Swiss Luxury Watch Maker Alpina Gets Hip and Trendy with a Hollywood Party

Tonight I attended a special event in Los Angeles sponsored by the Alpina Watch company.   I think many American shoppers might read this and say, “Who is Alpina?”  Alpina is a luxury Swiss watch company that is over 100 years old.  In Europe,the watches are well known for their workmanship and their lifetime guarantee. The highlight of the evening was a special appearance by actor Laurence Fishburne.  Mr. Fishburne was gifted with a new Alpina watch at the event, and said, “It’s slick.”  I have to agree with him, the watches are slick, albeit a bit pricey.  Typically, the watches are priced from $900.00 US.  Of course, I’m in the business of finding luxury for less.  If you’re interested in a sporty looking Swiss time piece, shop for Alpina for less at of all places Amazon.com.   Amazon prices are several hundred dollars below the brand’s retail prices. One of the draws of tonight’s event was supposed to be what was promoted as the “Alpina Doorman Challenge.”  The challenge was promoted as a way to win an Alpina watch valued at $2,000 USD, by giving the doorman at private LA club Boudoir your best line or “pitch” to gain admittance to the Alpina private party.  Although the challenge was promoted on LA website, Guest of a Guest and in a press release, it was pretty hard to find a doorman taking best lines from anyone trying to win the challenge and gain admittance to the club. There was a stand with a sign for the challenge, but those staffing it seemed a bit, er confused.  Too bad, after all, who doesn’t want the opportunity to win a luxury item for free?  It’s a clever gimmick.  I’d be curious to hear if any of my readers dropped by and tried to win the challenge after reading my Tweets before and during the event.  If I sent you on a wild goose chase to find a doorman to try to give your best club admittance line to in order to gain entrance and win the elusive prize, I apologize.

The watches are good looking and carry a life time guarantee. Ladies can change the wristband for different looks to coordinate with their outfits.  Check out the Ladies’ watch pictured below with the white rubber wristband. The “regulator” dials are distinctive features.  Although they look like they might tell time for more than one time zone, they actually work for only one time zone.

I was pleased to get to have a chat with new Alpina customer Laurence Fishburne.  I asked him what his next project will be.   He responded, “I’ll be appearing in a film called “Contagion” with Matt Damon and Kate Winslet.  It’s not even in production yet.” He told me it should be in theatres next year.  Wonder if he’ll be wearing his new watch in the movie? 🙂