This year’s honorees include a Midwest retailer and two multi-store independents, one in New York and the other in New England.
Joe Thompson Joins Hodinkee as Editor-at-Large
The watch industry veteran has more than 40 years of experience, most recently serving as the editor-in-chief of WatchTime magazine.

New York--Watch industry veteran Joe Thompson has joined the Hodinkee team.
According to a post on the watch publication’s website by CEO Benjamin Clymer, Thompson now will serve as its editor-at-large.
At Hodinkee, Thompson will contribute “new types of stories,” reporting on industry trends, interviewing important industry players and providing historical perspectives to change how readers look at watches.
Thompson is an award-winning journalist with four decades of experience, starting his career with Jewelers Circular-Keystone (now JCK) magazine in 1977, then becoming editor-in-chief of Modern Jeweler magazine in 1982.
In 1996, he became the founding editor of American Time magazine, focusing exclusively on watch reporting. He most recently served as the Editor-in-Chief of WatchTime magazine, a position he held for 17 years before moving into an at-large position there as well.
He also has garnered a number of accolades along the way, including nine awards from the American Business Press and two from Sigma Delta Chi, the Society of Professional Journalists.
Thompson also received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 14th Annual Gem Awards in January 2016.
“Joe is a true journalist, never afraid to ask the tough questions, and he brings a level of insight and knowledge to his reporting that for many years has been the gold standard in watch journalism,” Clymer said in his post. “You know that when Joe says something, he does so with authority and understanding, and of course with his readers clearly in mind.”
The news follows closely on the heels of Hodinkee’s announcements that it hired Jonathan Bues as its senior editor and launched its first print publication, the Hodinkee magazine, this month.
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