared to less expensive brands like Seiko. No matter where the watch industry goes in the future, we believe and hope Tudor will continue to produce tool watches as it has done for the past seven decades. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: The Dive Watch - Everything You Need To Know

Signal Chats Gone Wild, Stranded Astronauts Return To Earth, FBI Deputy Director Has Expensive Watch Taste, Kristi Noem LARPs Wearing A Daytona, & Jonny Kim Wears A Rolex To Space (Maybe) By Benjamin Lowry Let’s face it, no matter what side of the aisle you land on, the regular news cycle can be challenging. Even so, at W.O.E., we believe in staying informed about current events, especially those current events related to watches, espionage, national security, and more. In our monthly Watch Industry SITREP (Situation Report), we do the hard work for you, taking in as much information as our mental health can tolerate from traditional news media, the watch world, social channels, and sketchy alternative platforms, and refine it all into a concise amalgamation of only those stories we think you’ll find interesting and informative. Before delving into the maelstrom that is Watches and Wonders next week, we reflect on an action-packed month of March including not only a leak via a Signal group chat, but also the safe return of two stranded US astronauts, a $100k watch on the FBI’s new Deputy Director, astronaut/former Navy SEAL Jonny Kim having great watch taste, and a whole lot more. As a reminder, W.O.E. is an apolitical platform. Watches are the lens through which we view history and current events, and this past month provided no shortage of material for analysis and discussion. Let’s dive into the SITREP. Signalgate: The Counterintelligence Risks Of Technology US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, a former Army Special Forces member and known Rolex GMT-Master II wearer, has taken full responsibility for the leaked Signat chat. You probably don’t need us to tell you this, but Editor-in-Chief of The Atlantic Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a Signal chat containing top U.S. national security leaders. The topic of discussion? The White House’s plans for targeted strikes on Houthi targets across Yemen. As any editor-in-chief will do, Goldberg broke the story, and officials including SECDEF Pete Hegseth have been facing no small amount of ire ever since. According to The Associated Press, a day before the bombs fell, the Department of Defense issued a warning about the vulnerability of Signal, saying that Russia in particular is working to compromise the popular messaging application. A leak of this magnitude underlines the importance of operational security or OPSEC, a matter W.O.E. recently commented on in an open letter to Vice President JD Vance questioning his use of an Apple Watch, an exploitable connected device: “As Vice President, nearly everything you say and do is of interest to foreign intelligence services (FIS). This includes not only strategic-level discussions with the President and National Security officials but also conversations with your wife, political donors, and college friends. While the Apple Watch has security features in place, you must operate under the assumption that it can be compromised and exploited." Unfortunately, there is no timepiece at the center of this particular story, but the leak does once enforce the age-old nautical adage that “loose lips sink ships”. Let’s keep Signal confined to NSFW memes and Rolex Watches and Wonders release speculation like the good old days. Jonny Kim - Navy SEAL, Medical Doctor, Astronaut, & Watch Collector? If you’re unaware of our pick for the real Captain America, Jonny Kim is a current NASA astronaut, former Navy SEAL, and a Harvard-trained physician. Born in 1984, Kim served with SEAL Team 3 as a medic, earning both a Silver Star and a Bronze Star (with a combat “V”) for valorous actions in Iraq. After his military service, he earned a degree in mathematics from the University of San Diego and later an M.D. from Harvard Medical School. In 2017, he was selected as a NASA astronaut and is currently training for Expedition 73, a long-duration mission to the International Space Station set to launch on 20 April. Kim’s career is a remarkable blend of military, medical, and space exploration achievements. But more importantly, he’s a watch nerd. In addition to having been photographed wearing a Rolex GMT-Master II, he has also been seen wearing the Omega Seamaster SEAL unit watch. I can’t think of anyone who embodies “Use Your Tools” more than Kim, and here’s hoping that one or both of these watches make their way into space on Kim’s wrist. If anyone knows how to get in touch with Jonny, let us know. We’d love to do a Dispatch about his life and watches. Finland’s PM Gives Volodymyr Zelensky A Watch Made From A Russian Tank Zelensky and Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo on 19 March. (Photo Credit: Jari Kovalainen / Yle) There is no shortage of W.O.E. content and watches continue to play a role in diplomacy. On 19 March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky received a unique gift from Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, a wrist watch with a case made from metal scrapped from a Russian tank. The watch, known as the CRTL-Z, was designed and manufactured by Finnish watchmaker Leo Winter under his brand, Rebuild Watch Company. Winter was able to connect with Ukrainian soldiers who provided armor plates from a destroyed Russian T-90 tank. The CRTL-Z from Rebuild Watch Company is made from a Russian T90 tank. Produced as a limited series of 55 pieces, Winter donates half of the proceeds, €3,750 per watch, to the Ukrainian Red Cross. Watch number one was given by Winter to the Finnish PM who later presented it to Zelensky through his people. Whether he’ll wear it or not is unclear, but Zelensky has been known to wear a TAG Heuer Calibre HEUER 01 Chronograph but seems to have gone watch-less since the Russian invasion began in 2022. Sometimes, watches are tools of communication more than telling time.   Newly Sworn-In FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino Wears A $100k Vacheron Constantin On 18 March, Dan Bongino, a former NYPD officer, US Secret Service agent, and media personality, was officially sworn in as the Deputy Director of the FBI by Director Kash Patel. We discussed Patel’s 46mm titanium Breitling Cockpit B50 in our look at the watches of the Trump Administration, but Bongino one-upped his boss on this day. During the swearing-in ceremony, Bongino left his Secret Service Breitling at home and wore what we assess with medium to high confidence to be a Vacheron Constantin Overseas Tourbillon, a watch that will set you back somewhere around $100k (in steel) if not more. In the business, we call this a big boy watch. Bongino’s new FBI salary, which some outlets report is $221k, pales in comparison to the estimated $4.9M he was making from Fox News in 2024, according to The Day and several other sources. Luckily, it appears Bongino showed up to his new job having already handled his watch shopping business. The Overseas is a legendary integrated bracelet sports watch with roots dating back to the Vacheron Constantin 222 unveiled in 1977. The fact that Bongino opted for the tourbillon version either means he deeply appreciates Swiss watchmaking and mechanical complications or perhaps just wants people to know he balls hard. Our guess is the latter. Stranded Astronauts Return To Earth Wilmore and Williams photographed onboard the ISS with Wimore’s Omega X-33 in view. In our August SITREP, we discussed two stranded US astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who had to overstay their planned week-long space flight amid concerns about a troubled Boeing space capsule. We also noted Wilmore’s use of the Omega X-33, an analog-digital watch designed specifically by Omega for astronauts to use inside the International Space Station. Nine unplanned months later, on March 18th, Wilmore, his X-33, Williams, and her “good solid head of hair” were once again safely on Earth, having returned from the ISS on a SpaceX Dragon capsule. Butch Wilmore wearing his Omega X-33 on 18 March after a very long space mission. In photographs from the astronauts’ return to Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, we quickly noticed Wilmore was still wearing the X-33, a quartz-powered watch whose battery life could have been in question during the unplanned nine-month mission. This begs the question: Are mechanical watches more practical for space flight because of the possibility of unplanned lengthy delays like the one experienced by Wilmore and Williams? Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem LARPs With The Coast Guard & A Gold Rolex Daytona Not much needs to be said here, but during a recent visit by newly-minted Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem to United States Coast Guard units in San Diego, we couldn’t help to notice what appears to be a yellow gold Rolex Daytona reference 126508 on her wrist. Not one to sit back and watch DHS’s only military organization in action, Noem suited up with Maritime Security Response Team West. Of note, Noem’s Rolex has also drawn a lot of attention during a recent visit to a prison in El Salvador. A former governor of South Dakota, Noem has been spotted wearing other Rolex models in the past, including a 41mm Datejust, but the $47k (at retail) 18k gold Daytona is on a different level. To be completely transparent, I wrote this part wanting to say something snarky, but Noem already looks more tactical than I ever did during my USCG service. It is what it is. Final Thoughts Every time we dig into another edition of the Watch Industry SITREP, we are once again reminded that the link between watches, espionage, the military, and national security is strong and getting stronger all the time. From a monumental US defense official Signal chat snafu to an astronaut wearing an Omega designed for space travel to a $100k Vacheron for the FBI’s Deputy Director to a gifted watch made from a Russian tank to the legend that is Jonny Kim and even the Secretary of Homeland Security clearing spaces with a fancy plate carrier and a gold Daytona, it’s been one hell of a SITREP. We’ll be back next month. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watch Industry SITREP - February 2025

