SDC Weekly 140; HSNY at 160 - A Dispatch from The Plaza; Meylan at Moser Loves Margin
Why there are 60 minutes in an hour, how Tudor watches are made, village brains, 'Swiss made' debate on 'Swissness', quartz crisis meets parenting, Patek links to Berkshire Hathaway, and more.
🚨 Welcome back to SDC Weekly! This is a long one, because it includes a guest interview which is free for all to read.
Btw… If you watch only one video this week, watch this one. I had no idea Tudor still uses so much manual labour in their manufacturing process. Many perhaps think of these watches as ‘mass produced’ or fully ‘machine made’ - this video provides a look behind the curtain and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Admin note: We asked the Unofficial Editor if he could spare 60 minutes to proofread this edition… He flat-out refused, packed up his bag, and said, “Nope, that’s not hour problem.” 💀 Please tap the title of this post or click here to read it online and see all corrections made after publishing.
If you’re new to SDC, welcome! If you have time to spare, find older editions of SDC Weekly here, and longer posts in the archive here.
Estimated reading time: ~45 mins
🗽 HSNY at 160 - A Dispatch from The Plaza
On March 26, 1866 - just last week 160 years ago, as it happens - a group of German immigrant watchmakers sat in a tavern in downtown Manhattan and decided to start something new. They called it the Deutscher Uhrmacher Verein, which translates to the German Watchmakers Society… and this thing they started, is what later became the Horological Society of New York(HSNY). It is the oldest continuously operating watchmaking guild in America, and one of the oldest in the world.
I mention the tavern to highlight how the origin story of America’s watchmaking guild really is just a group of craftsmen having a drink together and realising they should probably band together and help each other out. That’s kinda how every good thing in this hobby starts, too - someone says something interesting at a table, and the rest follows. Even Redbar started with some lads chatting in, well, a bar called Redbar.
Anyway, here we are, 160 years later… and the HSNY’s annual gala took place on Saturday, March 21st, at The Plaza Hotel in New York City. François-Paul Journe received (in absentia) the Howard Fass Award for Lifetime Achievement. London Jewelers were honoured on the occasion of their 100th anniversary. The gala co-chairs were Romain Gauthier, Kevin O’Leary, and Roger W. Smith OBE. The Society also announced $450,000 in scholarships to 55 watchmaking students, five watchmaking schools, and three independent watchmakers - up from $160,000 the year before.
I wasn’t there - but lucky for us, my friend Ron, was.
Quick word on Ron
Ron Hekier is a surgeon. He will also tell you he is a surgeon, at every available opportunity, because that’s apparently what surgeons do. He is a guy who enjoys thinking for the sake of thinking, almost as much as I do, and he has become somewhat infamous in the comments section of SDC posts - the kind of reader who dissects every word, nudges you toward an adjacent thread you hadn’t considered, and leaves you chewing on something for days after.
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Ron twice in person. First, briefly at Dubai Watch Week. Then again a couple of weeks ago when he was in London with his family. There would have been a third time, but that didn’t work out for reasons we need not get into, right Ron?
Ron also writes his own Substack - Think Like a Surgeon - and is a published author. His most recent book, Triage For Watch Collecting, co-authored with his wife Rachael (also a surgeon, obvs), lays out a six-step system for collecting without regret. He is about 30 years my senior (lol!), a parent, and someone whose life advice I value pretty much because he’s been through most of the things I have yet to figure out.
When we met up in London a few days before the HSNY gala, the event came up in conversation, so I suggested he write about it. What follows is his account of the evening - his words, unedited. I sent him a handful of questions, but Ron being Ron, treated them more as starting positions than constraints. So think of this as part interview, part essay, part dispatch from inside ballroom at The Plaza.
One last thing before I hand the mic over... Ron wanted me to include a financial disclosure, so here it is: Ron and his wife paid for their own tickets and have no sponsors or financial ties which would bias his commentary. They paid for their own table, which they filled with friends who paid for their seats.
Now, over to Ron.
Before the Gala
The first question I asked Ron was for him to set the scene; walk into The Plaza and tell me what hits you first. But Ron, characteristically, went off-script because the story of the gala, he argues, doesn’t start at The Plaza, but the day before.
Ron writes:
For the first and probably not last time I’m going to go off-script here. You ask me to set the scene. Rather than beginning with the HSNY Gala on Saturday evening, I’d like to begin with the informal events preceding it. Many people come into New York City on Friday to begin their watch-based activities.
