If you live in Texas, the de Boulle name is no stranger to you. Located in the heart of the Park Cities in Dallas and with a newly opened boutique in the River Oaks District in Houston with a fascinating Patek Philippe salon —as we featured it here—, de Boulle is one of those authorized dealers worth paying a visit and talking about.
Posts tagged #Top Watch Shopping
Watch Shopping Guide: Zurich. All That You Dreamed of and More.
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland approximately 25 miles from the German border. Zurich is a very cosmopolitan, affluent city considered one of the top financial centers of the world —home to several global financial companies and banks including UBS and Credit Suisse— and a perfect destination for watch shopping.
Experience: The New Patek Philippe Salon at De Boulle River Oaks District in Houston. A Perfect Evening.
Last Tuesday November 17, 2015, we had the pleasure to attend the celebration of the opening of the new Patek Philippe salon at the new De Boulle location in the ultra upscale River Oaks District in Houston. The River Oaks District, is a luxury retail paradise comparable to the Miami Design District or to Oak Street in Chicago. The new modern development is located on the famous Westheimer Rd. next to the Afton Oaks neighborhood and a block away from Hotel Derek. The River Oaks District is set to become the top shopping destination in Houston with boutiques that include Brunello Cucinelli, Canali, Chopard, Dior, De Boulle, Etro, Giuseppe Zanotti, Intermix, Moncler, Roberto Cavalli, Stella McCartney, Tom Ford, our favorite Vilebrequin swimwear and also our favorite Vietnamese restaurant from New York and Chicago, Le Colonial. After more than a decade without the opening of a new Patek Philippe Salon in the United States, De Boulle presents a unique shopping experience at its new location.
Experience: Audemars Piguet Boutique Milano. An Intimate Small Boutique but with Very Impressive Inventory.
A quick stop at this amazing boutique is all it takes to be in the presence of some of the most amazing timepieces recently unveiled at the SIHH 2015 by Audemars Piguet. The Audemars Piguet Boutique Milano is nested in one of the most upscale retail areas of the city right on Via Montenapoleone 6, next to Santoni and Camper —two of our favorite shoe brands.
Walking down from Via Manzoni where the Montenapoleone metro station is located —right next to the Armani Hotel—, makes for a nice walk surrounded by the splendor of high end clothing and watch boutiques. As soon as you arrive at the boutique, there are two AP brass plaques flanking the entrance. Even though the boutique is very small, there's no way you can miss the black awning with gold 'Audemars Piguet' on it. If you are coming from Giacomo Mattiotti you are just a block away. With a very inviting decor and a window display full of novelties from the SIHH 2015, including a white gold limited edition Royal Oak Offshore nicknamed 'Goliath', the boutique is awaiting you.
Experience: MARCUS Watches in London. A Watch Shopping Paradise for Audemars Piguet and Haute Horlogerie Lovers.
As we prepare to report directly from Geneva during our week at the SIHH 2014, we decided to spend a few days in London. As many of you know, London is considered a must when it comes to watch shopping. When it comes to Audemars Piguet and highly complicated watches, there is no better place to stop by other than MARCUS watches located on 170 New Bond Street. MARCUS is advertised as containing “The most important collection of watches in the World” and we can say that they deliver on that promises. The range of brands they carry is truly formidable, ranging from long-established, high end brands such as Audemars Piguet, Piaget, Girard-Perregaux and Zenith to more recent haute horlogerie brands like Richard Mille, Urwerk, MCT, Hautlence and Greubel Forsey amongst others.
The store was established in its current form by Marcus Margulies whose family company, Time Products, dates back to the early 1960’s when his Father Alexander moved to England from Poland and established a business distributing inexpensive watches imported from the Soviet Union. This company was named Sekonda and is now the UK’s best-selling watch brand. Time Products has worked closely with the Swiss Luxury Watch Industry and is currently the UK distributor for Hublot and Franck Muller. Other brands that have been distributed by Time Products in the UK include Blancpain, Breguet, Girard-Perregaux, Vacheron Constantin and Audemars Piguet which was distributed in the UK, Switzerland and the U.S. for over 15 years.
The store has one of the rarest collections of vintage and antique timepieces in the world. The collection was started in 1989. During the past twenty years it has bought some extremely rare, sometimes unique, pocket and wristwatches, the majority having been produced by the watch companies Time Products represents. The purpose of the collection has always been to support retail customers by promoting the brands when they hold exhibitions. Below you will see a picture of Marcus, the man behind this watch shopping paradise.
As you head into this fascinating boutique you'll experience a very interesting combination of modern and antique decor. The boutique is nestled inside an old building that according to UK laws, its interior can only be modified to certain extent and features like its crown molding or its staircase had to be kept intact. Therefore, you will find a nice combination of the old meeting the new, the same fascinating combo that we find in the rare and exclusive timepieces than can be found here. MARCUS sells some of the most interesting unique piece limited editions including sets and watches like the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore MARCUS limited edition, the Richard Mille RM028 Divers Set of 3 unique pieces, the Greubel Forsey set of 3 pieces as well as some amazing Urwerks, MCTs, Hublots and Franck Mullers amongst others.