A Former CIA Case Officer Dissects How To Penetrate Rolex SA We are now one week out from Watches and Wonders, the annual trade show in Geneva, Switzerland, where many of the premier luxury watch brands debut their latest designs. W&W is a masterclass in marketing, with weeks of blogs and legacy media speculating on the new releases, a dramatic and highly choreographed reveal, followed by groaning and analysis for the weeks to follow. While brands from Patek Philippe and H. Moser & Cie. to IWC Schaffhausen and TAG Heuer are present, at the center of all the attention is one brand: Rolex. Last week, we discussed the role of private intelligence and this week we want to take it a step further and look at how commercial espionage actually works. Like many of our articles, this is about watches and the watch industry, but it's really about much more than that. Leaning into my training and experience as an intelligence officer, this is how I would penetrate Rolex SA, the most secretive and powerful watch company in the world. “Leaked” photos of Rolex new releases planned for 2025. Who Would Want To Know? The line between Business Intelligence and Corporate Espionage is blurred and often open to interpretation. “Market research,” including hiring third-party “researchers” is generally accepted. But there is a line and to be clear, corporate espionage is not something we support and would never do ourselves, but it does happen. The Swiss watch industry is a prime target, given the money invested in Research and Development over the past century. These are “trade secrets,” and if they are stolen it could result in significant monetary damage to Rolex, or any other company. Business Intelligence: The process of collecting, analyzing, and presenting business data to support informed decision-making, commonly used in all industries. Corporate Espionage: The theft of a company's confidential information for financial gain. Corporate espionage recently made the news when Bernard Squarcini, a former French intel chief, was convicted of using public funds to spy on individuals for LVMH, the world’s largest luxury conglomerate. (Photo Credit: The Guardian) Controlling over 30% of the Swiss watch market with an estimated 11 billion dollars in annual revenue, Rolex has the biggest target on its back.  Rival brands are the potential beneficiaries of the intellectual property collected from corporate espionage, but also criminal networks and states. The counterfeit watch industry is also a multibillion-dollar industry, with the vast majority of the counterfeit watches originating in China where it appears as though the government at least tacitly supports these criminal endeavors. It’s not a stretch that a nation-state would support espionage against Rolex with the goal of benefiting their industry, this IP theft regularly happens in other sectors. Is Rolex A Hard Target? Rolex headquarters in Geneva is known as an impenetrable fortress for watch media. (Photo Credit: Rolex) In the intelligence community, a “hard target” is a country or organization that is particularly difficult to collect intelligence on due to strong counterintelligence measures, limited access, or high operational security. The intelligence services of Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea are generally considered hard targets but also non-state actors like Hezbollah. The Swiss watch industry is notoriously secretive, with some making the comparison to CIA and other intelligence agencies. There is some truth to it, it is a closed system, and for good reasons. As the leader in the industry, Rolex has spent billions developing proprietary technology, brand value, and integrating their supply chain.   In one of the few accounts of visiting all four of the Rolex manufacturing facilities, Hodinkee described some of the security features, including iris scanners for controlled access, large vaults, and the prohibition of cell phones, all features associated with secure government facilities. While I would not go as far as to say it rivals a nation-state in counterintelligence capabilities, from a corporate standpoint it is probably as “hard” as it gets. Open Source (OSINT) OSINT: The process of collecting and analyzing publicly available information from various sources to generate insights. (Photo Credit: Department of Defense) OSINT is arguably one of the most effective tools in modern intelligence collection and for any collection initiative, it is the first step. Why allocate clandestine resources when something is publicly available? To a certain extent, watch media already does this. Morgan Stanley and Luxeconsult produce an annual report on the Swiss watch industry with detailed assessments of revenue based on publicly available data. Internet watch sleuths will take it a step further and triage trademarks and patents for hints of what's to come.   In 2023 Rolex trademarked the “Land-Dweller” and according to our friend and expert watch spotter Nick Gould AKA @niccoloy Rolex filed a patent in 2022 for a red and black ceramic bezel, both of which could indicate future releases. “Rolex patent filed in 2022, and just published at the end of last month. The Crown finally found a way to do a red and black ceramic bezel. It seems this combination of colours is difficult to achieve.” - Nick Gould AKA @niccoloy on Instagram While examining trademark data can provide insight and fuel speculation, most still take the “we’ll see” approach as they are far from definitive. But it does provide one thread or hypothesis that other forms of collection can potentially corroborate. Alternative Data Sets Open-source collection can go much deeper than trolling government databases. Research firm Bellingcat has made a name for itself by analyzing alternative datasets with an impressive track record at investigating intelligence services, human rights abuses, and the criminal underworld. Hunting the Hunters: How We Identified Navalny's FSB Stalkers (Photo Credit: Bellingcat) Rolex is famed for its vertical integration, relying on only a few outside manufacturers, but it is a multinational company, and some components, packaging, and raw materials must be sourced on the open market.  Equally important are the downstream retail operations. Even with the 2023 acquisition of major watch retailer Bucherer, these retailers are largely outside the Rolex umbrella. A deeper dive into these relationships, invoices, and international shipping manifests can further inform the assessment of organizational structure, supply chain, and even future releases.   While Rolex is believed to have its own foundry, a large shipment of titanium from a broker in South Africa may indicate an expansion of the titanium offering from just the Yacht-Master which was released in 2024.  The same could be said for other raw inputs used for the ceramic bezels or gem-set pieces. While these international shipping manifests are not always easily accessible, with the right know-how and determination, they can often be accessed. Rolex manufacturing facility in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. Analyzing the capacity and fullness of parking lots via commercially available satellite imagery can lead to valuable information. Full parking lots on a weekend could indicate an increase in working hours and production schedules. Of note, according to Google Street View, this parking lot has been replaced and covered. (Photo Credit: Google) Human Intelligence (HUMINT) - Recruiting A Clandestine Source inside Rolex. Despite all the technical capabilities, having a human source/penetration with direct knowledge of the collection requirements, i.e. the future Rolex models, is the ultimate goal of any intelligence operation. Anyone who works directly for Rolex is a potential target, but finding someone with placement and access who is willing to divulge secrets is crucial. From an offensive intelligence collection perspective, the “insider threat” is arguably the greatest vulnerability.    “You start working at Rolex and you stay there. It’s a loyalty thing but it’s also an incentive thing. I think they pay very well, great benefits, great perks… This works really well for their secrecy.”  - Acquired Podcast Little is actually known about the structure and inner workings of Rolex.  There is no public organizational chart and even an informed assessment about who would actually know about the Watches and Wonders releases in advance is informed speculation.   A watchmaking trainee at Lilitz, a watchmaking school in Pennsylvania that was built and funded by Rolex. (Photo Credit: Rolex Training) According to the recent Acquired podcast, Rolex has approximately 16,000 employees, with 9,000 of those residing in Switzerland. A LinkedIn query shows 8,388 employees and “associated members” with 4,555 residing in Switzerland.  If you dive deeper and segment the employees, 574 live and work in Biel/Bienne where the cases are manufactured, and you can do the same with the various Rolex entities. The first step is to build an organizational chart to better understand the type of people who work at Rolex. This is your target list. Rolex employees in Switzerland are broken down by geographic area and education. (Photo Credit: LinkedIn) The fact that someone is on LinkedIn at a minimum suggests they are comfortable with public association with Rolex and also makes them more likely to engage externally, maybe even open to exploring other job opportunities. Those who work in watchmaking, watch design, research, and development are obvious targets, but also individuals with access to IT infrastructure could prove a windfall.   Access & Placement In Human Intelligence (HUMINT) placement and access to information is crucial. In an ideal world, you would recruit someone with direct access to the senior level “plans and intentions,” which in the case of Rolex is the CEO. That said, you really don’t know who has access to what until you start talking to people. While new releases are likely a compartmented group, it has to be in the hundreds to design and manufacture new watches. “Open To Work” - The Approach LinkedIn’s “Open To Work” banner is a sign of a potentially exploitable individual within an organization. Linkedin is a professional networking platform owned by Microsoft and a valuable tool for intelligence services. According to the New York Times, Chinese intelligence services have used this platform to recruit spies abroad, including in the United States. To expedite the process and remove myself from the operational act, I would hire a recruitment service firm to conduct the initial outreach to Rolex employees, telling them that an unspecified “consultant” is interested in hiring consultants with knowledge of the Swiss watch industry. Those with “Open for Work” on their profile are priority number one, but given the number of employees at Rolex, a broad initial outreach is necessary.   