I know of many people who coordinated group visits to specific boutiques or dealers for Friday and Saturday before the Gala on Saturday night. My wife and I spent Friday night at Bucherer Time Machine for a private event to commemorate the birthday of Erika “Watch Miss GMT.” It was great fun to meet people whom I had previously known only from the online world and I also got to spend time with good friends.
At that Bucherer event and other boutiques, several people picked up special timepieces they had previously ordered or had been “on the list” and had hoped to acquire. (I saw two titanium Yacht Masters picked up within 30 minutes of each other.)
Providing a notable watch to a client just prior to the HSNY gala is good marketing as that client is likely to wear the new acquisition at the Gala and share their delight with others.
Saturday was much the same as Friday night, with more people arriving from out of town. There was increasing chatter in the various groups about meetups at various boutiques and ADs, and my wife and I, together with a number of friends went off to Jean Rousseau.
Yes, straps are important to us all! See: “Billion-Dollar Strap Gap” in your SDC 139 newsletter and discussion in the comments.
So now we get to Saturday evening. The festivities began at 6 p.m. but it’s always been my contention that it is better to arrive late than to arrive ugly. It always takes me some time to reach that state, but once it was achieved, my wife and I stopped off at the Moser Boutique in Midtown, where we met up with a small group before all heading to the gala.
One of the attendees shared with us special watches he was bringing to the gala, a pair of pièce unique watches by Biver. They had elaborate engraving on the case, lugs, and bezel and enamel dials made by the atelier of Rexhep Rexhepi. Very cool to see and it was a taste of things to come as there were many spectacular watches at the gala.
Now I can answer your question and set the scene for you as we arrive at The Plaza. Preferring to get on with the festivities, our group walked through the lobby without delay to get straight to the cocktail hour at the Terrace Room.
On the second floor in the Terrace Foyer, there was a red carpet and a sponsor backdrop against which people took photos all night.
Ron and Rachael at the 2026 HSNY Gala
From there we proceeded to the Terrace Room which is separate from the Grand Ballroom in which the gala itself would take place.
It’s a fantastically decorated and opulent room. The architecture certainly grabbed my eye, but what hit me first was the energy of the room. Unlike the stock photo of an empty room which I shared above, the room was packed with people wall to wall.
There was a positive energy and immediately I sensed friendliness and collegiality among the attendees. Everyone seemed happy to see everyone, as if we were one big family.
With the muted lighting and the cacophony of the assembled crowd, the room itself was merely a backdrop. My lasting impression is of the energy of the crowd.
Watches He Wore (and Why)
I also asked Ron what he wore on his wrist, because what you choose to wear to an event like this is its own kind of storytelling. He didn’t disappoint.
Ron writes:
I was drawn to the SDC newsletter years ago because you look at watch collecting through the lens of the psychological and philosophical underpinnings of our choices. Along those lines, I always double-wrist at watch events because I hope to share the narratives behind my watches, and sharing two stories will be better than sharing one. I wasn’t the only double-wrister in attendance and I also knew of a few people who brought watch rolls to share their watches with fellow watch enthusiasts.
My initial plan was to double-wrist two different gold watches to this elegant event. The first one is a c. 1913 Longines chronograph, said to be the first chronograph ever in a wristwatch.
I suppose that distinction is notable enough but here’s my personal narrative: When my wife and I finished our surgical training and began our career as full-fledged surgeons, her father got for us a pair of matching Longings pocket watch chronographs graduated to pulsations (i.e. pulsometers), c. 1907.
So I have a soft spot in my heart for early Longines chronographs. The Longines wristwatch I wore comes in a 35 mm case so I thought for the second wrist I’d wear something with a bit more heft.
My original choice for the second wrist was my wife’s gold-cased Armin Strom Mirrored Force Resonance. It is a perfect match for the HSNY gala: mechanical elegance, engineering excellence and definitely a conversation piece.
But my wife surprised me with a new watch just prior to our trip. For our upcoming wedding anniversary she found on the secondary market a watch I’ve coveted for some time, the off-catalog H. Moser & Cie x Undefeated Streamliner Chronograph Friends and Family Edition.
I had to wear that watch to the event, obviously, so now among my two prior choices I had to leave one back at the bank vault. I left the Armin Strom, and wore the Longines chronograph to pair with the Moser chronograph.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t share the watches my wife wore. Her two wrists were adorned with the Moser Streamliner Tourbillon Bucherer Blue and the MB&F SP One.
