Eric Wind:
Vice President, Senior Specialist of Watches at Christie’s
Contributing Writer, HODINKEE
Eza: When did your passion for watches started?
EW: I was always interested and loved watches, since the time my mom got me a G.I. Joe digital watch when I was a few years old. I got more keenly interested in mechanical watches when I inherited my grandfather’s Hamilton watch that was a gift my grandmother for their wedding in 1947. It amazed me to see the beautiful movement and have to wind it each day. Around that time, HODINKEE started and I began reading the blog religiously each day. By 2010, I began writing for HODINKEE as a part-time contributor while working full-time in a totally different field and 5 years after that I joined Christie’s as Vice President, Senior Specialist of Watches on the New York team, but based in Florida.
Eza: Tell us about your business and how has business been so far?
EW: We are seeing an amazing growth in interest in watches, particularly vintage watches, at Christie’s. There is a hunger for knowledge from new collectors and I love seeing this and helping to work with people to build important collections across price points, whether watches worth over $1 million to watches worth less than $10,000. I have helped oversee the growth in our online auctions and that is bringing in many new clients. Once someone gets one nice vintage watch, there is very often a quick desire to buy more and build a nice collection.
Eza: How did you get your passion for watches?
EW: I got my passion for watches from learning about them and also from other collectors. Seeing the passion people have for certain brands, and learning from them, has helped me appreciate them more, whether it is for Heuer, Rolex, OMEGA, Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, Aquastar, Gallet, Eberhard, Zenith, etc.
Eza: What kind of watches do you own next to the Sealander?
EW: I am fortunate to have a small collection of pieces I really love, including a few watches I would consider grails. You can see me talk about some of my pieces in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdBfQ9lZ8sY
Furthermore, since the filming of the video last year, I have added a tremendous example of a meters-first Rolex Submariner reference 5512 with “neat fonts” dial and a beautiful Rolex GMT-Master from the 1970s.
Eza: What are your top 3 holy grail watches? (and stick to 3)
EW: I am a big fan of vintage Heuer watches and a grail for me is the Indianapolis Motor Speedy Autavia. We are fortunate to have perhaps the finest example in the world coming up in our auction on June 21 in New York. It is the grail Heuer for me.
For Rolex, I would say a Rolex Paul Newman Panda reference 6263 in great all-original and unpolished condition. I am not as focused on the dial “Marks” and would be happy with any of the variations of the dial. 🙂
My third grail would be a Patek Philippe reference 1463 in steel with two-tone dial in great all-original and unpolished condition with a dial that has not been cleaned. I love everything about that reference.
Eza: How did Eza Watches came on your radar?
EW: I first read about Eza Watches on Fratello Watches back in February 2016. I found the designs quite mesmerizing as a start, then loved reading the story about the watches. Although it is a hard choice between the black and blue designs, I picked the blue as I loved the color and do not own any blue watches at this time.
Eza: What do you like about Eza Watches?
EW: Beyond the aesthetics and the quality of the watches, I like the story of two friends, Adriaan and Diederik coming up with the brand. I like that Adriaan is a trained watchmaker and oversees the regulation of the movements in six positions. Everything about the watch and the associated elements (straps, box, and watch roll) has been carefully considered and appears to be a labor of love and knowledge rather than just an effort to make money. I am really excited to see what Eza Watches does next and I am proud to have bought one!
