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Articles by Guy Parker
Norqain gives the Wild ONE Skeleton X-Lite a vibrant turquoise makeover
Norqain’s latest Wild ONE Skeleton X-Lite gets a makeover in the brand’s vibrant signature turquoise. Its high-tech case comprises NORTEQ®, titanium, aluminium, and X-Lite carbon fibre composite, and weighs just 45 grammes. The Wild ONE Skeleton X-Lite Turquoise is available immediately via selected Norqain retailers and boutiques worldwide, priced at £9,700.
Design-led Swedish watch brand, Svea Atelier, unviels its debut dress watch, the Monolith
Svea Atelier releases the Monolith, a quartz-driven dress watch created with a mid-century design mind. The Monolith is available across five variants and features a geometric, integrated design with a five-sided asymmetric case and dial. The Svea Atelier Monolith is available now across two collections, and is priced from €680.
Aussie brand EXOFI launches debut dive watch, the Wolf Rock 42
In recent years, Australia has become an unexpected hotbed of microbrands. And now, looking to join the growing scene with its debut watch, the Wolf Rock 42, is EXOFI, a new brand out of Noosa, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. EXOFI is headed up by Lindsay Toy, a watch enthusiast with considerable design experience, albeit within a different field, that of ship design and marine infrastructure.
Bremont unveils its latest limited edition diver, the Supermarine Full Ceramic Deep Blue
The new Supermarine is water-resistant to 500m, and the case construction combines blue ceramic with a titanium inner case. The watch features Bremont’s BB64AH calibre, a modified Sellita SW300-1A automatic movement. This limited edition of just 250 pieces is available from 9 October 2026, priced at £6,450. British watch brand Bremont has been making its Supermarine dive watch collection since 2009, just two years after the company’s first watch release.
Porsche Design launches Chronograph 1 Utility, the second instalment of its collaboration trilogy with Hodinkee
The new Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition for Hodinkee is a military-inspired watch with a difference. The watch features the debut of WERK 01.340, an updated version of the iconic Lemania 5100 automatic movement. This limited edition of just 350 pieces is priced at US$9650, with 100 pieces to be retailed exclusively by Hodinkee.
Hands on Review: Ollech & Wajs Early Bird – 1965 Revisited!
Watch enthusiasts and collectors are often looking for a unique take on a wristwatch, one that ticks a box none of their other watches do. Enter the Ollech & Wajs Early Bird, a 24-hour tool watch pulled from the archives, where the hour hand only completes one rotation each day.
The skills shortage won’t solve itself – so start growing your own
Construction businesses can’t recruit their way out of the skills crisis. The answer is to start building the workforce they need for the future, says Guy Parker, who shares how Conlon Construction has built its own talent pipeline. Conlon QS director Lee Parry (centre), with QS degree apprentices Lisa Perry and Adam Lickley. Image: Conlon Construction. Every construction business is talking about the skills shortage.
Frankfurt 40 GMT: Laco Targets New Audience With Its Globetrotting Pilot Watch
The wait is over! Seven years after Laco launched the Frankfurt 43 GMT, the contemporary dual-time pilot watch returns with a smaller form factor. And it’s almost perfect. Whilst Laco is a historical brand, in recent years it’s taken a thoroughly modern approach to watchmaking by offering a choice of case sizes across many of its collections. It’s therefore perhaps a surprise that it’s taken this long to reinvigorate the Frankfurt GMT. So, is the wait worth it?
Second Hour Gin Clear MK3 Review: The Aussie Dive Watch with a Loyal Following Returns!
Building on the considerable success of the previous iteration of the Gin Clear, Australian brand Second Hour has made incremental but thoughtful improvements to the MK3, along with introducing two new dial colours! With a name originating from the affectionate term divers’ give to clear seas, the Gin Clear MK3 is the brand’s flagship diver and is priced at $1325AUD (approx. £645/$950 USD/€816 at time of press). This is an increase of approx. 10% over the previous model.
ALATO Ögonsten Review: A Watch So Stunning It Could Even Turn Quartz-haters!
Swedish brand ALATO has put its faith in quartz for its latest watch, the Ögonsten. Whilst some might see this as a downgrade from its previous automatic watches, its strength lies in the design and execution! Let’s take a deep dive and find out what makes the Ögonsten so special… Founded by Pierre Strömbäck in Gothenburg in 2023, this is ALATO’s third watch collection.
Liberum RE-XHAUST Watch Review: An Italian Collab With Green Credentials
Liberum’s sophomore watch, the RE-XHAUST, is a collaboration with Italian high-performance exhaust manufacturer Termignoni. The RE-XHAUST is designed and made in Italy, with a case crafted from 100% recycled steel taken from offcuts of Termignoni’s exhausts. Incredibly, no fossil fuels are used in the process as the steel from the exhausts is melted entirely in state of the art solar-powered furnaces.