A recent patent for a Rolex “Alignable Screw Down Crown”. (Photo Credit: Unpolished Watches) Designers, engineers, and scientists are notoriously naive to their value and often eager to talk about their creations and work. Business types are generally eager for other opportunities and career progression, often tempted by outside employment opportunities. With enough “shots on goal,” statistically some will respond positively. Any Rolex employee could be a potential point of exploitation, but someone working within a technical or marketing role could be best. (Photo Credit: Rolex Training) After an initial triage of the resumes received, I would compile them and make an informed assessment of who has access to the information of interest, in this case, the Watches and Wonders releases, and invite them for a remote “interview,” to further assess their access and willingness to disclose sensitive information. Over time, the full-time position would disappear but another opportunity as a “part-time consultant” would appear. The individual could remain at their place of employment, and “consult” on the Swiss watch industry on the side. The target would then transition to a “source,” and be responsive to tasking, i.e. answering specific questions. Student Seeding Operation École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Rolex’s primary source university for new hires. (Photo Credit: EPFL) The largest cohort of known Rolex employees studied engineering at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, a public research university in Lausanne, Switzerland, followed by the University of Geneva. Depending on the timeline, you could also consider recruiting a student and “feeding them” into Rolex, another method used by Chinese and other intelligence services. This option represents the long game but is also an effective methodology that does not require developing a source who may already have loyalties to the Rolex organization. Conclusion Rolex is a sophisticated organization that no doubt spends considerable money on both physical security and counterintelligence procedures. That said, it is a big organization, and every organization is vulnerable to exploitation, with the “insider threat” often being the greatest. This article is about the Swiss watch industry in particular, we are “watches of espionage” after all, but really, it is about more than that. Any industry that has leaders will be subject to targeting by hostile actors. This vintage Speedmaster was sold at auction for over $3M after having been faked with insider help and vintage components from Omega’s heritage department. (Photo Credit: Bloomberg) While this may seem farfetched, there is a precedent for this type of compromise in the Swiss watch industry. In 2021, insiders at Omega allegedly conspired with outsiders to compile a fake Speedmaster using parts from the Omega archives, with the watch ultimately selling for over $3 million at auction.   While this may come as a surprise to many in the watch community, it is something at least some at Rolex are keenly aware of. A further review of LinkedIn data shows that the Director of Security at Rolex USA is a former FBI Special Agent, and we can assume he has counterparts in Switzerland and around the globe. Hopefully, Rolex leadership is listening to them and not sidelined as paranoid “formers.”   To be very clear, this is just an intellectual exercise and we do not advocate or condone commercial espionage. We do hope this is a wake-up call to not only watch companies but companies in general. This article has been reviewed by the CIA's Prepublication Classification Review Board to prevent the disclosure of classified information. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: The Murky World Of Counterfeit Rolex

Former French Spy Chief found guilty of using public intelligence resources to aid LVMH and France’s richest man, Bernard Arnault. Nothing gets the blood flowing like a little corporate espionage. On 7 March, Bernard Squarcini, the former chief of France’s domestic intelligence service, was convicted of using public resources to benefit a private client, LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton). According to court records, Squarcini used government surveillance assets in 2008 to monitor a cyber cafe in an effort to identify an individual attempting to blackmail LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and for conducting illegal surveillance against other individuals. Squarcini was sentenced to two years' house arrest, two years' probation, and a 200,000 Euro fine. Spicy. Bernard Squarcini was conducting private intelligence operations for LVMH.  The Squarcini-LVMH case sheds light on the lengths luxury brands will go to protect their reputation as well as a window into the common, but little understood, practice of corporate espionage and private intelligence. LVMH is arguably the largest luxury conglomerate and owns several watch brands, including Zenith, TAG Heuer, Hublot, and Bulgari. The conglomerate was also an investor in Hodinkee through its corporate venture capital arm: LVMH Luxury Ventures. Bernard Squarcini, known in some circles as “The Shark” (Le Squale), is a former police officer who rose to lead France’s domestic intelligence service, Direction Centrale du Renseignement Intérieur (DCRI - later DGSI), from 2008 to 2012. Appointed by then-president Nicolas Sarkozy, he played a significant role in domestic security and counterterrorism during this timeframe. He also appears to be somewhat of a watch guy, and he was photographed wearing an older model Breitling Navitimer chronograph in steel and gold (shocker). Bernard Squarcini wearing what appears to be a steel & gold Breitling Navitimer.  While it appears Squarcini’s freelancing may have started when he was head of DCRI, in 2013, he founded Kyrnos, a private intelligence firm, which provided a range of intelligence and investigative services to private corporations. It was at this point that he was reportedly hired by the luxury brand as a “security consultant”—a vague term that can mean many different things.   Bernard Arnault, the founder, CEO, and chairman of LVMH, is among the world's richest people.  The client was LVMH and, therefore, also its founder, chairman, CEO, and largest shareholder, Bernard Arnault. With an estimated net worth of $233 billion, he was dubbed Forbes Magazine’s richest person in 2024, ahead of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg. It is no surprise that Arnault’s watch game is strong, and he owns what is likely a pièce unique (one-of-one) Tiffany-Blue Patek Philippe Nautilus Perpetual Calendar 5740, an even more limited edition of the Patek Philippe Nautilus Tiffany & Co. edition, limited to 170 pieces. Of note, LVMH also owns Tiffany and Co., and the limited release with Patek has traded for over $1 million on the secondary market.  Bernard Arnault pictured with son, Frédéric Arnault, who now serves as CEO of LVMH Watches. On Bernard's wrist is his one-of-a-kind Tiffany Patek Philippe reference 5740. Photo Credit: Arnault Instagram. It is clear that Arnault values the watch companies in the LVMH portfolio and has even appointed his 26-year-old son Frederic Arnault as CEO of TAG Heuer, who was later promoted to CEO of LVMH Watches before the age of 30 (key succession music). Accusations & Conviction The conviction and sentencing of the former French spy chief is related to Squarcini’s misuse of public resources to identify a blackmailer targeting Arnault. According to court documents, Squarcini also drew on his influence to collect classified information and spy on activist journalist Francois Ruffin. Ruffin produced a documentary, “Merci Patron!,” which discussed companies' outsourcing of French jobs to foreign labor and was heavily critical of Arnault and LVMH. While LVMH CEO Arnault's involvement in the illicit activity is denied by the company, it is not a stretch that he was at least potentially aware of Squarcini’s work for LVMH. It is clear that brand and personal reputation are key aspects of a luxury brand's value proposition. Squarcini at the courthouse in Nov 2024. (Photo Credit: Reuters) According to press reporting, LVMH previously settled a case involving Squarcini spying on private individuals by paying 10 million euros but was quick to note that this payment did not constitute a judgment against the company or an admission of guilt. Squarcini’s lawyers said they would appeal the verdict. “Private Intelligence” - Mercenaries for Hire? In Hollywood, intelligence firms are vilified as mercenaries for hire, willing to work for the highest dollar with nothing off the table. There is some truth to this, but most “private intelligence” companies work for corporations and provide relatively mundane investigations, political risk assessments, and due diligence. That said, some are willing to operate in the grey/black like Squarcini, and their actions can and do result in convictions and prison sentences. We have touched on this in the past with Daniel Corbett, a Rolex-wearing former SEAL turned mercenary who was arrested in 2017 in Serbia while visiting a source to collect information on a terrorist financier on behalf of an unspecified client. Daniel Corbett, a former SEAL who was jailed in Serbia. Former intelligence officers from CIA, British MI6, and other agencies are valued for their skillset and knowledge but also their tolerance for risk and network of contacts. Many former colleagues of mine at CIA have gone into this business, and roles range from benign political risk for large oil companies to more murky work for unspecified clients “based out of” the United Arab Emirates. It can be a dangerous game with real consequences. While these arrangements are generally kept secret, they do sometimes make international headlines and can have a significant impact on geopolitics. The controversial Trump-Russia “Steele dossier” opposition report compiled by Fusion GPS and former MI6 officer Christopher Steele is one recent example. Separately, according to press reports, Qatar hired former CIA officers (Global Risk Advisors) to influence their bid for the World Cup. Israeli firms, notably NSO Group and Black Cube, have (allegedly) been used by private entities and governments to collect damaging information about individuals and human rights activists. The line between legal research and illegal practices can often be blurred and open to interpretation. Christopher Steele, a former British Secret Intelligence Service officer and founder of Orbis Business Intelligence. Espionage is illegal in every country, and intelligence officers from CIA and other services are trained to lie, cheat, and steal on behalf of their government. As government officials, intelligence officers are mostly protected from third country prosecution through diplomatic immunity, but this goes away once they leave the government. After a life of operating in the grey area, some practitioners find it difficult to make this transition to the private sector where laws and norms must be adhered to.  The world is not all flowers and rainbows. To quote the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche: “Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster, for when you look into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you.” If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watches of the Middle East and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict This article has been reviewed by the CIA's Prepublication Classification Review Board to prevent the disclosure of classified information.

