Mark Cho is no stranger to the world of horology. In fact, as the cofounder of menswear retailer The Armoury and co-owner of the English menswear brand Drake’s, his life is steeped in it. And that extends to his personal life, as demonstrated through his private collection of more than 50 timepieces from iconic brands, including A. Lange & Söhne, Patek Philippe, and H. Moser & Cie, to mention a few. Phillips is offering the pieces to the public in its first online sale dedicated to a single owner’s collection: The Beauty in Everything Single Owner Online Auction. It runs Nov. 30–Dec. 6.
“These are 16 years of searching for beautiful things,” said Cho in a statement. “Sometimes I collected ‘the greats,’ but most of the time I collected the interesting, the curious, and the sublime. A most interesting hour marker here and a perfectly formed case there. A wonderful complication that moved me or a moment of horological history that captured me. What unites all these pieces is that I found beauty and satisfaction in all of them. However, at the end of the day, one person can’t keep everything and probably shouldn’t anyway.”
“This sale marks the first single-owner online sale presented by Phillips Watches, and we would like to thank Mark for entrusting us with selling his incredible collection,” said Phillips head of watches, Asia, Thomas Perazzi. “We are thrilled to be building on the momentum of the strong sales we have achieved so far this year and to be closing the Watches Fall season in Asia with one of the most exciting auctions of 2022.”
As a result of the sale, Cho hopes to pursue an expansion of The Armoury New York (“one of the great loves of my life”) and allow the watches to enrapture fellow enthusiasts. “To the future owners of these pieces, I hope they bring you as much joy as they brought me. For new collectors, maybe something here will be a foundational piece for your own collection, and for experienced collectors, maybe something from my taste will feel fresh and new to you.”
Top: A portrait of The Armoury cofounder and Drake’s co-owner, Mark Cho (photos courtesy of Phillips)
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