Hodinkee buys Crown&Caliber

Just a commercial expansion of their pre owned business. I had a positive experience with C&C, hope they don’t ruin it.

Good for them, working very hard to make a brand and expanding. I may not agree with how they did it, but they have done a great job turning a hobby into an industry heavyweight.

It appears (what the hell do I know) that they are a larger virtual watch dealer with the acquisition.

They mention the ability to sell your watch to them. It means you can trade it in on a purchase, similar to your local dealer. You don't get retail but you don't need to sell it on your own. They won't be ebay, where you can sell your watch to the highest bidder. You will sell to them.

It means they get a larger slice of the market through acquisition of the staff and infrastructure. It takes a lot of people to take pictures and writeup each watch.

They have goodwill from the community. Rightly or wrongly, people trust their advise. Trust in a purchase for a used watch is huge. They will ensure the watch function and is what it says it is.

They won't necessarily be the cheapest. There seems to be a premium for buying through them. Some people like buying from the dealer as it gives them comfort, for which they are willing to pay a premium. They perform that service.

They aren't journalists but they aren't shrills either (not everyone agrees). They seem to me to be upfront about who they are. There aren't many true journalists in watches. Perhaps the forums come close but they have issues of their own, such as verifying sources, getting facts straight versus opinion, even independence as most forum members have collections of their own that they have spent large amounts of money. I do shudder when I see any H. staff member or commentator use the word journalism. But I (again, what the hell do I know) don't expect real journalism. I expect hyperbole mixed in with facts. I hope for accuracy but know to check claims as there is a lot of lore associated with watches. I appreciate and admire what they have accomplished. There is and always has been a lot of money associated with luxury items, including watches. It doesn't surprise me in the least.

They aren't the dark lord that some people seem to describe them as, but they aren't (and haven't been for years) a collector forum. They are another vendor, a source to buy watches.

It does make me ponder this whole explosion of watches. Is it sustainable? When will chronographs become priced like pocket watches? Is this just the result of zero interest rates and governments buying corporate debt? When did a 10k watch seem equivalent to buying a 500.00 watch? What will the world be like in 5, 10 years? No idea. After losing power for a few days, it is surprising how quickly the world can change and revert to something you thought was the past. What seems reality can be gone in an instant. With that rambling open consciousness (not brought on by drugs), I bid you good day.

There used to be more vintage on C&C, in fact, one of my Tri Compax watches ( with an OF provenance) was purchased through them. I was very happy with price and performance. ... I’ve noticed over the years that the listings decreased.

Got my half Czech dander up dude. My PA German half is just looking coldly at you.

TBH, Hodinkee also doesn't have much vintage inventory. They are not really a major vintage dealer IMO. They sell a ton of new watches, including special editions.

As a % yes. When they first started selling, they had some nice stuff.

I remember that too, and for what it's worth, they do seem to have a bit more recently. They went through a period a year or two ago where the vintage inventory was virtually non-existent.