The boutique spreads over four levels of elegant decor, free standing showcases and perfectly designed salons with excellent natural light. The boutique is quite large but very intimate and inviting despite the fact that as soon as you walk in the first timepieces that greet you include a very rare 18K rose gold Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Grande Complication with skeletonized dial of which only 3 pieces were ever made and priced well above $700,000 USD. As you head upstairs you know you are in for a big treat as the Audemars Piguet room awaits you. A salon that includes some of the most fascinating Audemars Piguet timepieces we've ever seen and the largest inventory on display. Now, let's move on to the images and let these do the talking. Below you will see several very hard to find pieces including one of the MARCUS limited editions as well as a exclusive Royal Oak with diamond baguettes and emeralds.
Now meet one of the three limited edition Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshores exclusively created for MARCUS. This one is the Royal Oak Offshore Black DLC Steel Marcus Limited Edition of 50 pieces in blackened DLC steel case with black "Mega Tapisserie" dial, white Arabic numerals, crown and pushers in white, case back engraved with the Marcus M logo and a white rubber strap. You need to see one in person to really fully appreciate it. Just amazing.
As you continue to move upstairs, you are greeted by a beautiful display full of antique watchmaking tools and some fascinating timepieces that left us in awe. Elegance and refinement are the name of the game at this boutique where even a beautiful Asprey leather backgammon set is awaiting there for one to play a quick round with Marcus while watch shopping. On this level you will find a 3-piece set of Greubel Forsey Tourbillons all numbered with the number 7, a Richard Mille RM022 Tourbillon Diamonds Marcus unique piece, a unique Piaget watch with 'cloissoné' enamel case and dial and a unique piece of the fascinating ultra complicated Urwerk UR-1001 Zeit Device pocket watch in blackened platinum instead of the traditional AlTiN treated steel. This Urwerk weighs almost a kilo —2 pounds— of platinum and measures an era in its entirety, from a second to a millennium with a revolving satellite complication with wandering hours, retrograde minutes, revolving satellite calendar with months and dates, day/night indicator, power-reserve indicator, running seconds, “Oil change” indicator for every 5 years, running-time indicator for a century and linear running-time indicator for a millennium.
After you're done some serious shopping upstairs and just in case you have time for some wine and more APs, you might be escorted downstairs to the lower level where an amazing built-in watch display with winders, wine cellar and humidor awaits you. Just in case you didn't find anything you liked upstairs at the Audemars Piguet salon, down here you will find another huge selection of APs including the Royal Oak Offshore Sachin Tendulkar Limited Edition.
As you head back upstairs to the ground level, pay close attention to the antique table where the stairs end, here you will see the amazing Reuge by MB&F Music Machine in its full glory and behind no glass. After an unforgettable experience perusing some of the most exclusive and exceptional timepieces you can find in London and the world, we thank Alex at MARCUS for such a wonderful afternoon and great hospitality. Thanks for making us feel at home.
For more info on MARCUS watches click here.
Watch Shopping Guide: Chicago. Good Variety in the Second City.
Chicago also known as the second city or the 'windy city' is the third largest city in the U.S. but not necessarily the best place for watch shopping, if we really want to be quite blunt. Chicago offers a decent amount of specialized watch stores and only one dedicated watch boutique—Rolex boutique operated by Tourneau Watch Company. Watch stores are somewhat spread out around the city but with the main stores concentrated in two areas of the city, on the Magnificent Mile—Michigan Avenue— and Jeweler's Row along Wabash avenue in the heart of downtown.
As we start our watch shopping way around Chicago, we kick-off around Jeweler's Row. This row, located on Wabash avenue heading south between Washington and Monroe streets, offers a wide variety of pre-owned watch shops, a few gray dealers and just two authorized dealers—New York Jewelers and Marshall Pierce & Company. New York Jewelers carries a large selection of brands such as TAG Heuer, Bell & Ross, U-Boat, Chronoswiss and a nice selection of pre-owned vintage Rolex watches. Located about a block away from NYJ, right inside the building located at 5 South Wabash—Jewelers Center—, you'll find several watch dealers including the well known Howard Frum—one of the largest pre-owned watch dealers in the Midwest.
Heading north on Michigan avenue from Millennium Park right next to Allen Edmonds and a few steps away from the corner with Ohio, you will find the recently opened Tourbillon Boutique, specialized in very high end names such as Breguet, Blancpain, Glashütte Original, Omega and Jaquet Droz. A block and a half away—still heading north on Michigan avenue—and on the opposite side of the avenue at the corner of Ontario and Michigan, Cartier and the Rolex boutique are located.
Catty corner from the Rolex boutique and a building away from the corner with Erie, you'll find, Swiss Fine Timing Atelier Jewelers. This store is the only authorized dealer for Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille and also carries other great names such as Hublot, Breguet, Parmigiani, Panerai, Graham, Chopard, Zenith and Glashütte amongst others.