FBI Breitlings, Iran Holding British Couple, Luxury Watch Scammer Sentenced, Pro-Russian Paramilitary Leader Assassinated, & New Stats For Swiss Watches By Benjamin Lowry At Watches of Espionage, we take a holistic approach to our understanding of current events, regularly scrolling mainstream news outlets, sketchy conspiracy theory sites, social media, and anything else that falls within our purview. Once a month, we take all of that roughly digested information and distill it into something we like to call the SITREP (Situation Report), a brief synopsis of recent events related to watches, crime, espionage, the military, and anything else we think you’ll find valuable or entertaining. No marketing fluff. No celebrity endorsements. Only the good stuff. This past month, there was a lot to unpack. From a fraudulent Beverly Hills watch dealer getting his comeuppance to a pro-Russia paramilitary leader dying in a mysterious explosion to British nationals accused of espionage (sketchy Breitling content included) to some surprising watch theft stats, it’s been a big February. On top of all that, one of the more important statistical analyses of the watch industry was recently released, serving up several intriguing insights. Hold onto your hats, it’s time for the SITREP. The Timepiece Gentleman Sentenced For Mail & Wire Fraud At this point, our fascination with watch-related crime is well-established and some would say borderline unhealthy. After pleading guilty back in October, Anthony Farrer, who operated a Beverly Hills watch consignment business based on an online persona known as “The Timepiece Gentleman”, was recently sentenced for mail and wire fraud to the tune of about 5.6M US doll hairs. According to court documents, after advertising a relatively straightforward consignment-style business in which he would retain a percentage of proceeds after selling a watch on behalf of a client, Farrer would instead keep all of the money, using the ill-begotten funds to maintain a lavish LA lifestyle including luxury apartments and cars. As we have discussed in our piece looking at watches as tools of money laundering and other illicit activities, timepieces are easily transferable units of value. That aspect, combined with the dramatic rise in the value of brands and vintage watches, means bad actors looking to make a quick buck will increasingly look to watches for nefarious purposes. However, in the long run, crime doesn’t pay, and the ironically named Timepiece Gentleman will have almost six years in federal prison to consider whether all of the Richard Mille Instagram wrist shots were worth it. US Secret Service Breitling On The New Deputy Director Of The FBI Dan Bongino in his USSS days wearing a Secret Service Breitling “Unit Watch” while providing close protection to President Barack Obama. As discussed in our look at the watches of the Trump Administration, the White House has no shortage of Breitling content. Kash Patel, Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, wears a 46mm titanium Breitling Cockpit B50 with the White House seal on the dial, part of a special run of White House Breitling models ordered in the past few years. Not to be outdone, Trump’s pick for the FBI’s deputy director spot, former Secret Service agent and conservative media personality Dan Bongino, has also been spotted wearing a Breitling. Former USSS Acting Director Ronald Rowe wearing a USSS Breitling that could be the same as Bongino’s. Rather than the White House version, Bongino’s Breitling appears to be the seldom-seen older USSS Colt GMT with the Service Star on the dial that we’ve also spotted on former Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe. Remember, when it comes to sketchy dudes and Breitling, we don’t make the rules. We simply observe and discuss. Pro-Russia Paramilitary Leader Dies In Moscow Explosion - Wearing A Richard Mille? Moving from white-collar watch crime to the world of espionage, Armen Sarkisyan, the founder of a pro-Russia paramilitary group, was assassinated on 03 February following an explosion in central Moscow. The founder of the “Arbat Battalion”, a paramilitary organization that fought for Russia against Ukraine in several key engagements, has been described as a criminal mastermind and was once allegedly responsible for overseeing Russian prisons where he recruited fighters for the Russian war effort. Unsurprisingly, Ukraine has yet to comment on the explosion but with a history of targeted killings including the assassination of Russian Naval Commander Stanislav Rzhitsky carried out in Russia using Strava data, it would not be a large logical leap to imagine Ukraine’s defense intelligence agency was involved. Getting back to watches, Sarkisyan has been photographed wearing what appears to be a Richard Mille chronograph, potentially the RM 50-03 that will set you back $1M, as well as an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore chronograph. Whether this is real or not, we can only speculate, but we would not be surprised either way. Serving as a prominent private military contractor for Russia appears to have good watch implications but is also bad for your health. Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Group had been spotted wearing a Ulysse Nardin before he turned against Russia and—coincidentally, maybe—died in a plane “crash” a couple of months later. British Motorcycle Tourists Detained In Iran & Charged With Espionage A pair of British motorcycle tourists, Craig and Lindsay Foreman, have been detained and charged with espionage in Iran after traveling to the country as part of a Middle Eastern motorcycle tour. According to the Iranian government, the couple, “...entered Iran under the guise of tourists and gathered information in multiple provinces of the country.” According to The Guardian, since 2010, at least 66 foreigners and dual citizens have been detained by Iran on a wide variety of charges often related to espionage. Despite a photo of Craig Foreman wearing an old-school Breitling Colt, we would be shocked to learn the couple was involved in clandestine activities, and it’s far more likely they are the victims of so-called “hostage diplomacy”, the taking of hostages for diplomatic leverage. That said, the naivety of Western travelers never ceases to amaze, and we would argue people need to start taking responsibility for their actions. It might sound like fun to rollerblade through Iran, play basketball in Russia, or teach Somali kids yoga, but these decisions have real geopolitical consequences, with the US and UK governments often making significant concessions to get people like Craig and Lindsay home. Morgan Stanley’s Watch Industry Report For 2024 Is In Likely the most-referenced guide to the overall health of the Swiss watch industry, Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult’s annual report was published earlier this month. We try to stay away from pure industry news, but an overarching statistical analysis like this is worthy of your time, showing numerically which brands are growing in revenue and market share, which are in decline, and how the Swiss watch industry as a whole is faring, all free from the influence of brand marketing dollars. The revelations this year are straightforward. Rolex continues its reign, accounting for an astonishing 32% of the Swiss market share and over 10.5B CHF in turnover based on sales of 1.24M units. Those numbers—which are estimates for a private business like Rolex—are not so different from last year but worthy of a second glance when you consider the massive delta between the Crown and Cartier down in second place with an 8% market share and 3.1B CHF in turnover based on 660,000 units. More broadly, the report indicates the overall health of the industry could be better, with a 3% decrease in Swiss watch exports from 2023 to 2024 and only eleven of the top 50 brands recording growth. Despite these metrics, nothing here amounts to doom and gloom for Swiss watch lovers or indicates we are any closer to being able to walk into a Rolex AD and grab a brand spanking new GMT-Master II right out of the showcase. Watch Theft Tops $2B Globally In 2024 Richard Mille accounted for the ten most valuable stolen watches in 2024. (Source: BBC) Once again revisiting the seedy world of watch theft, new reporting from LBC based on data from The Watch Register claims the global value of stolen watches in 2024 topped £1.6B, or approximately $2B, with some £60M ($75M) worth of luxury watch theft coming from Britain alone. In most cases, stolen watches are sold internationally after being networked through transnational criminal organizations that also often deal in illicit narcotics and human smuggling, using luxury watches as another increasingly lucrative income stream. Rolex remains the most commonly stolen brand, though the top ten stolen watches in value were all from Richard Mille, which makes sense given Richard Mille’s average per-watch cost in 2024 was an astronomical 275,000 CHF, again referencing Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult’s report. As the potential upside for criminal organizations increases, these robberies have become more brazen, sophisticated, and violent, with some perpetrators surveilling potential victims in luxurious shopping areas or watch boutiques before identifying targets, following them to a more secluded area or even their residence, and relieving them of their timepieces, sometimes violently. We’ve discussed luxury watch theft in detail and provided some of our recommendations for avoiding becoming a victim of this growing trend. Suffice it to say that situational awareness is always key and flexing your Batman GMT in Mayfair is never worth catching an ass-whooping and losing your $11k watch. W.O.E. In The Press While it is never our intention, our discussion of Watches of Espionage occasionally finds itself referenced outside the traditional boundaries of our community. When we penned our open letter to Vice President JD Vance asking him to cease his Apple Watch-wearing ways, we had no idea the response it would elicit in mainstream media, including a write-up in The Daily Mail entitled, “Espionage expert's chilling plea to JD Vance”. In addition, W.O.E. was called out in The Financial Times for our discussion on the watch-wearing habits of Ahmad al-Sharaa, the defacto president of Syria who has been spotted with an ascending watch game that quickly escalated from no-name quartz to Patek Philippe. Finally, we haven’t had a chance to listen to the entire (five-hour) thing, but W.O.E. also got the nod in a popular podcast called Acquired in a Rolex-focused episode. Final Thoughts With Watches and Wonders and the majority of new watch releases looming at the end of April, there is typically something of a slowdown for watch news in the early days of Q1. Looking beyond our usual dose of watch-related crime and the recent illuminating report on the Swiss watch industry, that was precisely the case this past month, which is where espionage comes in, with yet another high-profile assassination of a Pro-Russian paramilitary leader as well as the unfortunate story of a British couple being detained in Iran, supposedly for spying. This blend is exactly what the SITREP is meant to be, a one-pager providing a high-level overview of recent events related to any aspect of our community, whether that’s watches, espionage, NatSec, or the military. Whatever your reason or path of entry into our community may be, we’re here for you, but we still wouldn’t recommend motorcycle touring in Iran. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watch Industry SITREP - January 2025

