10to2’s First Winner – George Flintham’s Journey to the MoonSwatch
It has been an exciting run up to Christmas here at 10to2, with our launch at the end of November to now undertaking our third competition (A Tudor Ranger which you can find right here!) before 2024 is even up!
With that, we are so pleased to welcome the winner of our first competition, the free to enter Omega x Swatch Mission to the Moonphase, George Flintham to 10to2 HQ to pick up his newly won watch right before Christmas.
George sat down with us to talk about his competition experience, share his background on his foray into the horological world and cover how he plans to enjoy the MoonSwatch!
How did you first hear about 10to2?
“Through a good friend of mine who sent me the link with only a few hours to go until the deadline! I hadn’t given it much thought, but my friend shared it with me, so I decided to enter the competition and shared it with some mates for a punt.”
What made you decide to enter our competition?
“Firstly, I really like the watch and have wanted one for a while but couldn’t get hold of one. But also, how easy it was to enter and the great odds of winning with the capped number of ticket sales.”
“I haven’t entered anything like this before, so it was definitely beginner’s luck! I was thrilled to win, and it just goes to show that you never know what might happen. I’m so glad I gave it a shot!”
What drew you to this particular watch?
I’ve always been a fan of Omega watches and really like what they’ve done with Swatch. I know there are many people who begrudge paying nearly £300 for a plastic watch, but I love how they look.
10to2: We completely agree, it’s fun, bloody good looking and that fact it’s even a 1/50 of a real Omega Speedmaster, as long as you can temper expectations and be a little bit more careful to not damage the plastic case then it is a really enjoyable watch. For anyone reading this and wondering how the MoonSwatch came to be, we have written a journal entry on the history, fanfare & tribulations here.
Have you always been a fan of luxury watches?
“I’ve definitely taken more of a keen interest in watches in the last 5-10 years after I got my first watch, as a gift from parents, after finishing university. That was a TAG Heuer Aquaracer.”
How do you plan to style or wear the watch-special occasions, daily, or both?
“Both, but with the type of strap it has I will probably wear it more for casual/sporty occasions.”
10to2: If you were thinking about purchasing an additional strap, a NATO strap from Bark & Jack, or a rubber strap from Wrist Buddys are great options. Both of these options will really elevate the MoonSwatch.
What’s your favourite thing about the watch you won?
“I really like the style and colour of it as well as the uniqueness to having snoopy in one of the subdials.”
What is your ultimate grail watch?
“Audemars Piquet Royal Oak. Such a classy watch and love the bracelet on it.”
10to2: That’s a lovely watch, and the integrated sport watch market has been taking over the watch world for the last few years. If you like the Royal Oak, but want to explore something a little different and perhaps not as well-known but still being from the big 3 – Try the Vacheron Constatin Overseas. Whilst not quite as industrial looking without the screws around the bezel, it retains a sleeker and more elegant design.
Are there any particular watch brands or trends that excite you?
“I’ve always liked minimalist watches. I think the simplicity makes them look really classy. When a dial is too busy, it’s hard to tell the time and sometimes, that’s all I need without having to pick up my phone.”
10to2: A great brand for minimalist watches is Nomos, if you have never checked them out they are a German brand, all in-house made movements and are scandi-like in design and execution. For less than £1,500 you can get a Nomos Club Campus in multiple colour variations which look very cool.
How did you react when you found out you’d won?
“I couldn’t believe my luck when I saw the email congratulating me on the win! I saw I had a missed call on the Friday night but didn’t think much of it but it was great to speak to George at 10to2 later on to confirm and arrange a delivery date.”
Who was the first person you shared the news with?
“I called my parents who also couldn’t believe my luck. They’ve asked me to enter the lottery on a more frequent basis now! I’ve now been encouraging them to enter 10to2 competitions.”
Will you be entering any future 10to2 competitions in the future yourself?
“Absolutely! There have been some great competitions so far and it was so easy to enter as I just used Apple Pay, so I’ll definitely be entering more in the future.”
What advice would you give to others thinking of entering?
“If you don’t buy a ticket, you can’t win the competition. The skill-based question required a little bit of watch knowledge, but the entire process was straight forward and enjoyable.”
It’s great to see the impact our first competition had, and we are massively appreciative to George for making the effort to come see us at 10to2 HQ to celebrate our launch and first competition.
Our TAG Heuer Formula 1 Quartz competition may have ended last week, but not to worry, as we have recently launched our Tudor Ranger competition which is live over the Christmas break, closing at 9PM on Thursday 2nd January. Tickets are limited to 550, £10 each and the odds of winning a £2.8k watch are very high!
The competition can be found here, good luck!