Watch Review: Diving Into Crystal Blue Waters With The Danubius Black Sea!
Bored of dials? Then let’s talk watch cases! In recent years the market has been flooded with watches that have dials made from exotic materials such as semi-precious minerals, stones or meteorite. What’s less common is to find brands using specialist metals for dials, such as crystallised titanium. Even rarer still is to find watches using crystallised titanium for the construction of an entire watch case.
Sero Watch Company ‘Signature’ Review: Classic Watch Design Goes Dutch!
Founded in 2023, Sero Watch Company is a Netherlands-based brand, run by friends and business partners, Sergino and Robert. The name Sero is a portmanteauof the founder’s first names and is supposed to symbolise unity, passion, and purpose. Whilst Sergino and Robert only met in recent years, their watch journeys began when they were children and both cite their fathers as sparking their initial interest.
Back To Black: Hands-on With The Venezianico Nereide Bronzo 39 Dive Watch
A couple of weeks ago, the postie dropped off a hotly anticipated parcel from Italy. Nestled among the packaging was the Nereide 39 from Italian brand Venezianico, a dive watch I’ve been dying to get my sticky mitts on ever since I reviewed the larger 42mm variant.
Hands-on Review: Sky Diving with the Laco Köln
The new Laco Köln is serious watch that will appeal to lovers of the Germanic pilot watch aesthetic but want added functionality and capabilities. But does it take itself a little too seriously and is it distinct enough to differentiate itself from the rest of the Laco catalogue? Founded by Frieda Lacher and Ludwig Hummel in 1925 as Lacher & Co, German brand Laco celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, a remarkable feat considering its somewhat turbulent history.
Surf’s Up: Hands-on Review of March LA.B Belza Titanium
Modern materials fuse with time-honoured craft and a touch of je ne sais quoi resulting in a new limited-edition sport watch from gallic watchmaker March LA.B. If you’re an obsessive watch enthusiast, the chances are you’ll be familiar with, or at least aware, of idiosyncratic French brand March LA.B, best-known for their ‘shaped watches’ collection, comprising the AM2 and Mansart. What you might not know if that they also offer ‘Surf’ watches, comprising the Bonzer and the Belza.
Ontic Utility 40 review: Does This New Solar-powered Watch Shine Brightly?
No backstory. No heritage. No excessive marketing fluff. Just a proper titanium tool watch designed by a Mountain Rescue volunteer. Sounds good hey? After all, who better to know what’s needed in an honest, no-frills tool watch than somebody who needs kit they can rely on in the unrelenting British weather. This is exactly what the new Ontic Utility 40 promises. But does it live up to expectations? Ontic is a new British brand founded by John Hickling, a Mountain Rescue volunteer from West Yorkshire.
Sortie Watches Aims High with its BH1000 Pilot Watch
Pilot watches can often all look very similar, but rules are made to be broken, right? Well, British brand Sortie certainly thinks so. With its debut watch, the BH1000, Sortie takes the essence of a pilots watch as it’s starting point, but then deconstructs it, refines it and injects its own character. What emerges on the other side is a more modern watch, a kind of fusion that blurs the boundaries of categorisation.
March LA.B Mansart Small Second Golden Hour Review
March LA.B’s new Golden Hour brings warmth and opulence to the Mansart collection thanks to its gold-plated case. It also benefits from a new LJP movement and a little unexpected extra… Whilst perhaps not being as iconic or idiosyncratic as the ever-popular AM2 collection, the Mansart line remains instantly recognisable as a March LA.B watch, such is the brand’s strength of identity.
On The Wrist: LORESUM LS06 Royal Ellipse Review
LORESUM has turned back the clock to embrace iconic 70s cool with its new LS06 Royal Ellipse, a watch that’s all about soft curves and semi-precious stone dials. It’s a strong aesthetic and one that could be divisive. So, does it nail the look? LORESUM founder Jason Chan has 11 years or so experience in watchmaking, with some pretty adventurous designs under his belt under the guises of JW Watch and Behrens Original.
Is our advertising ageing faster than we are?
How old is "old"? In 2025, the answer to that question is not black and white. With people working later in life and staying active for longer, age now seems to be more about mindset, health and the way we see ourselves, rather than the number of candles on a birthday cake. And yet you might not know that from the ads we see and hear.
A power for good: How AI is transforming advertising regulation
For some, the advent of the world wide web is still fresh in the memory. But technological leaps seem to happen with ever increasing frequency, and we now all find ourselves blinking in the brilliant light at the dawn of the age of AI. At the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), we’ve donned the sunglasses, rolled up our sleeves and AI is already proving a game changer in how we regulate.
Second Hour’s Mandala MK3 is proof that there’s something in the Aussie air!