A US Marshals Watch Auction, Submarine Smartwatch Intel Leaks, A Celeb’s Stolen Rolex Returned, & More   The watch world moves at a sometimes frenetic pace, making it difficult to believe we’re already closing the door on the first month of 2025. With that being said, we’re true believers in taking the time to slow down and reflect on the happenings of the past month in our recurring SITREP (Situation Report) series. If you’re new here, this monthly after-action report of sorts is our rundown of the watch and espionage-related events we believe you will find interesting, all coupled with our commentary. No matter how you slice it, the biggest news in the United States was the inauguration of President Donald Trump, kicking off his second go-around as the commander-in-chief. We already provided our unbiased look at the watches of the incoming administration HERE in great detail so we’ll be leaving the new White House out of this SITREP if at all possible. Despite a lingering holiday hangover and the weight of a political regime change, January brought a lot to the table. From a U.S. Marshals Service auction including luxury timepieces that look straight out of the cartel lookbook, to a celebrity’s unlikely recovery of a stolen Rolex, to a French submarine’s unfortunate cyber security failures, and a whole lot more, it’s time for the first SITREP of 2025. Whoa, Keanu Reeves’ Stolen Rolex Recovered In Chile If there’s one thing we know from our monthly check-in on global watch crime, it is that in most cases, stolen watches are never recovered. Post theft, these watches are typically fed into a transnational illicit network and later sold on the black market far afield from the original crime scene. Well, in an ending good enough for Hollywood, three watches stolen from Point Break star Keanu Reeves’ home in California in 2023 were miraculously recovered in Chile following a raid of four houses related to local burglaries and the subsequent arrest of one 21-year-old individual. An Instagram post from a member of Reeves’ stunt team shows a Rolex Submariner similar to the one stolen from the actor’s home and later recovered in Chile. One of the watches, a Rolex Submariner, is engraved with the actor’s name and “2021, JW4, Thank You, The John Wick Five”. The watch appears to be from the set gifted by the actor to his stunt team after filming 2023’s John Wick: Chapter Four. At least according to social media, Keanu Reeves is rumored to be a good dude, so it’s great to see at least one fairytale ending in a stolen watch story. For even more on the alarming trend of criminal gangs specifically targeting Rolex and other luxury watches, check out the latest video on the W.O.E. YouTube Channel. Sadly, Reeves does not make an appearance. Former New Jersey Senator Sentenced In Corruption Trial After Receiving Gifts Including A Patek Philippe   (Photo Credit: Alex Kent/AFP) Former Senator Bob Menendez was sentenced to eleven years in prison after being found guilty in a federal corruption trial. He received expensive gifts, including a Patek Phillipe watch, from a wealthy businessman in return for an introduction to Qatari government officials. Back in October, Menendez was charged with acting as an "agent" of the Egyptian government and allegedly accepting bribes in the form of gold bars, cash, and a Mercedes, with his total illicit compensation totaling almost $1M according to court documents. Businessman Fred Daibes reportedly sent Sen. Menendez the above images of additional watches with the casual phrase -“How about one of these.” In total, Menendez was convicted of 16 counts, including bribery, extortion, wire fraud, obstruction of justice, and acting as a foreign agent.  Prosecutors successfully argued that the senator tried to use his power to advance Egyptian military interests, interfere in criminal prosecutions, and secure investment from Qatari officials. As we have discussed, watches play a significant role in espionage operations, being more difficult to trace, highly liquid, and less blatant than cash, a Mercedes, or gold bars. U.S. Marshals Service Auctions Patek & Rolex Models With Sketchy  Background & Plenty Of Diamonds (Photo Credit: USMS/Gaston & Sheehan) If you’re a watch nerd, you’ve likely heard of Christie’s, Phillips, Sotheby’s, and Bonhams—some of the biggest names in the big business of watch auctions. If not, our friend Tony Traina recently shared an excellent primer on the sometimes shadowy world of watch auctions. We sometimes wonder what happens to watches seized by US federal law enforcement agencies, and you may be surprised to learn that not only are these watches sold at auction, but also that some of the world’s most serious brands and references are present and accounted for. (Photo Credit: USMS/Gaston & Sheehan) In the U.S. Marshals Service Luxury Watch Auction that closed on January 16th, the top lot was a Tiffany dial Patek Philippe Nautilus that hammered for an eye-watering $1,059,855, with the entire auction intriguingly forgoing buyer’s premiums. Some of the other heavy hitters included a Rolex “Rainbow” Daytona with the full factory pave diamond treatment that went for $455,100 and another Nautilus, this time in platinum and set with emeralds, for $930,300. The question then becomes, where the heck are these watches coming from? Looking for the perfect watch to match your gold AK? Be sure to check out the next USMS luxury watch auction. While the auction itself, which is operated by an auctioneer called Gaston & Sheehan on behalf of the USMS, (unfortunately) doesn’t specifically state the provenance of any of the watches, it’s reasonable to assume they come from seizures associated with various law enforcement actions. Whether that’s from murderous cartel bosses with solid gold AKs or more polished white-collar criminals is unclear, but an auction like this likely serves as a legitimate source of income for a federal agency like the Marshals Service. Who said crime doesn’t pay? French Nuclear Sub Crew Shares Sensitive Information Using Smartwatches (Image Credit: Le Monde) Despite offering legitimate lifestyle benefits, smartwatches and other connected devices present serious counterintelligence risks. We’ve spoken at length about the challenges presented by smartwatches like the Apple Watch for intelligence officers, and it would appear a Marine Nationale (French Navy) nuclear submarine crew has just provided another example of the potential gravity of the situation. The Île Longue military base in Brest harbor is home to France’s four nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines. As you’d imagine, everything on base is top secret, everyone is subject to search, and connected devices aren’t allowed in many areas. An officer exits the Suffren, the French Navy's newest nuclear attack submarine. (Photo Credit: Nicolas Tucat /AFP) Still, according to Le Monde and other sources, 16 submariners recently inadvertently shared top-secret patrol schedules and geographic data about the submarine base by uploading on-base fitness activity to Strava after recording a run on their smartwatches. The incident serves as another important reminder of how crucial it is for individuals to safeguard their data, even if it means missing your baguette and café-related notifications or having to catalog your fitness activities the old-fashioned way. Given the long-standing historical link between the Marine Nationale and Tudor and the lack of counterintelligence risks inherent in mechanical watchmaking, I can’t help but wonder if these dudes wouldn’t be better off with a Pelagos FXD. Catherine Villeneuve To Leave Bremont After Fifteen Years With Military Projects Division (Photo Credit: Bremont) After a massive fifteen years with the brand as the Head of Military and Special Projects, Catherine Villeneuve is set to move on from Bremont. Where she’ll go next is as yet unknown, but it’s more than worth taking a moment to recognize her efforts in acting as a liaison between a watch brand and numerous global military organizations. Sometimes lovingly called the “third founder” of the brand after Giles and Nick English, Villeneuve helped to create over 500 military “unit watches” for military organizations the world over. W.O.E. had to opportunity to visit Catherine at Bremont in 2023 and we are sad to see her leave. (Photo Credit: W.O.E./James Rupley) Whether this move has to do with the brand’s 2023 investment by American billionaire Bill Ackman and others and the ensuing exit of the founders, we do not know, but what is clear is that Villeneuve’s loss will be felt. Despite close ties between our community and watches, brands are often ineffective in dealing with military organizations which have their own cultures and customs. Having a full-time employee dedicated to bridging that gap did wonders for Bremont, and we can only hope to see other brands adopt similar roles in the future. For more on Bremont’s unit watch program, check out Aviation “Unit Watches”: Bremont Military and Special Projects Division.   W.O.E. In The Press (Photo Credit: Devin Pennypacker) While it’s never our intention, as our community grows to include more “mainstream” watch nerds, Watches of Espionage occasionally finds itself mentioned in the press. This past month, one of our custom-designed tools, the W.O.E. Submersible Wrist Compass, was reviewed in detail on Worn & Wound by our friend Devin Pennypacker. For those who have asked, the demand for the compass has been incredible, and we are working hard to get those back in stock soon. Click HERE to read Devin’s review. (Photo Credit: W.O.E./Brock Stevens) Our compass also made it into the virtual pages of GQ, where Cam Wolf argues that accessories like the Submersible Wrist compass will be the next big thing for watch enthusiasts. For us, the enduring legacy of wrist compasses in use by SpecOps and the military is our driving factor, but we’re also cool with fashionistas getting in on the Use Your Tools lifestyle. That said, (unless all expenses are paid) we won’t be attending Paris Fashion Week. Click HERE to read Cam’s article. Final Thoughts Some months come on stronger than others, but if the past few weeks are any indication, there is plenty of excellent SITREP content on the horizon for 2025. From the unlikely return of a stolen Rolex to one of the internet’s favorite actors to ze French accidentally sharing critical submarine intelligence to a US Marshals Service auction for some of the most ostentatious watches you could hope for, January came on strong. As always, if you should come across great stories for the SITREP in the execution of any of your daily sketchy activities, be sure to send them our way. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: Watch Industry SITREP - December 2024

