Last week I celebrated turning 40, so I thought it a good time to reflect on the thing I’ve realised has been most important about growing The Watch Collectors’ Club so far.
My birthday weekend was fantastic fun and two things stood out; the amazing compliments I got for throwing such a good party, and the feeling in the pub watching Jürgen Klopp’s last game for Liverpool. Both of them highlight exactly why we’re building The Watch Collectors’ Club.
A lot of people said my party was the best party they’d been to in years, which is a lovely thing to hear. I put it down to two things; live singing, and knowing lots of sociable people. At the party, my choir, Diversity Choir based in London, sang three songs from our upcoming concert. The audience was impressed with us, despite us performing after a long day’s rehearsal and a good few drinks. Hearing live singing up-close has a very powerful effect on people.
The next day I went to the pub to watch Liverpool Football Club’s final game of the season. The Manager, Jurgen Klopp, is very popular and he left the Club after 7 years in charge. So popular in fact, he’s got his own song based on the Beatles hit I’m So Glad. The pub I go to to watch the games in attracts Liverpool fans from all over the world, and we regularly sing fan songs during the game. With 12 minutes to go some fella started singing the Jurgen song and we all sang it through a few times. Then someone shouted, “Let’s keep going to the end”! The game had 4 minutes of stoppage time so in total a group of strangers sang one verse of one song on repeat (and clapped in time) for over 16 minutes! It was a huge joy to be a part of, and we all celebrated ourselves with huge cheers and hugs at the final whistle.
At both events, there were a lot of sociable people; people who’s natural feeling at an event is to talk to others, to ask why they are there, to understand what brought them along. I’m lucky as many of my friends and family are like that, and of course many knew each other already, so the party had a welcoming atmosphere. Many members of my choir are similar, which added to the effect. In the pub, the most likely type of person who chooses to go to the pub full of fans from their own club is someone who wants to talk to other fans, so it again makes an atmosphere of warmth and discussion, despite football fans’ reputation for aggression and causing trouble.
We set up The Watch Collectors’ Club to create this mix for people who like watches. We are focused and deliberate; we make it possible to go somewhere and meet others, share in events and activities, and get excited about what we care about. I’m pleased to say that after 2.5 years of events we have succeeded. We’ve created events and a membership base that does exactly this. We have a great mix of people, lots of viewpoints, tastes and collections, all focussed on creating a good atmosphere to explore and enjoy watches. One thing we don’t have is singing, and we doubt we will have soon, but we have something else; a community of like-minded, friendly, open and sociable people with a shared purpose.
It’s not been easy. We recognise that to many people the concept does not sound appealing and they worry it will be boring, or too nerdy, or require knowledge they don’t have. The partners we talk to are sceptical we can be of benefit to them. People have expectations of luxury that are outdated and put too high a barrier on things. The cost of holding even the simplest event in London is very high. It’s hard to promote a Club and get our offer out to potential customers when we can’t post controversial statements, promise discounts on watches, or compete financially in the watch media.
As a Co-Founder of the Club and the person who spends the most time on it day-to-day, it’s my job to overcome all these problems and they are tricky. What keeps me going is the joy I get from succeeding in bringing people together. Seeing people’s eyes light up at an incredible timepiece, watching members make friends, watching regulars welcome new people and making them feel so welcome. Working with a new partner and seeing their staff get so enthusiastic with out members. We still have no idea if the Club can become a viable business. We know how many members we need but we don’t know how long it will take us to get there.
We want you to know that if you aren’t confident, don’t know that much and aren’t sure where to start at a watch event, then our events are the place to come. In the same way a good party and a welcoming pub make you feel comfortable and help you have a good time, that’s what our Club is all about. Come along to one of our events and find out for yourself.
Find all our events here, and if you can’t make it to London, join us online or come to The Manchester Watch show on November 9th. Register your interest here.