Vacheron Constantin

North American QUAI DE L’ILE Launch Event

Vacheron Constantin of North America launched the Quai de l’Ile in celebratory fashion this past Wednesday at the Frank Gehry-designed IAC-building in New York. Kiosks around the room showcased the new software platform that allows clients to customize their Quai de l’Ile watches. The customization program is now available at the dedicated Quai de l'Ile web site for all to play with (click to Collection: Personalized Collection) once you are here:

www.quaidelile.com

During the generalized mingling I had the pleasure of meeting a number of Vacheron Constantin’s employees, including product director Christian Selmoni (in from Geneva), North American President Julien Tornare, North American Sales Rep Russell Kelly, North American Director of Marketing and Communications Ellen Cohan (Who thinks that for every three watches a man buys for himself, he should buy a nice watch for his wife! She was sporting a beautiful 1972 with diamond bezel), and VIP Concierge Daniel Adams (the one whom most of us in North America will contact if we have an issue or question about anything VC). All of them were friendly and passionate about their company and its products.

I also had the chance to talk with Jack Forster, who speaks as eloquently as he writes, fellow moderator and collector Paul Boutros, watch magazine editor Matt Morse, and Wempe President Ruediger Albers.

The large room filled with people and the noise level was astounding. I said, “What?” a lot.

Julien Tornare took to the side stage where he introduced Sonia Cole, founder and chairman of the Afghanistan World Foundation, an NGO that supports health and education initiatives in Afghanistan, and has received generous support from Vacheron Constantin. Julien then introduced several celebrity supporters of the AWF whose values showcased in their work correspond to Vacheron Constantin’s values: Architect Richard Meier, author Salman Rushdie, and talk show host Charlie Rose.

From left to rigt: Richard Meier, Sonia Cole, Charlie Rose (Salman Rushdie is behind Cole)

Vacheron Constantin’s Geneva-based International Director Marc Gutten then introduced the Quai de l’Ile. Various configurations of the Quai de l’Ile were in enclosed display cases. The watches should be showing up at retailers in North America for the curious to finally get a chance to handle them in person.

Marc Gutten

The entertainment portion of the evening then commenced with grammy Award winning performer Ne-Yo performing a small set of his hits.

Ne-Yo

A highlight for your Boston based correspondent was seeing NBA All-Star and World Championship winning Boston Celtic Ray Allen:

Ray Allen with VC NA President Julien Tornare

Alas, I was not able to find out if he is a collector of Vacheron Constantin wristwatches.

Upon leaving, the inevitable goodie bag was filled with the Quai de l’Ile booklet, a general product catalog, and a nice leather billfold. I highly recommend you ask your nearest authorized retailer for a copy of the Quai de l’Ile book. It is lovely. If you aren’t near an AD then send a nice email to Daniel Adams and he’ll hook you up.

Bill