Craft Talks
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(November 5, 2014) This being the first meeting of the month today's luncheon speakers were two members of the club giving craft talks. First was Sam Kartounian of Tic Time who talked about wrist candy. What's that? Read on and learn..
Sam is the third generation of his family in the watch business. He is following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather who brought the business with him when he immigrated to the United States from Armenia.
Sam gave a brief overview of the history and evolution of the humble wrist watch, an item that most of us wear and most of us take for granted. From mechanical pocket watches in the early 20th century, to "wrist watches" (yes, worn on the wrist) as mandated by the British government for their soldiers in World War I, to the Japanese quartz watches brought back to the United States by returning Vietnam veterans, the wrist watch as we know it today verged on the edge of extinction. "Quartz watches almost put the Swiss watchmakers out of existence," he said.
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.jpg) Sam
Kartounian
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Despite the seemingly bleak future in the watch industry, while in grad school Sam was encouraged to "stay in the industry you know just do something different." Whereupon he came up with the concept of accessories on the wris
"I want my customers wrists hit upon," he said. "Watches are now accessories". On his website Sam describes TicTime as "... as a watch retailer that doesn't sell time but rather the hippest, trendiest wrist accessories, a wrist candy, an expression of lifestyle and an extension of personality."
Tic Time has two location in the Galleria Mall and a third in the Culver City Westfield Mall. Click on Learn More to read about Walter Campbell's Craft Talk.
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 Walter
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(November 5, 2014) Walter Campbell's Craft Talk fooled around with instructions of how to even give a craft talk. With large hand gestures and his arms gesticulating up and down, left and right, he attempted to illustrate the arc of his craft life.
Walter drew that image in only 7 minutes, because appearing at the tail end of a busy luncheon he ran out of time. His tale has yet to be told! "I think I need to ask for two more minutes," he opined a couple of days after the luncheon. That said, in the few minutes he had at the podium he discussed what he termed as two life 'turning points" in his life. The first was leaving the small West Texas town of Odessa heading for the sophisticated, urbane life in Cambridge, Massachusetts where he attended Harvard College.
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That said, in the few minutes he had at the podium he discussed what he termed as two life 'turning points" in his life. The first was leaving the small West Texas town of Odessa heading for the sophisticated, urbane life in Cambridge, Massachusetts where he attended Harvard College.
"That turning point was upwardly mobile," he said. Graduating from Harvard, he then worked for Merrill Lynch in NYC for 2 years, then returned to Harvard Business School for his MBA. He then landed a position with Cambridge Research Institute as a management consultant. Later, at the age of 29, he left Cambridge Research and to go out on his own, to "be his own boss", to "work for myself". "That was the second turning point. Walter Campbell Associates. This was not progress. This was downwardly mobile."
At this point in his Craft Talk the clock struck 1:30 p.m. and "time ran out before I could impart any actual, useful craft information," he concluded.
So now, President Rolando, the club awaits the remainder of Walter's Craft Talk!
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