While I am at it, I think this is a good moment to also give credit to my wife, Rachael Keilin, for getting us to this point in “the journey.” Years ago, I was satisfied with having a Rolex or two, and didn’t follow the watch world that closely. My wife was interested in high horology and I lagged far behind her. During the depths of COVID and the virtual edition of Watches & Wonders in 2021, she learned of the Lange & Sohne Little Lange 1 Moonphase with Aventurine Dial and decided she had to have it. She dragged me to join her to visit the nearest Lange boutique, at Zadok in Houston, four hours away from our home. There I learned about Lange, VC, Breguet, FPJ, and other brands.
And now, here we are, on this great journey together.
160 Years - Did it Feel Historic?
I asked Ron whether the 160th anniversary actually felt historic, or whether it was more of a regular party that happened to have a birthday. His answer surprised me a little.
Ron writes:
Recall that this was my first time attending the HSNY annual gala and I have never attended an HSNY event prior to this gala.
I would say that the evening felt like a visionary event as much as a historic one.
It was shown to us several times that $450,000 in scholarships were awarded this year by the HSNY. I came across a short video from last year’s HSNY gala and saw that in 2025 they announced $160,000 in scholarships. That’s a tremendous increase in just one year!
The legacy of the HSNY is a precondition for its ability to bring together so many individual collectors and industry members to the gala and to contribute financially and spiritually to the future of American watchmaking.
François-Paul Journe
For a lot of collectors, Journe now enjoys an almost mythical status. I wanted to know what the mood in the room was when his name came up, and whether Ron got any sense of the man himself. Turns out, he didn’t even show up to receive his award.
Ron writes:
The FPJ speech via video brought to mind a recent conversation you and I had in which we spoke in passing about the “Uncanny Valley.”
At some of the larger surgical conferences which I attend the meetings are held in conference rooms larger than the ballroom for the HSNY gala, and like the gala, have several large projector screens onto which are projected live video of the person speaking. On some occasions a scheduled speaker is not providing their presentation live in person but rather it is presented via a pre-recorded video.
I’ve noticed that it takes more concentration for me to focus on those presentations. Cognitively I note a difference between a speaker presented via a pre-recorded video on a large projector screen and a live speaker on that same large projection screen. My subconscious registers the pre-recorded speakers as not being part of the event unfolding in front of me.
FPJ did not attend the event in person and delivered a pre-recorded speech in French subtitled in English. From what I recall he gave his reason for not attending that it was his birthday and he was spending it at home with his elderly mother. On the video he spoke of his personal and professional history in the city of New York. Accepting the award in person on his behalf were his brother Laurent and General Manager Pierre.
To me and others at my table the award and his speech seemed perfunctory.
A Perfunctory F.P.
Honouring London Jewelers
London Jewelers were also honoured at the gala, which I found interesting because it represents the retail side of the equation, not just the maker. I asked Ron what he thought that choice says about the broader ecosystem.
Ron writes:
Through my professional affiliation with a hospital in a Catholic health system, I learned of a phrase coined by a Catholic nun who was president of a network of non-profit hospitals: “No margin, no mission.”
If we allow that it is proper for a Catholic nun to both recognize and proclaim the primacy of profit in the delivery of health care, then we have to give a nod to the retail side of the horological ecosystem.
On the retail side of the watch world, some are just here for the ride and they would just as soon be selling cars, purses, or Labubus. They are here because their forte is selling and watches happen to be the pond into which they have jumped. Even worse, there are some watch sellers with impure motives. Those we can ignore.
There are retailers who don’t know the difference between an onyx dial and one made of VANTA Black or how to swap out a strap. Those we can ignore.
The retailers we should recognize and celebrate are those who are as much watch enthusiasts as their clients. We all know those in the retail side who are eager to educate, and who get as excited as we clients and collectors are when they come across a notable watch.
I recall that when we acquired the aforementioned vintage Longines wristwatch chronograph, my wife messaged Roman Sharf, who many know only as a retailer, but we know as a kind gentleman who enjoys sharing his encyclopedic knowledge and love for watches. Roman responded with an enthusiastic two-paragraph text message about the Longines chronograph and its 13.33Z caliber. That kind of knowledge and enthusiasm is what many retailers in this space have to offer the ecosystem.
I have friends who live in Philadelphia who have the opportunity to visit with Tim Mosso and learn from him. Nearly everyone I know recognizes the positive contributions of Tim Mosso to the broader ecosystem and that’s not discounted by the fact that he works on the retail side. We need great retailers who elevate our knowledge, like Roman, Tim, and so many others.
While I have no personal experience with London Jewelers, I’ll note they’ve established a scholarship for watchmaking students, and given the recognition by the HSNY, it is clear to me that they are the type of retailer that the horological ecosystem benefits from and without whom our ecosystem could not survive.