The Mandala MK3 is a watch that makes an instant impact, thanks to its dramatic patterned guilloché dial. But the dial is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the refined details on offer… Compared to other areas of the globe, Australian microbrands and independents are few, but for me what they lack in numbers they make up for in quality as they appear to have an uncanny knack for releasing some of the highest quality affordable watches available over the past couple of years.
Hands-on Review: Ollech & Wajs 8001 Tundra Blends Brutalism with Nature
Swiss Independent brand Ollech & Wajs has revisited its integrated bracelet watch, the 8001, with the help of Norwegian Architectural Design Collective MIR. And it’s a beast! It’s a little-known fact that Ollech & Wajs was one of the first companies to include an integrated bracelet sports model to its lineup, the 8000 (a TV- dial chronograph) released in 1973, only a year or so behind Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak.
Hands-on Review of the Rosenbusch Horizon
For its second watch release, German brand Rosenbusch revisits the hexagon, but there’s not a straight line in sight on the Horizon, just a stunning curvaceous piece of watch architecture! German microbrand Rosenbusch was established by three friends who share a passion for mechanical wristwatches, so it’s fitting that one of their USPs is to only ever make mechanical watches.
March LA.B Up The Ante With The AM2 Slim GMT Titanium Millésime Mars 2025
March LA.B’s AM2 Slim has been given the VIP treatment for the brand’s 2025 annual limited edition, an all-titanium GMT watch released to mark the month the brand was founded. But is 2025 a good vintage? For a brief history of the brand, see my first review. The idiosyncratic and instantly recognisable AM2 is March LA.B’s most enduring case design and the one they are best known for.
Monro Ocean Adventurer: Unbelievable Value For Money, But With One Caveat!
Monro has resurfaced with the Ocean Adventure, a well-built automatic dive watch for those on a budget. But what compromises can you expect? Monro is a relative newcomer to the microbrand watch scene, with the Ocean Adventure being only their second watch to date. A lot of the Monro design language is carried over from the debut watch, the Adventure, so it shouldn’t drive away existing customers.
Second Hour Sattelberg MK2: a Feel-Good Field Watch
The Aussie hitmakers are back with a follow-up to the Sattelberg. And handling it, it’s difficult to believe that Second Hour founders Peter and Akira have only been making watches for five years! The Sattelberg MK2 is Second Hour’s modern take on a field watch, built to honour those who served and endured the Sattelberg campaign of New Guinea during WWII. Priced competitively at £436 (€522 EUR / $552 USD /$850 AUD) you can choose from three colours; Copper, Blue or Black as reviewed here.
Hands-on with the Big, Bold and Beautiful Venezianico Nereide
Lapis Lazuli is the latest exotic dial material to join the Nereide range of dive watches from Venezianico. But is the dial captivating enough to make you feel like nobility? Since founding Venezianico in 2017, brothers Alberto and Alessandro Morelli, have developed a signature style designed to put affordable luxury Italian watchmaking back on the map.
March LA.B AM2 Slim Ultimate: Le Freak, c'est chic?!
Independent French brand March LA.B certainly can’t be classed as newcomers anymore, but although its watches can be found in bricks and mortar retail stores across their home country, it’s still a relatively unknown brand in the UK. Therefore, allow me a brief introduction before delving into the review.
ALCADUS Quantra: Scratch That Grand Seiko Itch for Less!
The new Quantra comprises three dial designs and six dial colours which share the same case and movement. I know my pick, but which one is right for you? Horology enthusiast, Yook Hong began his journey by dabbling in the niche world of Seiko watch modification and it was this creative spirit that led him to establish ALCADUS in 2018 with the aim of designing premium yet accessible range of understated and elegant watches.
Hands On With The PALMOS ONE
London-based brand PALMOS launches its debut watch, the ONE, later this year. It combines a clean, minimalist look with slim profile and beautiful dials. But not everything is as it seems… But firstly, the question on your lips is probably ‘where does the brand name come from?’ Well, founder Thanos is Greek, and PALMOS is the Greek word for vibration, a nod to the beat rate of mechanical watch movements, often expressed as vibrations per hour (VPH).
Furlan Marri Nails the Calatrava Look with its Salmon Sector!
Sector-dial watches remain popular with watch enthusiasts thanks to a winning combination of well-balanced design and timeless appeal. So, how does Furlan Marri’s interpretation of this classic style stack up? Swiss brand Furlan Marri exploded onto the scene in 2021 with a neo-vintage Mechaquartz-powered chronograph that won the 2021 GPHG Horological Revelation Prize, a remarkable achievement.
Stealthy DLC Case Combines with Brightly Coloured Dials in Excluvia Debut!