At W.O.E., we’ve commented on the watches worn by some of history’s most infamous individuals including US Presidents, Usama Bin Laden, and Muammar Gaddafi. In recent years, several watches with provenance calling back to these historical figures have been sold at auction where they garner massive results propelled at least in part by their historical significance. The recent sale of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser’s Rolex for $840,000 is just the latest example. Beyond challenging provenance, the auction world has also seen its share of bad press, with many calling into question the originality of certain high-profile lots including the story of an Omega Speedmaster that was faked with insider help from Omega HQ in Switzerland. Not a good look. We admit we’re no experts in the field of high-profile auctions or vintage watches so we looked to Tony Traina, a talented writer, researcher, and friend of the page to delve deeper into the good, the bad, and the ugly of modern watch auctions. As it turns out, watch auctions are their own wilderness of mirrors. Tony has his own newsletter called Unpolished. If you are interested in learning more, you can subscribe HERE. What The World Of Watch Auctions Reveals About History, Strategy, & Brand Power By Anthony Traina An estimated 5M people attended President Nasser’s funeral in 1970. On October 1, 1970, more than 5 million people attended the funeral of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser. One of the most respected leaders in the Arab world, Nasser died suddenly at the age of 52. It’s thought to be one of the most-attended funerals in history. Gamal Abdel Nasser (1918–1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who became the country's second president, serving from 1956 until his death. A central figure in modern Arab history, he championed Arab nationalism, led the nationalization of the Suez Canal, and pursued policies that transformed Egypt but sometimes sparked regional conflicts and polarized opinions. Nasser wore his Rolex Day-Date ref. 1803 “President” throughout his life. On Nasser’s wrist during most of his time as president: A gold Rolex Day-Date ref. 1803 “President.” It can be seen in various photos, from his negotiations with world leaders to playing with his five children. In December 2024, Nasser’s Rolex Day-Date sold at Sotheby’s New York for $840,000. As far as I can tell, it’s the third most expensive Day-Date ever sold. More than a watch, it’s a historical artifact that tells the story of Nasser and the formation of the modern Arab world. Almost as interesting as the watch and the big result is the rumored buyer: Rolex. Hammering for $840k, Nasser’s Day-Date was reportedly purchased by Rolex. (Photo Credit: Sotheby's) It’s just the latest example of a brand purportedly buying one of its own historically important watches at auction. Patek Philippe, Zenith, TAG Heuer, and even Movado are all known to be active in the auction market. The influx of money into watches has turned auctions into big business, with brands' moves—whether covert or public—highlighting both the opportunities and risks. Understanding the players, their motives, and behind-the-scenes dynamics is key to finding extraordinary watches at auctions; without a strategy, you risk costly mistakes. What Is A Watch Auction? (Photo Credit: Christie’s) A few times a year, the major international auction houses—Christie’s, Phillips, and Sotheby’s—host watch-themed auctions in the world’s major horological hubs of Geneva, New York, and Hong Kong. It’s where the most historically important, expensive, and rare watches typically come for sale. But they’re not without controversy, the most notable scandal involving a record-breaking Omega Speedmaster in 2021 that turned out to be a put-together “Frankenwatch.” The Omega Speedmaster “Frankenwatch” sold in 2021 for $3.4M. (Photo Credit: Phillips) While auctions are public affairs and record-breaking results garner headlines, the real stories and action happen behind the scenes. Covering the watch industry, I’ve attended several watch auctions. I’ve seen Rolex representatives bidding in the auction room for their historical pieces, methodically building a collection ranging from some of the best-preserved examples in the world (paying millions for top-condition Milgauss and Daytona examples) to the most historically important. But auctions aren’t just for high-end pieces. I’ve bought watches at major and regional auctions – and from familiar toolmakers like Heuer and Enicar, not top luxury brands like Patek Philippe. There’s something for everyone if you know how to navigate it. From Watch To Historical Artifact The caseback on Nasser’s Rolex tells a story. (Photo Credit: Tony Traina) Take Nasser’s Day-Date. Its caseback engraving begins to tell its full story: “Mr. Anwar El Sadat 26-9-1963” Anwar El Sadat, a lifelong friend of Nasser and fellow graduate of the Egyptian Military Academy, became Egypt's vice president in 1969 and succeeded Nasser as president in 1970. Nasser can be seen wearing the Day-Date while he visited soldiers and negotiated with diplomats, reshaping the modern Arab world – a witness to history in a way few objects are. Rolex purchased a GMT-Master formerly belonging to Pan-Am pilot Captain Clarence Warren for CHF 177,800. (Photo Credit: Sotheby’s) It’s far from the first watch Rolex has won. Luckily, these watches haven’t been doomed to some vault deep beneath Rolex HQ in Geneva. At Watches & Wonders last year, Rolex displayed several historically important GMT-Masters to celebrate the launch of a new GMT-Master II. This included Captain Clarence Warren’s GMT-Master ref. 6542 (which sold at auction for CHF 177,800), worn on the first Pan-Am flight from New York to Moscow, when then-Vice President Richard Nixon requested Warren to pilot his visit to the Soviet Union. For his airborne accomplishments, Rolex would later feature Capt. Warren in an advertising campaign. Also on display was Jack Swigert’s Rolex GMT-Master ref. 1675, worn while he was the command module pilot of Apollo 13.  As W.O.E. has covered before, modern watch brands are machines dedicated to marketing as much as mechanics. The activity of these brands in the auction market is no different. These big auction results make headlines in mainstream news, helping to reposition luxury watches as heritage objects that can last generations and even witness history. It’s the type of storytelling and brand-building that brands dream of. A LIP belonging to Charles de Gaulle sold for over $500k. (Photo Credit: Artcurial) And these big results aren’t limited to Rolex. Former French President Charles de Gaulle’s electric LIP watch recently sold in an auction of his personal effects for more than $500,000. In an auction of hundreds of his personal items, it’s his watch—a simple electric model from a French maker – that sold for five times more than any of his journals, letters, or medallions. Sure, it’s marketing, but it wouldn’t be so effective if it didn’t hold a grain of truth. Especially through the middle of the 20th century, the men and women making history often had watches on their wrists as they led their governments, piloted command modules, or served their country. These were tools that helped guide those who shaped or reshaped the world. Strategic Operations & Watch Auctions A Tudor Submariner issued to the South African Navy. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) Somewhere along the way, many of these toolmakers turned into luxury brands. Of course, they still make tools too—for civilians or the military—but auctions are another public stage upon which the secretive drama of the Swiss watch industry now plays out. While the spectacle of auctions and the high prices capture headlines, the real story happens behind the scenes. Auctions are also more accessible than ever. All offer online, phone, and in-person bidding, with the largest auctions often having more than 2,000 registered bidders. Preparation is key: evaluating the watches, understanding the players, acting with discipline and strategy, and avoiding the emotion of the moment. If you’re looking to get involved in auctions, whether you’re spending $100 or $100,000 here are a few tips to get started. Understand The Incentives (Photo Credit: Phillips) Auction Houses & Specialists: Every party comes to an auction with its own incentives and acts accordingly. The most important to know is that auction houses represent the seller, not the buyer. Their goal is to achieve the highest price for the consignor of the watch. Of course, they want both buyer and seller to be happy, and there is the risk of reputational damage if deals go south. But their goal is to achieve the best result for their client, the seller. Auction houses make money by charging a commission on sales (called the “buyer’s premium”), typically somewhere in the range of 25 to 27 percent. This means they typically don’t take a financial stake in a watch, but make money by selling the watch. While they will provide information and condition reports, keep all of this in mind when reviewing the information provided. The goal will be to illustrate the potential of a lot without focusing on its issues or making any guarantees. (Photo Credit: Hodinkee) Buyers (Dealers, Collectors, Brands): Anyone can throw their hat in the ring and bid at an auction, but they may have different goals. Private collectors want to own historically important watches for all the reasons a collector might – from pure passion to pure ego. Watch out for the latter: ego knows no rationality. As we’ve discussed, brands might also bid at auctions. This could be to acquire historically important pieces for their archives or museums. Or, they might want to “protect” the perception of their brand on the secondary market. Either way, it’s important to know that big-time, institutional money might be after a lot, particularly if it has historical importance. Finally, dealers are always lurking. If there’s an opportunity to resell a watch for more money, expect a dealer’s paddle to go up. For large institutional dealers that hold significant inventory, there also may be incentives to bid up certain watches to “protect” the value of their existing inventory. For example, a well-known secondary market player has significant stock in indies De Bethune and F.P. Journe and is known to actively support those markets at auction. The Crowd: There’s also the crowd. That’s everyone from media to influencers to curious onlookers. They cover the news and can amplify record-breaking or scandalous results to generate clicks or headlines. Do Your Homework & Build Your Own Relationships (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) In the watch industry, professionals often move between roles—media members move to auctions, dealers become specialists, and vice versa. All are invested in maintaining a healthy market and ensuring steady growth, so buyers feel confident in spending on expensive watches. This means they all have their own relationships and generally don’t want to disrupt the status quo. This dynamic explains why it’s important to build your own relationships before spending significant sums at auction. This requires being on the ground to assess the situation. When possible, it’s best to attend auctions and auction previews in person. Watch auction previews are a great watch to learn more about vintage watches. (Photo Credit: Asharq Al-Awsat) Auction previews are perhaps the best way to experience vintage watches in person. You’ll hear stories from specialists that don’t make their way into catalogs. But it’s also the best way to make connections, assess watches, and learn. Put your ear to the ground and see if you catch any gossip (there’s always gossip). On the day of the auction, being in the room is the only way to get a feel for the important players, who’s bidding on what, and the general vibe of the sale. Because auction specialists ultimately represent the seller, it’s often helpful to have an independent third-party dealer you trust to help vet watches. Once you develop a personal relationship with auction specialists, they are also more likely to tell you more information about a watch. Flaws that might not be readily disclosed but that they’re comfortable telling to a valued client. Last Call (Photo Credit: Bonhams) Watch auctions, though public, carry a certain air of espionage. Specialists whisper discreetly into phones, connecting with clients around the globe. When brands like Rolex bid, they often don’t even raise a paddle; a nod to the auctioneer often suffices – visible only to those who know to look for it. While these professionals act in rational self-interest, they may exploit private collectors driven by passion. That’s why coming to auctions well-informed is essential. Armed with knowledge, you can bid strategically. If you’re ready to try your hand at auctions – good luck! If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: An Inside Look At The Swiss Watch Industry About The Author: Tony Traina is the editor and founder of Unpolished, a weekly newsletter about what’s really happening in watches. He’s a former editor at Hodinkee. Subscribe to receive Unpolished in your inbox.