Co-Chairs
The gala’s co-chairs were Romain Gauthier, Kevin O’Leary, and Roger Smith - three very different figures in the watch world. I asked Ron whether any of them left an impression.
Ron writes:
Let me take a bite of the juiciest part of the steak first: Kevin O’Leary. When contemplating the perception of a public figure, I often think of this tweet and reply and its commentary on the public’s perception of celebrities whom they have never met.
A couple of years ago I ran into Kevin O’Leary as a guest of events sponsored by H. Moser & Cie surrounding the F1 Miami Grand Prix. At an early evening cocktail party announcing the release of new Moser models at the time, and a day or two later at the race I was intermittently around him. Those few times that I directly interacted with him and when I observed him in conversations with others, he was an absolute gentleman, inquisitive about watches, and listened more than he spoke.
I’m a light consumer of popular culture media or “news”, so my exposure to Kevin O’Leary’s public persona is limited. He certainly appears to draw visceral responses from people.
You know Godwin’s Law, right? “As an online discussion continues, the probability of a comparison to Hitler or to Nazis approaches one.”
After the HSNY gala, in one of my watch groups more than one person shared memes from social media mocking Kevin O’Leary, including one from an Instagram watch account in which the individual remarked that it would be a dilemma if they had to choose between killing Hitler or O’Leary.
Referencing that tweet I shared above: to people who say “I just hate Kevin O’Leary”, my response is “no, honey, you don’t. You hate an artificial persona fed to you by a sophisticated marketing machine.”
One of the people seated at our table briefly spoke with Mr. O’Leary at the gala and asked for a photo. She said he was an absolute gentleman during her interaction with him. That mirrors my prior experiences with him.
Next.
Romain Gauthier happened to be seated at the table next to ours. Every time my gaze traveled in his direction, he was smiling and enjoying his interaction with the others at his table. At one point I did go up to him and say, “I need to get a picture of you and I for KingFlum” and his eyes lit up and he smiled. He was very happy upon hearing you mentioned. He left a very positive impression.
I never saw Roger Smith. Here’s what a friend in the watch world says of their interactions with him that evening:
“He remembered us from Dubai. I can say that a few of us were at Dubai Watch Week very late one of the days, just about 30 minutes to closing. Roger was still at his booth, just him and one of his employees. He spent a solid 30 minutes with us and was incredibly kind, warm, and polite.”
“ [Of their interactions with Roger Smith at the HSNY gala] For a giant of the watchmaking world, he couldn’t be any more regular of a guy. It would be easy for him to be haughty or conceited, but he’s genuinely just a very nice man.”
Scholarships
The HSNY awards watchmaking scholarships at the gala. I wanted to know whether that part of the evening stuck with Ron.
Ron writes:
The program for the gala and charity auction listed several scholarships. We learned that for 2026 the HSNY awarded $450,000 in financial aid to 55 watchmaking students, five watchmaking schools, and three independent watchmakers.
If you look at the auction results for the charity auction and do the math for the revenue from tickets sold, you might ask yourself: how much of this money is going to the scholarships? Is the charity auction really a charity?
This is another spot where the HSNY shines.
Recall that famous proverb: “Never ask a man his salary, a woman her age, or a Swiss charity to open their books.” (See here and here for examples.)
Unlike their European counterparts, all US charitable organizations including the HSNY, have to file an IRS Form 990 which provides detail of their finances. Those forms are publicly available on several online platforms readily found with a simple web query.
The HSNY takes an additional step in publishing their annual reports and an independent accountant’s review, along with their 990 forms on their website.
So I’m struck not only with the breadth of the contributions given by the HSNY but also its stewardship.
Conversations Between Courses
Events like these are often as much about the conversations between the courses as they are about the programme itself - if not more. I asked Ron who he ended up talking to, and whether any encounter surprised him.
Ron writes:
A logistical note here. The tables for the gala are placed so close together that it’s challenging to move around the room. This is probably by design as the gala organizers likely want to discourage foot traffic during the event. And, let’s be real, the more tables they can stuff into that room, the more revenue they make for their charitable causes. So during the gala, you’re going to be at your table much of the time and limited to conversation with people at your table or those adjacent to you.
The chance to mingle is at the cocktail hour preceding the gala and the after party, which is held in the same space, the Terrace Room.
The conversations which I’m still thinking about have nothing to do with the content of those conversations. Instead what I remember is the feeling I came away with.
