Talking Watches With Bill Higgins, The Man Who Collects Timepieces In Pairs

Bill Higgins is in the business of keeping New York City's historic buildings alive. And on his own time, he collects watches. In pairs. That's right; Higgins has developed a collecting philosophy where he pairs watches together to have a "conversation" with each other, and that allows him to appreciate each one on its own with more clarity.

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[trevorjamesbradley]

Folks at HODINKEE, don’t be fearful of a 1 hour video. There is so much more here I would love to hear more about.

[Ilikeavocados]

Finally, a real collector and enthusiast. This is much more interesting than a stuffy dude in a Brioni suit showing us his expensive watches with as much depth as a pair of khakis.

[khaledJkhalidinhoAbdulla]

Cole. Dont move. Continue part 2 with this gentleman. What a journey. What an episode

[bnjbxl]

If Hodinkee was to keep only one video it should be this one. No Patek, no AP, low key Rolex and most of all a TRUE passion for watches. Money doesn’t buy honesty!

[thesportingprofessor]

Wonderful episode! While millions of dollars of high-end pieces are fun to see, these more thoughtful collections are really fun to see.

[hasininan]

2 minutes in and I can already tell that this is one of the best Talking Watches episodes ever.

[pilotstyle]

That was so wonderful, much better than the senseless hoarding or rolex wanking of others. a collection with heart and story

[jeanlefranc]

What a wonderful 21 minute moment away from the depressing and decadent times we live in

Listening to a well spoken gentleman, whose deep erudition is whispered rather than shouted, in a conversation with one of the best members of the Hodinkee crew, was a real treat.

I know I will watch this episode many times over. Thank you Hodinkee.

[SteveFWatches]

Was not expecting those Blancpain Tourbs !!! This is talking watches. Super happy to see unique pieces and not 30 dozen vintage subs.

[Likeacannon]

This may be the best Talking Watches yet: passionate without being cloying, substance without arrogance, and Cole did a fantastic job relating to Bill’s world.

[anthonyharvey]

I absolutely want to hear more from this gentleman, such an interesting episode! Please do a part 2 !!

[LorenzoIgnacio]

Definitely one of the best episodes so far.

Talking watches has, of late, become a show for celebrities/influencers to flex expensive jewelry. No heart in any of those “collections”. No narratives except “look at how I acquired this impossible to get piece of bling.” No different than youtubers bragging about getting into the private room at an expensive for expensive’s sake Vegas joint.

This particular episode though… this one is different. It’s actually amazing how different it is. The watches featured are not worth a billion dollars. None of the high houses of horology are present. No fancy complications or bizarrely specific minutiae is ever spoken of.

It’s just about a man with an incredibly thoughtful collection of pieces that tell you about his own personal history, his relationship with watches, his time on this plane, and the things he holds dear.

Bravo Hodinkee for finally getting it right! Please feature more episodes like this.

[thomasweingarten]

Wonderful collection and person. Could have watched easily one more hour.

[ZR]

Omg finally a great episode, all passion no hype.

[JochenVogel]

My favourite "Talking Watches"- episode. A collection with a general theme and beautiful stories behind every watch. And some real style. Lovely to see that Mr. Higgins has the same affection for his affordable watches as for his Blancpains and Jaeger LeCoultres, too.

[lotzwatches]

This might be the best episode to date. Shame it is so cut down, would love to see everything on that table.

[mayankpahuja]

The kind of collection, the story, the art of pairing two watches. God, this makes new collectors like me hopeful, that I can collect great watches without selling my kidneys. So thank you for such beautiful episodes that tell us more about characteristics of watches.

[brunobrunoll]

Collecting watches in pairs, seeing the collection as a city.... what a fascinating mind and personality. I second the comments that this episode could easily last 1 hour - Bravo Hodinkee!

[aklem]

Great to see true collectors who follow a passion, vs wealth and status signaling.

[christiankonner]

One of the best episodes so far! Amazing to watch