The venue was the Donald Trump-owned Mar-A-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida. The event was the 24th Annual Showboats International Boys & Girls Clubs Rendezvous. Held from 10-12 November 2011, this annual boat extravaganza had another highlight – luxury watches from Swiss brand Ulysse Nardin. The CEO of the Swiss luxury watch company, Patrick Hoffman, was on hand throughout the event. On the auction held on the final day, Ulysse Nardin was instrumental in raising $200,000. The proceeds were donated to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County.
The three-day event took place at the Rybovich Yacht Club. The Rendezvous is one of the most high-profile superyacht events in America. This year’s participants included boats as small as 44 feet and as massive as 197 feet. Hoffman from Ulysse Nardin used this opportunity effectively to show off various luxury timepieces. The first showing took place on 10 November, onboard the 197-foot Lime Light. Here is a look at some of the key watches showcased at the event:
Royal Blue Tourbillon Haute Joaillerie
Priced at $1.1 million, this luxury timepiece is as a much a piece of fine jewelry as a watch. 568 baguette-cut diamonds and 234 baguette-cut royal blue sapphires adorn the platinum casing and the bracelet. The main plates and bridges are made of blue sapphire, a feature that creates an interesting effect – the Tourbillon appears suspended in empty space. Diamonds and blue sapphires appear once again on the inside of the bezel.
The Admiral
The Admiral watch is a marine chronograph. Ulysse Nardin gifted this watch to 16 members of the Rendezvous Fleet Admirals Club. The members who received the Admiral watch had one thing in common – they had all donated $50,000 annually to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County over the past five years. Ulysse Nardin personalized each of these gift watches. Each bore the name of the recipient. The dial, the caseback and the strap bore symbols of the Fleet Admirals Club. While the men’s Admiral featured a rubber strap, as well as a crocodile strap with a steel buckle, the matching women’s model had a diamond bezel.
The Classico
This beautiful luxury timepiece was the official watch of the 24th Annual Showboats International Boys & Girls Clubs Rendezvous. This stunning and elegant timepiece featured a clean, simple, traditional design. The 18-carat rose gold watch featured a 39mm dial and came with an alligator strap. The seconds hand sat separately on a smaller dial near the 6 o’ clock mark. At the Rendezvous auction, Ulysse Nardin managed to sell five of these beauties at nearly $25,000 apiece.
The Blue El Toro Perpetual Calender
This was easily the biggest highlight of the auction. The Blue El Toro is Ulysse Nardin’s newest GMT Perpetual model. Moreover, there is only one of its kind in the world. The luxury watch runs on Ulysse Nardin’s patented mechanism using wheels and gears. As a result, users can set the perpetual calendar back and forth. This is a unique feature of the Swiss brand’s perpetual calenders. Although the Blue El Toro was not initially a definite contender for the auction, Hoffman was convinced to take the plunge. It proved a good gamble. The watch sold for a whopping $75,000. Its regular retail price was much lower at $55,000.
Via: Forbes
