Crown & Caliber has returned, evolving into a luxury online lifestyle magazine.
Founded in 2013 as a pre-owned watch retail platform, it was a major player in the growth of the early pre-owned timepiece marketplace. It was acquired by Hodinkee in 2021 to bolster their retail business, then sold to the European Watch Company in 2024.
“Crown & Caliber’s loyal following made the acquisition an easy choice. Today’s relaunch evolves that community into a broader editorial home for watches and the world around them, with daily coverage designed to inform, inspire and entertain,” said Joshua Ganjei, chief executive officer of European Watch Company, the Boston based pre-owned luxury timepiece retailer.
The digital magazine launch is being led by Alexandra Cheney as its editor in chief and editorial director. Cheney is tasked with leading a team of global voices, spearheading Crown & Caliber’s transformation into a lifestyle publication at the intersection of horology, luxury, culture, travel and technology.
Alexandra Cheney and
Joshua Ganjei
Courtesy Crown & Caliber
“Excitingly, we launch with an existing, engaged audience and subscriber base across social channels and our own newsletter,” Cheney told WWD, adding that the plan is to grow the publication through a mix of depth, accessibility and real-world stories focused on luxury experiences.
“Crown & Caliber is built around a mix of short, accessible reporting that encourages regular engagement, and longer, deeply reported features that establish authority via exclusive access over time. We plan to entertain our readers on the go with short articles and keep them logged on at their leisure when they can really dig into the long format stories,” she said.
The editorial strategy, Cheney said, is supported by a social media presence designed to work in tandem with the reporting. “Growth will also be supported in the future through partnerships and intimate events that mirror this audience’s behavior. Experiences that allow readers to step into the world they’re reading about is our goal, whether that’s a private dinner, a test drive or a destination-focused conversation.
“Our team of writers, myself included, assumes an informed, enthusiastic reader,” she explained, adding that the new publication comes out of the gate intentionally lean, “prioritizing experienced contributors, clear editorial standards and disciplined execution. Performance is evaluated through repeat readership, depth of engagement and monetization efficiency, rather than scale alone,” she said.
Cheney’s strategy is that the publication will occupy a space between timepiece and luxury enthusiast credibility and cultural literacy, “an area that remains underserved,” she said. “Much of the competitive landscape tends to split between highly technical, insider or breaking news watch coverage or broad luxury lifestyle content centered on aspiration. Crown & Caliber operates where objects, taste and intelligence all meet.”