I Visited Tudor, Omega, IWC, & Breitling - Here Is What I Learned Switzerland is the epicenter of “watches of espionage.” The relationship to watches is obvious. Based on a watchmaking tradition going back centuries, Switzerland is home to the majority of luxury watch brands from Patek Phillipe and Rolex to Tissot and Hublot. The country’s connections to espionage are less understood. A historically neutral country, Switzerland houses several international organizations including the United Nations in Geneva, and is often the location of high-stakes intergovernmental meetings both overt and clandestine. Traditionally loose banking laws have also made Switzerland a convenient place for individuals to store wealth, regardless of the origin of those financial gains.    Needless to say, Switzerland is a country that I have visited many times and holds a special place in my heart. W.O.E. at Omega SA in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland The intentions for this trip were simple: to learn more about the Swiss watch industry and specifically brands that are closely aligned with our community. While Omega, Tudor, IWC, and Breitling are very different companies, the one thing they have in common is decades-old relationships with our community. Initially producing purpose-built issued military watches in the 20th century, today these brands are the leaders of modern unit watch programs.  IWC’s pilot’s watches, Omega’s Seamasters, Tudor’s extensive dive line, and Breitling's aviation-centric collection are accurately depicted as luxury items today, but they were all once purpose-built tools. “Watches of Espionage” is in the DNA of each of these companies and I would go as far as to say they would not exist or be where they are today without military end users. Breitling manufacturing facility in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland (W.O.E.) I was fortunate to meet with CEOs, watch designers/watchmakers, suits, and most relevant to W.O.E., the individuals that run each brand’s Unit Watch programs. The experience gave me a deeper appreciation and respect for the craftsmanship and resources it takes to build and sustain a leading watch company. I realize how unique it is to be granted access to these closed-off facilities and this level of openness is not something I take for granted. A Geography Lesson Geneva, Switzerland. Switzerland’s watchmaking industry is intriguing in that it spreads across the relatively small country’s varied geography and its many cultural boundaries. While many of the watch industry’s corporate headquarters are located in Geneva, Switzerland's second-most populous city, the majority of actual production including movements takes place in the Jura mountains spanning the country’s northwestern border. Traditionally, watchmakers expanded to this area to take advantage of an agricultural workforce that was dormant during the winter months, creating the “farmer watchmaker” heritage that many brands tout today. Map of Switzerland’s watchmaking centers. (Credit: Federation Of The Swiss Watch Industry) Swiss watchmaking also spans the country’s language barriers. Rolex/Tudor, which is headquartered in Geneva, is staffed primarily by French-speaking Swiss or French workers traveling across the border, but as you head north toward Biel/Bienne, Omega’s headquarters, language and culture shift to a blend of French and German influence. Breitling is also a brand of two cultures, with Swiss-German origins, a headquarters in German-speaking Grenchen, and a production facility in French-speaking La Chaux-de-Fonds. In contrast, IWC is located in Schaffhausen, near Zürich and just across the border from Germany, conducting nearly all of its business in German. Form Follows Function - Purpose-Built Tools Ander Ugarte (left) and Christian Koop are the head designers for Tudor and IWC, respectively. One of the highlights of the trip was meeting with Christian Koop and Ander Ugarte, the heads of design of IWC and Tudor, respectively.  Intensely passionate and masters of their craft, each walked us through the process and attention to detail involved in designing a modern watch for brands steeped in heritage and tradition.  The DNA of iconic watches like the IWC Mark series and Tudor dive watches can be traced back to the divers and soldiers who wore them over half a century ago. While today’s watches trend to luxury items vs real tools, a common phrase I heard was “form follows function.” The watches are still designed with the end user in mind, just as they were a century ago. Automation vs. Hand-Crafted Modern watchmaking is a fascinating blend of cutting-edge technology and centuries-old hand craftsmanship. The two most surprising aspects of visiting the manufacturing facilities of Breitling, Omega, and IWC were the number of robots/automated steps in contrast with the number of steps still requiring human touch. The manufacturing facilities are reliant on technicians and watchmakers from the rural areas of Switzerland, who still work farmers' hours, just as they did centuries ago.  Breitling watch technician. Each morning, hundreds of watchmakers and technicians arrive at the facilities, don sterile antistatic white coats and clean Crocs or Birkenstocks, and spend hours tightening tiny screws to spec or attaching dials to movements. It is a painstaking process and a truly remarkable juxtaposition of futuristic cutting-edge technology and traditional watchmaking. Trying my hand at watchmaking at IWC Schaffhausen. The result is a watch containing hundreds of components, all working in sync to tell you the time. The watches are then shipped around the world through complex dealer networks and intermediaries for you to purchase. Seeing this process firsthand is a remarkable experience and gives me a greater appreciation for the technical and logistical prowess required in Swiss watchmaking. Military Unit Watch Programs - Omega, Tudor, IWC, & Breitling A “Unit Watch” is a timepiece that is customized by the manufacturer for members of a specific unit or organization. Customizations can include the unit’s insignia on the dial and/or an engraving on the caseback. When it comes to Swiss watches, Tudor, Omega, and IWC are the modern leaders in the space and we have profiled each program in past articles.  An Omega Seamaster “Unit Watch” produced for the US Navy SEALs. (Photo Credit: James Rupley/W.O.E.) A cynical analysis of these programs would conclude they are sophisticated marketing initiatives, meant to garner publicity through leaks on social media. While I would argue they accomplish this goal in certain instances, the reality is the brands are largely hesitant to publicly acknowledge the partnerships. Swiss brands have spent decades carefully curating a specific narrative to position themselves as aspirational luxury goods. “Tudors of Espionage,” “Sketchy dudes wear Breitling”, and an iconic image of Omega Seamaster on the wrist of a Secret Service agent after an assassination attempt run counter to these carefully crafted narratives.  Diplomatic Security Tudor Black Bay 58. Further, in contrast to smaller brands like Bremont which garner significant revenue from military programs, for the large Swiss houses, it is costly to divert resources to customizing a dial or caseback for a relatively small batch of custom watches, which are also often sold at a discount. In short, these programs likely aren't big money makers for brands that measure watch sales in the hundreds of thousands of units. IWC Unit Watch for AH-64 pilots. So why do large luxury watch brands bother with Unit Watches? As far as I can tell, these programs are passion projects for individuals within each company and they are somewhat controversial for some brands. I have spent significant time with the individuals in charge of the unit watch programs and they are fiercely passionate about them. They truly believe that they are serving a greater calling by producing meaningful tools and heirlooms for our community. Not surprisingly, these individuals also appreciate what we are doing at Watches of Espionage. Watch Brands Are Businesses This one is so obvious that it shouldn't have to be said, but it's a simple fact that many watch “enthusiasts” often forget. The purpose of a watch company is not to make watches, it's to make money. Many of the individuals who work at the major brands are suits, marketing professionals, and technicians who could work for any number of companies in the luxury goods space. While some of them are passionate about watches, the majority of them likely do not consume watch content on their personal time and are not “watch nerds.” Swatch Group Headquarters, left is Omega building. (Photo CreditL Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg) To be clear, while I enjoy making fun of suits as much as the next guy, this is actually a good thing. If you love watches like I do, then you should want watch brands to succeed… at making money. Headwinds for the watch industry are at an all-time high with Apple Watch sales surpassing the entire Swiss watch industry. It’s not a foregone conclusion that the most iconic brands like Rolex, Patek Phillipe, and Audemars Piguet will be around in 2074. For the most part, modern watches are luxury goods, meaning they are unnecessary. If they are not profitable, they will disappear. Watch