Benjamin "Ben" Clymer | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1982 (age 42–43) |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Executive chairman of Hodinkee |
| Known for | Founder of Hodinkee, watch expert and entrepreneur |
Benjamin "Ben" Clymer (born 1982) is an American businessman known as the executive chairman and founder of Hodinkee, a luxury watch and lifestyle website. [1] He is an authority and influencer in the world of watches. [2] [3]
Clymer was born in 1982, and grew up in Brighton, New York, a suburb of Rochester, New York. [4] As a youth, he was an avid collector, and first became interested in mechanical watches when his grandfather gave him an Omega Speedmaster MK40. [5] [3]
Clymer graduated from Brighton High School in 2001. He earned his bachelor's degree at Syracuse University and his master's degree at Columbia University School of Journalism. [4]
After graduating college, Clymer worked as a project manager at Swiss investment bank UBS. [3] During the 2008 financial crisis, Clymer took a severance package from UBS and enrolled in Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism to earn a master's degree. [6] While at Columbia, also in 2008, he founded Hodinkee as a fan site and blog for watch aficionados. In 2012, Clymer launched Hodinkee's e-commerce platform based on Shopify, and in 2013, Time named Hodinkee one of the 50 best websites in the world. [7] [4]
In December 2013, The New York Times dubbed Clymer "The High Priest of Horology", noting his watch and style consulting work with brands including Club Monaco and Gilt Groupe. [3]
By 2015, Hodinkee was known as the most respected influential online resource in the traditional watch industry. [6]
In 2018, at age 35, Clymer was named to Crain's New York Business 's 40 Under 40 list. [8] In December 2018, Clymer led the collaboration efforts on the Slim d’Hermès Limited Editions with French luxury goods company Hermes' creative director Pierre-Alexis Dumas. [9]
In September 2020, Clymer was named to Fortune 's 40 under 40 list, in the category of Media and Entertainment. [10]
Clymer is an avid collector of watches and cars, and his collection has been featured in GQ and The Wall Street Journal . [2] [11] [12] Through their shared passion for watches, Clymer has struck up friendships with other well known watch collectors such as musician John Mayer and actor and comedian Aziz Ansari. [3] [13] Clymer's vintage Porsche 356 Zagato Coupe was featured in The Wall Street Journal [1] He is also the proud owner of an unrestored 1967 Porsche 911S. [14] Clymer is married to Cara Barret who also used to work at Hodinkee and lives in rural New York. [15]