Excluvia hits Kickstarter next month with its inaugural watch, dubbed ‘Vintage Echoes’, due to the Italian watch brand’s desire to recreate watches with a vintage feel, reinterpreted in a modern way. Initially available in a choice of two dial colours, vivid yellow or purple, this DLC coated cushion-cased dive watch will be priced at (€279 / $299 / £235) when it launches at the end of August/early September.
Ollech & Wajs Rallychron - Pole Position or Stuck in the Pits?
The Rallychron is the latest chronograph watch from revitalised independent Swiss brand Ollech & Wajs. Described by the brand as ‘a love letter to the golden era of motor racing and the legendary circuits that bore witness to the most memorable moments in the sport’s history’, this watch will certainly satisfy hardcore motorsports fans. But does it have enough tricks up its sleeve to win over other watch lovers? But first, let me ask you this. What do you know about the brand Ollech & Wajs?
Ember Watch Company firing on all cylinders with its first release, the Rocket!
Ember Watch Company launches its first watch in August, the appropriately named Rocket. Even at first glance it’s clear that the design of the Rocket is a step above, especially for an inaugural watch. But what is it about the design that makes it so successful? Before I get into the nitty gritty, let’s take a look at the hard, cold facts. The Rocket will launch on Kickstarter in August 2024, with an early bird price of £296.
Young people and vaping: Vaping ads on social media are a smoking gun
Societal concern about young people vaping is an issue firmly on our radar and one that has shot up the political agenda in the last few months, particularly following recent remarks from the Prime Minister. According to a YouGov survey, experimental vaping among 11- to 17-year-olds is up from 7.7% in 2022 to 11.6% in 2023. There are multiple factors that might explain that. The explosion in popularity of single-use disposable vapes since 2021. The widespread illegal sale of vapes to under-18s.
The Legality Of Loot Boxes: A Primer
United States: The Legality Of Loot Boxes: A Primer 02 December 2020 by Julia K. Kadish and James Gatto Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton Your LinkedIn Connections with the authors To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com. Loot boxes have become a regular feature in many mainstream video games. However, while their popularity is clear amongst gamers, the legal issues and positions from regulators about their use, both in the US and abroad, are a bit more murky.
Legal Battles Over Trump Administration's TikTok Ban Reach Appellate Courts
Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP United States: Legal Battles Over Trump Administration's TikTok Ban Reach Appellate Courts 02 December 2020 by Jeremy D. Mishkin and Joseph E. Samuel, Jr. Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com. The fight between the Trump administration and popular video-sharing social network TikTok continues on multiple fronts.
Is Free Speech Online About To Get A Lot Less Free?
Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP United States: Is Free Speech Online About To Get A Lot Less Free? 02 December 2020 by Kendra Baisinger and Jeremy Mishkin Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com. If you or your friends and family use any sort of social media, write a review of a product, or comment on a blog, you have a 1996 law to thank for it – Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
IoT Legislation Passes Congress
United States: IoT Legislation Passes Congress 02 December 2020 by Jonathan E. Meyer , Townsend Bourne and Elfin L. Noce Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton Your LinkedIn Connections with the authors To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com.
Why so-called CEASE Therapy claims to 'cure' autism really have to stop
Our Chief Executive, Guy Parker, discusses what CEASE therapy is and why claims that it can treat or 'cure' autism must stop. What would you say if I told you I could cure the lifelong developmental disability, autism? Chances are you’d say I was wrong. You might even think I was being offensive. You’d be right on both counts. As the National Autistic Society (NAS) makes clear, “autism is not an illness or disease”. It cannot be cured.
Developing a Waste Management Strategy in 2019
With a constant stream of news about plastic waste and how it is impacting the whole planet, the challenges of effective waste management are set to grow in 2019 as new legislation is implemented around the globe. Understanding the region Any waste management strategy must first understand the legislative environment and importantly, what direction new legislation is taking.
We confirm tougher approach to broadband price claims in ads
We have confirmed today [Wednesday 4 May 2016] we’re strengthening our approach to advertised fixed broadband price claims to avoid customers being misled. The new approach will come into force on 31 October 2016. In January, we published joint research with Ofcom which found that the current approach to presenting pricing in fixed broadband ads is likely to confuse and mislead consumers about the cost of broadband services.
Tougher approach to broadband price claims in ads
We have confirmed today [Wednesday 4 May 2016] we’re strengthening our approach to advertised fixed broadband price claims to avoid customers being misled. The new approach will come into force on 31 October 2016. In January, we published joint research with Ofcom which found that the current approach to presenting pricing in fixed broadband ads is likely to confuse and mislead consumers about the cost of broadband services.
2014's most complained about ads
We’ve published 2014’s top ten most complained about ads. Our list reveals that the top three ads are also the most complained about ads ever. Topping the list is Paddy Power’s Oscar Pistorius ad with 5,525 complaints. The seriousness of the ad’s content, making light of a murder trial and the death of a woman, prompted us to suspend the ad immediately.
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