Horological Meandering

say something. I know and have become friends with Stephen Forsey. He is a warm and delightful man with a lovely family. He is a brilliant inventor and watchmaker with an exceptional creative mind. Greubel Forsey is losing an incredible talent. All that being said, none of us are privy to the goings on at GF. Now then . . . Stephen Forsey poured his heart and soul into HIS brand; HIS creation. He was the one who tirelessly traveled the globe educating people on their creations, promoting their brand and without a doubt was responsible for putting them on the map. Robert Greubel doesn’t even speak English. So . . . no matter what the machinations were behind the scenes at GF, and no matter what led to this decision, Stephen Forsey was owed more than this. This is a very bad look for Greubel Forsey. For all that Stephen did, this parting, for purposes of public consumption, should have been done with grace and dignity for him. I wish Stephen much enjoyment and success in whatever he chooses going forward.

I've watched hours of Stephen's interviews and met him briefly, he's always come across as very genuine and confident but sincere. He was the face of the brand, set the narrative, talked to clients, and GF was a brand with huge horlogical gravitas because he created that. Of course the watches are amazing but at that level, the very pinnacle in all the watch world of complexity, innovation, and price, it's not enough for the product to speak for itself, Stephen had to explain the world they had created because it exists nowhere else. The least they could have done was allow him the time to finish his contract and prepare a respectful transition.

When Calce came in and Stephen stepped back I think we saw a new more aggressive and egotistical brand. Ramping up production while closing doors, repackaging and cheapening of legacy movements in pursuit of volume, taking back independence from Richemont while other Indies were figuring out how to structure mutually beneficial investments from groups like Chanel or LVMH, $50k for a titanium bracelet, it all just felt like corporate narcism which isn't uncommon in luxury but felt very different from the more measured but supremely confident brand that Stephen had created.

More the rule than the exception that they fragment and explode over time, no matter how nice the team seems at first.

The anonymity of the internet allows for people to take strong opinions with little risk.  I caution all WatchProSite members and readers to not take a stance unless they fully comprehend all the sides of the story.  It's easy to be opinionated and debate the one-side you're passionate about.  But remember, value is created when one can debate both sides of the story; hence why law school students and forensics teams (the other definition of forensics, not crime scene investigators) have to be competent about debating multiple sides of the story.  

It's different than say Voutilainen stepping down from UJ which garnered little to no discussion.

I suppose not enough UJ owners to make any noise and a lot of Voutilainen fans happy for him to be focused on his own brand which has been a huge part of his life's work unlike the UJ resurrection. There was also no social media post from Kari and he never really made such a big deal out of UJ while he was there so not clear what happened. If Stephen hadn't made that public post or conversely if KV had made a similar post that he has been unceremoniously given the boot maybe things would be different. And to Patrick's point, it is only one side of the story so far.
I will say if I just dropped $400k on a UJ I would be a little upset KV stepped down and would want to know why.

The UJ project always seemed to me one where KV was not being offered [material] ownership - he seemed like a gun for hire, paid handsomely no doubt but whose mind was always going to be more on doing piece uniques and other fantastical things under his own name. In a world where all of his working life is now sold out if he wants it to be, there seemed ultimately little incentive for him to stay: whatever he wanted to do or make, he could do under his own name….

Am honestly struggling to see how this doesn’t adversely affect GF (whether or not it is sold)….

I heard a while ago that the brand identified a common issue (one I mention continuously here on WPS) and wanted to expand in a specific direction and was looking for expertise and capital to do so.
Overall, very sad to me that Forsey is departing. But, who knows, he might stay in the industry and create another wonderful product!

If you read my comments closely you will clearly see I did not take sides. In fact I professed that I don’t know the machinations of the company and what occurred. What I said is DESPITE whatever happened, I feel that publicly the departure could have happened much differently and should have been. Publicly. I believe he was owed that. And for the record I am a lawyer. Thank you.

I didn't imply you nor anyone took sides. I'm simply reminding other readers to avoid taking sides. Not directed at you at all!

and, if I am not mistaken, not too different from what happened to Davide Zanetta.

After all, he is one of the founding fathers. It is his name on the dial and the watches made according to his philosophy. This should have been handled so much better for several reasons.

I met Stephen Forsey many times over the last ten years or so . Nice chats and great conversations and even some nice drinks. Such a great gentleman and imo the driving force and face behind the brand . When he stepped down as the face of the brand a few years ago and Calce took the helm i must admit i also lost my feelings that i had for the brand and there watches . Didn’t like their RMs approach on the new releases.
So sad to hear this news.
Still love the older models a lot and hope to add one some day. For me the OGs from the brand

Hopefully he launches something new.