Three blocks north from here you can stop at the Ralph Lauren boutique and check out their vintage watch section on the lower lever. Two blocks north inside the Water Tower Place shopping mall is where Tourneau is located. Wide selection of Breitling, Patek Philippe, Rolex, IWC, Longines and Panerai. A block north next to the Westin on Michigan avenue you will stumble upon the Omega, Bulgari and Louis Vuitton boutiques, finding Montblanc just right across the street from them. One block north from Louis Vuitton, you will make a left on Oak street and about half a block away on the right side you'll find Geneva Seal, authorized dealer for Roger Dubuis, Breitling, Frank Muller, Blancpain, Urwerk, Jacob & Co., Bell & Ross and TAG Heuer amongst others. Last stop the Hermès boutique on Oak and Rush street. From there make sure you have lunch or dinner at Fred's inside Barney's New York.
Watch Shopping Guide: Las Vegas. Watchlifestylers Paradise.
The city of Las Vegas, offers one of the most amazing watch shopping experiences in the U.S. and the world. In less than 2.5 miles of the Las Vegas Strip and located within the casinos and their shoppes, you will be able to find more than 25 dedicated brand watch boutiques and authorized dealers. Heading North on the strip, our first stop is at Aria and Crystals at City Center. Located inside the Aria hotel and casino is Radiance offering a wide variety of brands including Richard Mille, Bell & Ross, Corum and Cuervo y Sobrinos amongst others.
Next door at Crystals shopping center, you'll find Tourbillon—large selection of Blancpain, Omega, Breguet, Jacquet Droz and Glashütte and dedicated boutiques for Cartier, Bulgari, De Grisogono, Harry Winston, Van Cleef & Arpels and TAG Heuer. Tourbillon is in the process of building a larger store in the same location, scheduled to open late 2013.
Next stop heading North is the Bellagio. Besides the wonderful water fountain show every hour and the delicious Bellinis served at the casino, watch shopping can also be a great experience. Omega has a beautiful boutique here and at Tesorini you will find a very large selection of Rolex and Patek Philippe watches, amongst others.
If you keep heading North on the strip, you'll come across Caesar's Palace and the Forum shops at Caesar's. Inside the Forum shops you'll find Tourneau, Roman Times —large authorized dealer for IWC, Piaget and Hublot—, Vicci —one of the largest selections of Audemars Piguet—, the Panerai and Breitling boutiques and a couple of Rolex smaller boutiques.
Almost across from Caesars, on the opposite side of the strip, you'll find the Venetian and the shoppes at The Palazzo where several authorized dealers and a few brand boutiques are located. At the Venetian you will find Horologio and Venetzia Jewelers and at the shoppes at the Palazzo you will find the boutiques for IWC, Bulgari, Blancpain, Harry Winston and Vacheron Constantin. Additionally, you will run into Bellusso specializing in vintage and pre-owned pieces as well as another Venetzia Jewelers at Palazzo with the largest selection of Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille watches in Las Vegas.
Our last stop is at the esplanade of the Wynn Casino, where Rolex will be opening its flagship Rolex Experience Boutique for North America at the end of May. At the Wynn, you will find a very refined selection of boutiques and authorized dealers. A brand new IWC boutique was opened back in November of 2012. You will also find Chopard, Piaget, Jaeger LeCoultre and Cartier boutiques in this area. The well-known Rolex boutique that was located at the esplanade, is where the new Rolex Experience will open. Temporarily, there's a small Rolex boutique by Tableau restaurant on the other end where the Wynn suites are located. Wynn & Company Watches offers a wide selection of Patek Philippe, Panerai and Vacheron Constantin timepieces amongst others. This store no longer carries Audemars Piguet watches.
Without a doubt Vegas is a watch shopping oasis with some of the best brands and a really wide selection. After shopping around and if you still have time while you finish your round at the Wynn, we recommend you stop by Sinatra or Red 8 for a great meal.
Watch Shopping Guide: Beijing. More Upscale than What You Would've Imagined.
One of the most amazing cities for watch shopping in the world without a doubt is Beijing. The number of dedicated boutiques in the Wangfujing area dwarfs those around other metropolises including Las Vegas, London or New York City. A wide availability of brands is found throughout the city but specially on Wangfujing street, right between the APM Mall and the Grand Hyatt. Additionally, there is a second beautiful Piaget boutique located inside The Peninsula Hotel atrium and a Richard Mille at The Legendale Hotel next to Jinbao Place mall.
During our trip to Beijing we visited the boutiques for Rolex, Tudor, Tag Heuer, Cartier, Audemars Piguet, Hublot, Omega, Glashütte, Piaget, Vacheron Constantin, Chanel, Ulysse Nardin and Jaeger LeCoultre.
The boutiques for Rolex and Tudor were fully integrated into one big boutique with inventory for both brands throughout the whole sales floor. A few blocks up, another Rolex standalone boutique is located.
The only boutique with signage in Chinese.
