Experiencing Continued Growth, Watchonista Names Josh Shanks As Editor-in-Chief And Expands Marketing Team

We’re excited to announce the promotion of our Managing Editor of North America, Josh Shanks, to Editor-in-Chief. This promotion comes on the heels of several years of editorial excellence, consistent growth, and the launch of multiple new lines of business. As his first order of business, Shanks has expanded the marketing team servicing clients who hope to reach Watchonista’s audience of US-based watch collectors and enthusiasts. 
 

Originally launched in 2009 by Alexander Friedman and Marco Gabella in Switzerland as a digital platform by and for watch collectors, Watchonista created its US counterpart in early 2017. Since then, Watchonista US has been on a roll. It has expanded to become a premium news source within the watch world, and despite the global pandemic, has launched and grown multiple lines of business, such as branded content offerings, events, and a retail partnership program. The result is a following of hundreds of thousands of high-net-worth customers from the US and around the globe who consume Watchonista content daily across our digital network. 
 

Of Shanks’ promotion and the corresponding US growth, co-founder Alexander Friedman says, “We couldn’t be more pleased with the efforts Josh has led here in the US market. He has built a team that’s dedicated to editorial excellence and delivering unique agency services, all while cultivating relationships with companies looking to better understand the growing market of the watch industry in America.”
 

In order to focus more capably on the vision of Watchonista US moving forward, the new Editor-in-Chief has expanded the marketing team to include Kyle Snarr. Formerly of digital publications such as Vox Media and the Hearst-funded Gear Patrol, Snarr will be responsible for leading commercial efforts in the US and helping to grow Watchonista’s active audience of watch buyers into 2021. 
 

“We have a clear vision of continued global growth for Watchonista in 2021,” says Co-Founder Marco Gabella. “We’ve been fortunate to weather the storms of 2020 thanks to a strong team of dedicated individuals. Now, with expanded leadership in place at Watchonista US, we’re confident that we can continue to position ourselves to be a complete and trusted resource for collectors, as well as for the brands and retailers hoping to reach them into 2021 and beyond.”
 

Shanks says, “I am thrilled with the trust and support placed in me by Watchonista’s co-founders. Since we began this journey in 2017, we’ve expanded from a two-person office to almost 10 full-time employees working across multiple lines of business. I’m excited to continue building Watchonista’s strong connection to consumers, brands, and retailers and advance our daily efforts to deliver unique and engaging content to our audiences.”
 

The key to Watchonista’s success has been a deep and robust focus on the watch collector community. Historically, this can be a challenging audience to foster as consumers can often possess a level of expertise that’s difficult to top. But Watchonista pairs its expertise with access, an access that goes two directions connecting collectors with community and brands with buyers.