Le nostre interviste ai due gruppi che si occupano di Micro Brands sono state – come si dice in rete – “virali”, tanto che per agevolarne ancor più la diffusione fra gli appassionati che ci seguono da tutto il mondo, abbiamo deciso si pubblicarle anche in lingua originale. Ecco, quindi, cosa ha scritto Sophy Rindler.
Due to the interest shown by all countries that follow “solopolso.it”, we decided to publish even in english the entire answers we received. Here what Sophy Rindler wrote (you can find the photos on solopolso.it and even on fb).
In the world of Media, there is a sentence, which indicates when something goes wrong: ”The beauty of LIVE”. The idea born in our editorial department to realize an article about a fb-Microbrand Group, led us to discover that in fact two of these groups exist, almost with the same name. So, following the article by Elena Introna about the group founded by Adam Sofineti in Canada, and as I am a member of “Premium Mechanical Microbrands” founded by Sophy Rindler in the United States, we decided to have share my version of this Facebook microbrands group. Here it is!
For years I have been in contact with Sophy Rindler, a person which isn’t only beautiful, but even resourceful!
Our meeting opportunities are unfortunately limited to the Basel Fair and / or daily at the social.
The FB-group of Premium Mechanical Microbrands
Q: What is the main argument for the creation of your fb-group?
A: The main argument was to discover a “new” wave of watchmaking, the so-called “microbrands”. Creating a Facebook group, allows readers and brands to interact directly, but we control what is being posted and are doing a strict screening of the content sent to us. This means that one of the requirements is to have high-quality content and conversations, as we strive to stand out from the other many Facebook groups, and offer quality time to the members who are receiving daily notifications. The “Micro” brand is probably the one that can be considered the next generation of “traditional” watches. The information-flow in the network enables customers to be well aware of what they are buying. You could even say that the microbrands, thanks to this concept of transparency, are the mechanical watches offered to the consumer of the 3rd millennium.
Q: Where do you get your news?
A: A daily reading of blogs and magazines dedicated to watches, as well as the information that comes directly from the brands themselves or by private messages, are the essence of knowledge offered from the Administrator to the Group.The strength that we have, is a true personal relationship with almost all of the brand owners that are part of the group.
Q: When do you have founded the fb-group?
A: Well, as I’ve started about six months ago, and based on the results, I do believe I’m on the right track.
Q: How have you acquired your experience in the watch world?
A: My first interaction with the watch-world happened in 2012. Thanks to the (editorial note: let’s call it) luck or privilege to have met the right people and to have had mentors, who have educated me in the best possible way, I was able, in a short period of time, to become a so called expert, or rather an influencer in the world of watchmaking. As a woman, in a male-dominated field, I have established myself pretty quickly, still maintaining a 100% of independence.
Q: I have a dream … which one?
A: My dream is to own my own watch-brand (editorial note: we strongly believe, that this will be only a matter of time!).
Q: Do you have other passions (car, jewelry,…) in your life?
A: I love not only watches, but also cars, jewelry, animals, nature and the pleasure of being Mom. My real passion is life itself; the only thing that matters.
Q: With how many Countries are you in contact?
A: I was born and raised in Paris, then I lived in the US, but always remained more European than American. My work wants me often in Switzerland, which is why I have created in Geneva a structure called “Watches Art Gallery”, along with my activity in Miami. Completely bi-cultural, I communicate as easily with the Swiss watch industry as well as with CEOs and brand managers in the United States.
Q: Do you have a personal project?
A: At the moment I’m working on the launch of my blog, “Watch PhiloSophy”. Mainly it will be focusing on the human aspect of the watchmaking world, which in my opinion has been totally dismissed in the last 10 years, but also pointing out what happens behind the scenes and make the reader take a virtual trip into this world. The target is to make people understand that the process behind the creation of a watch is much more complicated than it seems and that it requires much more effort than just entering data into a computer program, or the setting of certain machinery.
Q: Last not least: do you have a constructive critic for the big brands?
A: Yes! “Open your eyes, open your ears and close your wallets!”
The industry has forgotten that it’s working to please its clients. The big Groups have been so greedy, that they forgot the essential: the consumer. The parallel market has been bankrolled and this has stifled what used to be a healthy market. Prices have increased without any logical argument other than corporate profit. They also have taken for granted the Asian market without thinking that maybe that trend wouldn’t last forever. Egos have trumped strategic thinking. The result today is that we are going through the biggest crisis since the quartz crisis in the ’70s. However, this one is much more serious, because it is existential . It is taking the watch industry by its guts. We are talking about a complete rethinking of how to make it work. It is not caused by external elements such as the invention of the battery, but rather by the lack of perspective and the loss of the fundamentals that define the true nature of this industry.
There is a lot of work to do, but I am optimistic. Eventually we will come out stronger, with a cleaner market. The industry needs to understand who is the consumer of 2020; those who stay prisoner of the past, persisting in wanting to believe that customers are the same than the ones from the ’90s or 2000 , are inevitably doomed to failure.
Thank you Sophy, good work and see you at Baselworld 2017. Lorenzo Sutti
