Business

Business

Richard Benc – The Underd0g

Breaking all the rules

After witnessing the long queues to the Studio Underd0g stand snaking around the London venue for British Watchmakers’ Day back in March, our Editor-in-Chief Julia Pasarón couldn’t resist finding out more about the man causing the disruption: Richard Benc.

Richard ended up in watchmaking more out of chance than passion. With a degree in product design, he landed his first job helping to create character watches (Mickey Mouse, Minions… that type of thing), and from there he moved on to the Bauhaus-inspired company, Braun. Along the way, he fell in love with mechanical things and how to make them smaller and better. “It should have been clearer to me that I was destined to design watches,” he says candidly. “I always enjoyed details. I like how a tiny design decision can have a very large impact on the overall aesthetic of a watch.”

As the idea of creating his brand started to germinate, it was clear to him that he wanted to explore colour and vibrancy, in opposite contrast to the Bauhaus style. In general, he was disappointed by the lack of creativity in the…

Business, Lifestyle, luxury shopping

Harrods’ 175th anniversary

The world’s most famous luxury department store celebrates 175 years of retail magic

Arguably the most famous luxury department store in the world, Harrods is marking its 175th anniversary with all manner of exciting celebrations and special-edition products. From its iconic teddy bears to its renowned Festival of Lights, there are many highlights in store for customers throughout the year. Embodying the very essence of luxury, tradition and […]

Business

Audrey Raffy

The beautiful mind driving Bovet into the future

The vice president of Bovet, Audrey Raffy, is most definitely a rising star in the watch industry. Her cosmopolitan background, natural intelligence and exceptional qualifications are the tools with which she is taking the company into the future, navigating one of the most competitive sectors in luxury. Audrey has Lebanese roots, was born in France, […]

Business

Theo Auffret

The young artisan horloger from Paris

There is a sense of history, not just in the way his watches are designed and made, but in the setting and the approach to horology, that has propelled Theo Auffret in a very short time from apprentice to a recognised artisan watchmaker. Last year his “Tourbillon Grand Sport” was shortlisted for the prize at […]

Business

It Is Time For Mums

Conquering the watch industry

Traditionally, the watch business has been dominated by men. From the atelier to the board, the sector was controlled by testosterone. The earliest example of a female on a significant position in a watch company is probably Jasmine Audemars, who in 1992, took over from her father as Chair of the Board of Directors of […]

Business, Lifestyle

A Woman’s Touch

The female artisans at the heart of Rolls-Royce

As part of the celebration of International Women’s Day, I-M Magazine’s Shelley Campbell was invited to visit Rolls-Royce Motor Cars for an intimate and insightful tour of its jaw-dropping manufacturing headquarters at Goodwood and a chat with a few of the female artisans contributing to the excellence of every car that comes out of its […]

Business, Lifestyle

Elizabeth Gage

In the name of love

For more than five decades, Elizabeth Gage MBE has been designing bold and colourful pieces of jewellery that have attracted customers from Hollywood to Hong Kong. She exudes charisma and personality. Her presence fills the room and her inviting smile warms you like a gentle summer breeze. I interviewed Elizabeth at her showroom in Belgravia, […]

Business

Lynn Calder

CEO, Ineos Automotive

It’s an indisputable fact that women are making serious headway in high-level roles at the top of traditionally male-dominated industries – and Lynn Calder is certainly one woman doing just that. At the close of last year, the 45-year-old Scot was appointed CEO of Ineos Automotive, the fledgling car-building arm of the giant Ineos Group founded […]

Business

The Wealth of Nature

Embracing the natural order generates real progress

For most of recorded history, the study of economics was understood to be a branch of natural philosophy, and not as a branch of “science” or, more particularly, mathematics, as it has now become. Economic activity and money itself were considered as an extension of the natural order, and the standards that nature imposes upon […]

Business

The Future is Electric

Electric Vehicle charging trends and the future of electrification

In this article, Jordan Brompton, co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of myenergi, gives her thoughts on the Electric Vehicle (EV) charging trends we’re likely to see in 2023 and discusses why the next 12 months will be a pivotal period for the UK’s transition to electrification. Most trends come and go, but it’s safe to […]

Business

Pascal Raffy

It takes a family to make a Bovet

It is not often that a successful businessman in pharmaceuticals gives it all up to buy a watch brand which value was based on its unique heritage, the mastery of its artisans… and little more. But that’s exactly what Pascal Raffy did in 2001, as a reaction to her eldest daughter’s complaint about never seeing her dad. That drastic career turn changed the dynamics of his family life and the fortunes of Bovet 1822 forever. Our Editor Julia Pasarón went to their headquarters at Château de Môtiers, on the hills over Neuchâtel, Switzerland, to interview Pascal as the brand celebrates its 200th anniversary.

Business, Science

Space Junk Odyssey

Omega joins forces with Privateer for a new orbital space technology platform.

The Privateer mission was bound to happen, it was only a matter of time. Founded in 2021 by ex-NASA and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs Alex Fielding and Steve Wozniak (the latter also known as “Woz” for being considered a wizard of the tech sector), and Dr Moriba Jah, an astrophysicist and academic, Privateer is looking at […]