Years ago and on separate occasions, on the internet I came across two different accounts by individuals recounting their encounters with the Dalai Lama. They both shared similar experiences: when you spoke with him, you felt an intensity of focus. He made you feel like you were the only person in the entire world.
Those are the kinds of conversation partners which leave a mark on me. I had a few of those conversations, and it speaks to the caliber of the people brought together by the HSNY gala.
Who Was in the Room?
Collector events can sometimes feel like they’re for a very specific crowd - the old guard, the ultra-wealthy, the trade… I asked Ron whether this felt ‘accessible’, or whether it felt like you felt like you needed a secret handshake to feel welcome in the room.
Ron writes:
Well of course the HSNY gala is going to have all of the above, old guard, industry, ultra-wealthy, and social media types. At no time did I feel as if the event was not accessible to all.
By way of example one of our guests was our 21-year-old daughter who lives in New York City. As expected and encouraged, she often broke free from her parents, and mingled in the crowd. She had a splendid time, and like everyone I spoke with, felt at ease with the attendees whom she met.
Empty Seat
I gave Ron a final open-ended question and asked him to tell me the one thing about the evening, good or bad, funny or unexpected, that he most wanted people to know about. This hit me hard...
Ron writes:
One of your earlier questions asked about the sense of history of the HSNY and whether or not that resonated with me. It resonated more after the fact than during the event. This ecosystem is a historic one that we too often pass off as a hobby. Let’s recognize that it borders on an obsession not only for the purveyors of the craft but for us collectors and enthusiasts. Through the wonders and ills of smart phones and social media, many of us now spend hours every single day interacting with the horological ecosystem in some manner
It is up to us all to be worthy stewards of this craft.
Lastly a personal note and a personal plea. At our table for the HSNY, we had two empty seats throughout the evening, as one couple who was to join us didn’t attend. Those spaces were for Richard Teevan and his wife. My wife and I came to know Richard years ago as he was the administrator for the H. Moser and Cie Owners and Fans Facebook Group. He was also the moderator for several other watch enthusiast Facebook groups and known in the New York City region for his eclectic watch collection.
I had last been in contact with Richard a few days before the HSNY gala. He didn’t respond to a message I sent him on Saturday, nor did he arrive at the gala.
I later found out that Richard unexpectedly passed away on Thursday, two days before the gala.
Years ago I deactivated my Facebook account as the cost greatly exceeded the benefits but I rejoined around 2023 solely to join the Moser Fan Facebook group, the group run by Richard. In that group I found that Richard had truly created a safe space for collectors at all financial brackets and for female collectors such as my wife. Almost every single Facebook group or WhatsApp thread in the watch enthusiast community will from time to time devolve into topics unwelcoming to women. Richard, and the community in the Moser fans Facebook Group never let that happen.
We don’t often get to say our final goodbyes to those who had a positive impact on our lives but at least on the Facebook group I would routinely and publicly thank Richard for his hard work in maintaining a community that brought many people together and elevated our horological ecosystem.
I have many memories of the HSNY gala including that of the empty seat at our table, a seat which should have been occupied by Richard. It’s one of many reminders that time is fleeting and that when you find someone in your life who’s making an effort to be a positive force, take a moment to thank them for their efforts.
Just as the HSNY aims to elevate the horological ecosystem for the next 160 years, so should we all.
Final thoughts
Ron’s piece started with the energy of a packed room and ended with an empty chair. I don’t think I could have planned such a crazy arc if I’d tried. I didn’t know Richard Teevan, but I do know the kind of person Ron is describing, because this community is full of them - Ron himself, is one of them. These are the sorts of people who do the unenviable work of making spaces feel safe, welcoming, and worth being part of. People like this never get honoured at galas, and are rarely thanked enough… and then one day, they’re gone, and only then do folks realise just how much the fabric of a community depended on them holding it together.
A bit of a sombre note to end on, but that I think it does highlight why the HSNY should be applauded. It was founded in a tavern by people who recognised that the craft matters, but also, that the community around it matters as well; and here we are, 160 years later, and that idea is still very much in focus. Whether it’s a German immigrant watchmaker in 1866, a Catholic nun talking about margins and mission, or a bloke running a Facebook group with kindness and consistency… the line running through all of it remains the same: the ecosystem survives because people, humans, choose to care for it.
Thank you, Ron, for taking the time to write this, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t put out a cosmic thank you to Richard, for the community he built.
I’ll end with a word of thanks to all of you who have continued to spend your valuable time leaving comments on SDC posts - I appreciate them, and I know other readers do as well. SDC - and this community - is richer because of people like you… and as the saying goes… people like us, do things like this 🙂
