Hi. I’m Donato Andrioli. I joined the Chrono24 Magazine as a writer in February 2021 and regularly pen articles on luxury watches. However, I never really had all that much to do with watches until around the start of 2019. That’s when I had the idea of purchasing a mechanical timepiece. Read on to find out why this was the best life decision I ever made, how I came to write for Chrono24, and which watch brand is my favorite.
The Tudor Black Bay 41: My First Mechanical Watch
I remember it like it was yesterday. I was standing in front of the display window of my local luxury jeweler and was going back and forth about whether I really wanted to step into this swanky-looking place in the sports attire I had on. They would probably stop me at the door, turn me around, and send me back out the way I came in. In any case, I didn’t have too much longer to think about it because before I knew it, my girlfriend had already rung the bell. There was no going back – thankfully, in retrospect. Because this simple, seemingly unimportant decision to enter the jeweler to hear more about my dream watch would turn out to be one of the best decisions of my life. I’m serious: If I hadn’t made this decision, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here writing this article.
Let’s first rewind to the start of this journey. As I mentioned, I never had much to do with watches. Sure, I would see an inexpensive fashion watch and buy it without too much thought from time to time. I’d never had any connection with it beyond that, though. I would wear it for a while, and then it would disappear or land in a drawer somewhere when the battery ran out. However, at the start of 2019, I wanted to reward myself with something special for the successful year I had just had. I thought it should be something that I could always have with me and that would accompany me for the rest of my life. So I started to look for a watch that fit the bill. Finally, I came across one that, in my opinion, would be the best choice for me. I would wear it every day and to every occasion. It would match every one of my outfits. It was the Tudor Black Bay 41 with a black dial.
This is the watch I bought the day I walked into that jeweler with my girlfriend. The salesman was great, introducing me to the world of mechanical watches. I couldn’t help but notice the friendly, very wide smirk on his face when he told me this wouldn’t be my last mechanical timepiece. Boy, was he right. After I got my Tudor, that’s when I really started to get into watches. I learned all about the big industry names and stories behind iconic timepieces. I was hooked, and I couldn’t get these watches out of my head. I devoured everything that had anything to do with mechanical watches. I read tons of articles, watched YouTube videos, went on forums, and even got my own watch blog going on Instagram.
The Rolex Submariner No Date: The New Favorite On My Wrist
I then wanted to build a small collection. A positive side effect of this was that I started to cut out bad habits. In 2019, I was still smoking a considerable amount of cigarettes every day. To save money faster for my dream watch, I decided to stop smoking. The money I had previously spent on cigarettes now went into my “watch box.” You can probably imagine how much was in there a year later. My dream came true at the end of 2019 when I purchased my absolute favorite: a Rolex Submariner 114060. This event rang in a healthier lifestyle as a non-smoker and was a milestone in my life I would never have even dreamed of.
Writing About Watches: A Dream Comes True
I haven’t mentioned something yet: I’ve always enjoyed writing and always had the urge to write something like a short story or article. I’m a professional dance teacher, so in 2017 I wrote a little how-to guide on the topic. It wasn’t much, and really just something I did as a way of saying “thanks” to my customers. Writing was something I had done for fun from time to time. However, I could never have imagined that I’d be doing it for a living.
So in late 2019, a successful German YouTube watch channel was looking for someone to write a video script for them. Since my arrival to the watch world, I had been a big fan of this channel, which coincided with the time this channel had gone online. So I went all in and sent them a demo script. The same week I received my Submariner, I also got the green light from the channel: My first job as a watch writer! A single year had passed between my first watch purchase before I knew much of anything about the industry and when I was asked to write for the most successful German-language YouTube watch channel. By now, I had also learned a ton about watches and gotten a nice little collection going too.
How My Favorite Brand Struck the Perfect Chord With Me
That’s how I came to write for Chrono24. Thanks to my work for the YouTube channel, I had several opportunities to serve as a guest writer for Chrono24 Magazine in 2020. Then, in early 2021, they brought me on board as part of their team of authors. As a result, I now regularly write articles for the magazine. Watches have not only been a fantastic new hobby that, as mentioned, helped make my life healthier but also have opened entirely new doors for me. I would never have thought when I bought my first Tudor two years ago that the decision would enrich my life this much. And although the Submariner is my favorite timepiece, my favorite brand will probably always be Tudor.
It’s not only the personal story that binds me with this watch. Its simple design language that emphasizes fine detail strikes the perfect chord with me. My watch enthusiast heart gushes every time I see the lovingly crafted rose on the “Big Crown” or when Tudor’s vintage-inspired dials take me on a journey back in time. By the way, my story even has a plot twist: I no longer own the Black Bay 41. I found it a little too similar to the Submariner that I wear just about every day; I never got around to wearing the Tudor that much. With the Black Bay 36 with a blue dial, however, this watch lives on in my collection in smaller form as an homage to the watch that opened the door to everything for me.
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Editor’s Story: From Mechanical Engineer to Watch Nerd
