What makes a
watch collector tick?
WE ASKED THREE SERIOUS COLLECTORS TO talk about their addiction to watches. Although their passions range from new to vintage and span various price points, they all had one thing in common. It's the thrill of the hunt that gets their hearts racing.
The Keeper Wearing the Watches KATHLEEN MCGIVNEY and her husband, photographer Atom Moore, had been casually collecting Swatch watches when she heard there was a handful of watch owners in New York City who met regularly to talk about their collections. That was nearly 10 years ago and since then RedBar Group has grown to more than 3,000 members with 40 chapters worldwide. McGivney, 45, is now CEO, and her collection has grown to “northward of 80” including “serious, mechanical watches” thanks to the knowledge and confidence gained from other members. “I only buy things that I love. Things to keep.” She is especially drawn to moonphases because of their beauty, and to GMTs (watches with multiple time zones) “because I Kathleen Mcgivney
travel a lot. I’m also attracted to blue and gray dials, and I pre-
fer white metals like steel and titanium.” The only yellow gold watch she owns is a Rolex GMT in a steel and yellow gold combination. The collection is stored at home in a purpose-built safe by Wolf. “I usually wear a watch 2 or 3 days in a row then go to the safe for something I haven’t worn in a while. I’ll wear a dressy watch only if I’m going to a special occasion. If it’s raining I wouldn’t wear anything vintage.” And whenever there’s a full moon, she wears one of her moonphases to look at the moon on the dial in its glory. Kathleen Mcgivney’s Oris Aquis 26 T H E M A G A Z I N E