nerds often shed crocodile tears on internet forums complaining about why brand X doesn't produce a specific watch or “listen to the community,” but the reality is brands generally make decisions based on mass market appeal. It may be a tough pill to swallow, but many brands do not care about enthusiasts, and from a bottom-line perspective, they shouldn’t. Ownership Matters As consumers, we often think of brands as discrete monoliths, independent entities that make design and product decisions in a vacuum. However, industry consolidation has led to four conglomerates owning the majority of the Swiss watch industry; Swatch Group, Richemont, LVMH, and the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, the parent organization for Rolex and Tudor. Somewhat dated graphic showing ownership in the watch industry (Image Credit: Tony Traina, Rescapement) While in theory, the brands are independent or semi-independent entities, the reality is that Omega's decisions could impact the overall standing and profitability of Swatch Group as a whole, and IWC is just one node of the broader Richemont family. While Tudor often paints itself as an independent entity, when I visited Tudor HQS in Geneva, it was inside Rolex. It’s naive to think that there is no coordination between the companies. Breitling was purchased from the Schneider family by a private equity company in 2017 and whether we like it or not, the overall decisions of the brand are impacted by this ownership structure. (Photo Credit: Rolex) Conglomerates are a double-edged sword. On one hand, they offer access to capital and resources, Richemont and Swatch Group are multibillion-dollar conglomerates with robust infrastructure and supply chains. On the other hand, the conglomerates must ensure each company works towards the same goal, which likely limits independence and creativity at the brand level. Coopetition - Competitors Or Partners? Further, even between competing brands, there is a level of cooperation and sharing. Historically, the legendary Rolex Daytona utilized a chronograph movement supplied by Zenith. Even today, Breitling and Tudor, theoretically arch rivals, share movements, with Breitling utilizing several of Tudor’s base automatic calibers and Tudor receiving a modified version of the B01 chronograph caliber in return, a level of cooperation you aren’t going to see from Apple and Samsung. Tudor's MT5612 is produced by Tudor and voluntarily shared with Breitling, a rival watchmaker. (Photo Credit: Monochrome Watches) While they’re never going to admit it publicly, many of the biggest brands also look to the same suppliers for specific components from jewels to mainsprings to cases and bracelets to construct their “in-house” movements and complete watches. Third-party certifications like COSC and METAS are also utilized by multiple brands looking for a competitive advantage. Despite being fundamentally in competition, I heard several brand leaders admit the overall health of the Swiss watch industry is always in mind. A rising tide lifts all ships. For the industry to succeed holistically, the brands must balance being fiercely competitive with a measured level of cooperation. While it was created in collaboration with Omega and an impartial third party, Tudor has also started instituting METAS testing and certification for some of its watches. (Photo Credit: Monochrome Watches) Tribalism Exists at Every Level Visit any social media watch page and the tribalism—visceral feelings for or against a specific brand—is evident. There are fewer general “watch guys” and more “Rolex” or “Omega” guys. The passion is real and watch nerds think their brand is the best and everyone else sucks. The individuals I met at each brand were fiercely proud of the product they produce, which is cool to see. While they were professional enough to not bad mouth another company outright, it's clear that they truly believed their brand was the pinnacle of modern watchmaking. While this may sound like a negative, this intense conviction to be the best was inspiring. If I buy a Tudor, Omega, Breitling, or IWC, I like knowing that the people making it in the mountains of Switzerland are true believers. Heritage Matters Omega museum, Biel/Bienne, Switzerland When you buy a watch, you are not just buying the components, you are buying a piece of history. One of the most educational aspects of the trip was visiting the museums of Breitling in Zurich, Omega in Biel/Bienne, and IWC in Schaffhausen. For the brands I visited, the history is rich and compelling, and on full display. Breitling Emergency Prototype (Breilting Museum, Zurich Switzerland) Of course, the brands emphasize certain periods and events to carefully curate a narrative, but they are still compelling because it’s authentic.  Omega’s museum had numerous watches worn by astronauts, soldiers, and spies, both real and contrived (Bond, James Bond). IWC was founded by an American soldier, Florentine Ariosto Jones who fought for the 13th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment during the Civil War and would go on to produce watches for both the Allies and the Germans during World War II, something the museum refreshingly does not gloss over. Breitling’s DNA is rooted in aviation, having provided issued watches during both World Wars decades before becoming a go-to option for those operating on the fringe of sketchiness in the 1990s and 2000s. These museums are open to the public, and I encourage you to visit if you find yourself in Switzerland. The great thing about the country is you can get pretty much anywhere in a few hour train ride. Left is an issued “MN” Tudor MilSub on an original strap, fashioned from parachute webbing. The one on the right was a unit purchase gift for a retiring officer. It was purchased through the MN Rolex-certified watchmaker, Yves Pastre who had a workshop in Toulon. (Photo Credit: Tudor Archives/W.O.E.) Unfortunately, Tudor does not have a museum, but they did provide us access to their extensive archives of military-issued watches and prototypes. This will be the subject of a future Dispatch and the spice level was high. Swiss Watch Marketing is Antiquated I have written in the past about the sophisticated marketing machines behind the Swiss watch industry and this trip confirmed that thesis (Read Here). The major brands, including IWC, Tudor, Omega, and Breitling, have masterfully curated a narrative based on decades-old craftsmanship and history, that makes them leaders in a crowded industry.  In addition to co-opting watch media, they spend millions of dollars a year sponsoring sporting events, recruiting celebrity ambassadors, and producing slick marketing material. Watches and Wonders, an international watch and jewelry industry organized by the Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation. (Photo Credit: Wikicommons) While I am by no means a marketing expert, I am intimately familiar with human nature. I get the feeling that the brands are reliant on what has worked in the past and not focused on the future, or for that matter the present. Celebrity ambassadors, event sponsorship, film product placement, and heavily-curated “new releases” are masterclasses in Marketing 101 but the modern consumer is savvy and the media landscape has changed. Legacy watch publications have declined in recent years and have been replaced by a plethora of dispersed voices. There are TikTokers, Youtubers, and podcast hosts who are more influential than Tom Brady and even James Bond. The Swiss watch industry appears slow to adapt to the new landscape and continues to fall back on tried and true methods. Given its age, watchmaking as a whole is steeped in tradition and slow to adapt, especially when it comes to reaching the younger consumers the industry so desperately needs to continue. W.O.E. in Schaffhausen, wearing the same IWC Mark XVII I wore while operational at CIA. Does visiting a facility impact how I will cover them? To date, we have kept the traditional watch industry at arm's length distance, something that frankly much of the industry is okay with. That said, as we have grown our audience we owe it to our community to present thoughtful and unbiased commentary on the watches and brands that are aligned with our ethos. I made some great friends and contacts on this trip and am grateful for the level of access I was granted. It will continue to be a balance between nurturing these relationships and remaining unswayed by the influence of the brands on content. Despite some of the critiques above, my appreciation for the Swiss watch industry in general and these legendary brands in particular could not be higher. I am grateful for those individuals who made this trip possible and thankful for the time and effort of the teams in Switzerland. There are several threads to pull on from this trip and we plan to write additional stories on IWC’s “Top Gun” unit watch program, recent developments in Omega’s unit watch offerings, and the real story behind the Tudor FXD. Thank you all for the support, more to come. -W.O.E. *Note, as with all of our content, this is not sponsored by Tudor, Omega, IWC, Breitling, or any other brand. If you enjoyed this article, please consider signing up for our weekly free newsletter for further updates HERE. Read Next: W.O.E. 2024 Holiday Gift Guide - Top Picks From Other Brands