The Luxury Society Podcast

Second coming: Ben Clymer on why he returned to Hodinkee

The Luxury Society Podcast

Show Notes

For the final episode of Season 1, hosts Robin Swithinbank and David Sadigh welcome Ben Clymer, founder and returning president of Hodinkee, the trailblazing platform that reshaped the way the world talks, and shops, for watches. Once hailed by the Wall Street Journal as “the closest thing the watch industry has to a celebrity,” Ben opens up about why he’s back at the helm after a four-year hiatus and what’s next for both Hodinkee and the watch world. From Rolex realities and secondary market...

More from The Luxury Society Podcast

Oct 20, 2026

In this episode of The Luxury Society Podcast, Robin Swithinbank and David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of DLG, are joined by José Gaztelu, CEO of Chrono24, the world’s largest luxury watch marketplace, to explore the unstoppable rise of the secondary watch market. With almost 700,000 watches listed and no cap in sight, José maps out why consumers are turning to pre-owned in growing numbers and what that means for brands, dealers and the future of watch retail. From the shifting relationship betwe...

Oct 6, 2026

In this episode of The Luxury Society Podcast, Robin Swithinbank and David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of DLG, are joined by Jean-Marc Pontroué, CEO of Breitling, six months into his tenure at the Swiss watchmaker. Jean-Marc explains why he returned from a sabbatical to lead Breitling at the start of its House of Brands era alongside Universal Genève and Gallet. He sets out why he believes the Swiss watch industry has never been in better shape despite growing polarisation, and how Breitling plan...

Sep 22, 2026

In this episode of The Luxury Society Podcast, Robin Swithinbank and David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of DLG, are joined by Jonathan Brinbaum, Managing Director of Bulgari Watches, to examine the big questions looming over luxury watchmaking – recorded live on location at Geneva Watch Days. Jonathan tackles the issues the industry can't afford to ignore: the steep decline in Swiss watchmaking volumes and who bears responsibility for reversing it; why genderless design is reshaping the category; ...

Jul 28, 2026

In this bonus episode of The Luxury Society Podcast, Robin Swithinbank and David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of DLG, examine the luxurification of sport and what a summer of football, tennis and athletics reveals about where the relationship between luxury brands and sport is heading next. With FIFA set to announce revenues of between $13 and $15 billion from this World Cup, luxury brands largely bypassed official sponsorship channels in favour of player-centric activations, airport arrivals as d...

Jul 21, 2026

In this episode of The Luxury Society Podcast, Robin Swithinbank and David Sadigh, Founder and CEO of DLG, are joined by John Shmerler, Chief Executive of The 1916 Company, to examine how the primary and secondary watch markets are converging and what it really takes to build a luxury retail business for the long term. From the story behind bringing four separate businesses, Govberg, Radcliffe, Hyde Park and WatchBox, under a single name, to the decision to retire the WatchBox brand entirely,...

See all episodes →