HODINKEE Radio: Episode 33: Chris Grainger

March 04, 2019

Subscribe to the show: (Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn). Already heard it once or twice? Please leave a short review here, and tell us which guests we should have on! Back in December, I had the opportunity to visit IWC in Schaffhausen to get a sneak peek at the novelties theyd be releasing a few weeks later at the SIHH. As you already know by now, the brands focus this year is on its pilots watches, and in particular a new crop of Spitfire models that make use of new materials and colors to give the catalog a fresh look.The highlight of my trip though wasnt seeing the new watches. It was a conversation I got to have with IWC CEO Chris Granger, who is one of the more interesting people in this strange little industry of ours. Chris is an architect and designer by training, and he first got involved with IWC when the agency he worked for was contracted to design a boutique for the brand. From there, things escalated quickly. He formally joined the company in 2006 and, after working in a few different departments over the years, he was named CEO in 2017.We sat down to talk in the companys new manufacture on the outskirts of Schaffhausen, a building that Chris himself actually designed. We of course talked about the forthcoming collection of watches and how his background in architecture influences how he leads the luxury watchmaker, but we also get into what makes Chris tick and his abiding passion for collecting Hot Wheels cars too. This isnt your usual CEO interview, I promise.We hope you enjoy Episode 33 of HODINKEE Radio. Check out the show notes below and let us know what you think in the comments. Wrist Check Very appropriately, Chris was wearing a prototype of the new Pilot's Watch Spitfire Chronograph the day we visited the manufacture. He said he'd been wearing different models basically every day to test things and to make sure he was happy with the various novelties heading into SIHH (which, remember, was fast approaching at the time). Though it's not unusual to see Chris rocking Big Pilots and other larger watches on his Instagram, this 41mm stainless steel chronograph looks flat out awesome on his wrist. The watch is such a good size and IWC really nailed the details on this execution. Also, despite being a sports watch through and through, it still really works with Chris's three piece suit.? Show Notes 1:00Inside The New IWC Manufakturzentrum7:18 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe21:34 @chrisgraingerherr on Instagram23:30 "Safari" Tribute to 500228:40 The IWC Pilot's Watch Spitfire Collection28:50 New Additions To The IWC Pilot's Top Gun Collection39:30 IWC Silver Spitfire, The Longest Flight Promo43:00 Hot Wheels Limited Editions