You can safely rank Haigo Derian, President of L’Oro Jewellery, as a certified luxury watch aficionado.
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Nomos Glashutte, Breitling, Omega, Chopard – L’Oro Jewellery features a wide variety of curated timepieces for men at their Toronto and Markham locations, all at various price points. Haigo doesn’t just sell them though. It’s a lifestyle for him. He travels the world, goes to the most important shows, sits down with suppliers. So when Haigo talks excitedly about IWC Schaffhausen, a Swiss luxury watch brand introduced into the store this year, you know it’s not empty salespeak.
IWC Big Pilots Watch Top Gun Edition
Solid craftsmanship meets storied history
IWC (International Watch Company), best known for pilot/aviation watches, embodies precise craftmanship, combined with a storied history (IWC was founded in 1868), and infused with a underlying passion for fine watchmaking. Check out this feature on Kurt Klaus, the IWC watchmaker and inventor of the Autonomous IWC Perpetual Calendar Mechanism. IWC’s motto is Probus Scafusia, a Latin phrase that means “good, solid craftsmanship from Schaffhausen.”
IWC Big Pilots Watch
RL: What do you like about the IWC personally? Why did you decide to add it to your stable of luxury men’s watches?
HD: I’ve been a fan of IWC since I started at a young age in the industry, from the days when my father and I would frequent the Geneva shows. It was hard to keep me away from their booth. The Portugieser Perpetual Calendar has been my “grail” watch ever since. This movement embodies every reason why mechanical watchmaking became en vogue again.
IWC Big Pilot’s Watch
RL: What distinguishes the IWC brand from your other luxury watch brands?
HD: The DNA for IWC Schaffhausen is very rich in pedigree, coupled with a relentless pursuit for mechanical perfection. My Perpetual Calendar is a great example of this. It was created at a time where high-watchmakers were almost two generations obsolete; making it at the forefront of the modern watchmaking renaissance. It also was the simplest complex Perpetual Chronograph of its time.
IWC Pilots Watch Chronograph 41
It still is. This amazing movement has a pre-programmed date until 2499, all mechanically, showing all date intervals, all controlled by a single crown. This makes this movement extremely unique – like IWC itself, founded in 1868 by a relentless and uncompromising American industrialist, Florentine Aristo Jones. A man so committed to the pursuit of watchmaking perfection, he went all the way to Schaffhausen, Switzerland, to set up shop.
RL: What watches are you wearing these days, personally?
HD: I wear many watches, all types and price ranges. Today some of my favourites include my Speedmaster Professional, Breitling Navitimer, and Norqain Adventure on rubber. But, with my IWC Perpetual Calendar on order, I have a feeling I might favour my new incoming piece greatly.
TOP IMAGE: IWC PILOTS WATCH CHRONOGRAPH 41
Mark Keast has been a journalist for three decades, starting out as a sports writer and editor for one of Toronto’s largest daily newspapers. Recently he has moved into writing on luxury cars, travel, and Toronto luxury real estate. He owns real estate in downtown Toronto as well, so there’s a vested interest there. Mark spends a lot of his work time connecting with realtors and developers across Canada, staying on top of industry developments.
Check out his stories, and email him direct at mkeast@regardingluxury.com
