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RECOMMENDED READING: Is Aurel Bacs the Willy Wonka of watches? RECOMMENDED READING: Is Aurel Bacs the Willy Wonka of watches?

RECOMMENDED READING: Is Aurel Bacs the Willy Wonka of watches?

Felix Scholz

The above question greeted me when I opened my email this morning — it was such a perfect allegory (heck, watches, chocolate and Bacs are amongst the most Swiss things ever) that I had to open it. Eventually, I scrolled through the mailing list, and came to the article, an extensive GQ profile of Phillips’ majordomo of watches, and one of the bolder figures in the world of watches.

Image: gq.com

It’s a long, rollicking narrative that covers off the greatest hits (Newman’s Newman features a fair bit), and a well-researched one too. Here’s a taste:

“More than any other individual, Bacs is responsible for the current hysteria in the vintage-watch market. He’s an auctioneer, yes, but like the timepiece-obsessed Flavor Flav before him, he is also a once-in-a-generation hype man—a watch enthusiast who has helped change how timepieces are talked about and sold all over the world.”

Good stuff, huh. Read the whole thing over at GQ.