The world’s favourite watches

Sir Jackie Stewart, motor-racing driver and campaigner

The best souvenir I’ve brought home was a Rolex Daytona watch that I was given when I won the Monte Carlo Grand Prix in 1971. That was a big deal for me. I still have it. The other was when I did well at Indianapolis in 1966 [Stewart had to retire from the lead with nine laps to go], and the Texan, John Mecom Jr, who owned the team I drove for, was so pleased with my position on the grid that he took me to Houston and bought me a solid-gold Rolex Day-Date. I’d never had anything like that in my life at that cost, it was crazy.

Tadao Ando, Pritzker Prize-winning architect 

I have a collection of fountain pens, many of which I have received as gifts over the years. I don’t necessarily have an interest in the act of collecting so much as I like designed objects to be simple, robust, and to balance cost, aesthetics and functionality. My favourite is a red Montblanc fountain pen designed by Marc Newson. An ingenious magnet mechanism allows the logo of the pen and the cap to perfectly align when it is closed. I also have what almost amounts to a collection of Ice-Watches in different colours. I rotate them depending on the day.

Martin Ephson, interiors entrepreneur

My personal style signifier is my watch, a vintage Patek Philippe 1954 chronograph. I’ve been wearing it for about three years now. It’s executed with understated elegance. Patek Philippe is a brand I’ve always coveted. It evolved at a time when bling wasn’t even in the dictionary, and it’s a joy to know it is still a family-owned business to this day.

Jung Lee, founder of Fête NY

The last thing I bought and loved was an Apple Watch Hermès. I haven’t worn a watch in a very long time, but since I was constantly losing my phone this seemed like a good solution. I went with a classic tan strap that works well with everything. Apple Watch Hermès, from £1,229 

Mai Ikuzawa, creative director, consultant and designer

The last thing I bought and loved was a Bamford London Skater Snoopy watch, which has a customised black bracelet. I’ve been a huge Snoopy fan since I was a child and it’s great when your friend shares a fetish for Snoopy. I’d love to do a Team Ikuzawa x Snoopy x Bamford product one day. Bamford Snoopy Watch, £1,700  

Mimi Xu, DJ

The best gift I’ve received is a vintage Rolex Oyster Perpetual, from the ’70s, from an ex-boyfriend. It’s a men’s watch, but it’s just very me. It’s chunky, it’s contemporary, it’s minimalistic; it’s like a piece of jewellery that I wear all the time. 

Francis Mallmann, chef

The best gifts I’ve given were watches to each of my children on their 18th birthday. I bought my first in 1981 – a Cartier Santos Ronde – and that is with my eldest daughter who is now 42. To my son Andino, who is most recently 18, I gave my old Hermès Arceau. I have to keep buying watches as I still have two more children to go. 

Pierre Mahéo, founder of Officine Générale

I always wear a vintage watch – a 1979 Cartier Tank Chinoise, which is a pretty rare model.

Nicolas Gabard, founder of Husbands Paris 

The last thing I bought and loved was a gold Cartier Tank from 1977, with handpainted Roman numerals and a Paris dial. I searched for this watch for a long time, and finally found it on a website called Leboncoin. The seller was an old man from the south of France who told me that he bought the watch in Paris in the ’70s and used to wear it to Le Sept and Le Palace, which were the really trendy places to go in those days – he’d see Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld there. He wanted to make sure I would be really careful with it.

Stefan Brüggemann, multidisciplinary artist

The gadget I couldn’t do without is my Apple Watch, which I use to track my sleep. I also play a lot of tennis, so it tells me how I’ve performed physically. 

Rita Konig, interior designer

An object I would never part with is my 1950s Cartier watch. I bought it for myself last year; I wasn’t necessarily looking for one but I have a weakness for watches and I had this visceral feeling when I saw it. It has a leather strap with white stitching and I love the simple, round face, which is quite unusual for a Cartier watch.

Becky Fatemi, property agent and founder of Rokstone 

My personal style signifiers are accessories. I wear a lot of vintage Chanel, Bulgari, and a Cartier watch that belonged to my mum. When we left Iran in 1979, we left with nothing and all my mum took was a little bag of her jewellery, including the watch and a diamond signet ring. I could always tell if we had guests coming round as the accessories would come out, so for me it was all about accessories, ever since I was a kid.

Jimmy Chin, climber and filmmaker

I recently added a Panerai Submersible Chrono Flyback watch to my wardrobe – that I helped to design. Submersible Chrono flyback watch, $19,100   

Marie-Laure Cérède, Cartier’s watch and jewellery creative director

My personal style signifier is always my watch. Currently I switch between my Cartier Libre bracelet watch and the Crash watch – a design I fell for even before I joined the company. It’s original and singular, a quintessential Cartier design. The Crash was inspired by a Cartier timepiece that had been crushed in an accident, and the Radieuse is an especially creative piece because we “crashed” it twice. It makes me proud to wear it. Cartier Libre Bracelet, £70,500; Cartier Crash Watch, £83,000 

Joe Gebbia, Airbnb co-founder

My personal style signifier is a pair of Nike Space Hippies – a modern marvel of sneaker design. Along with my titanium Ressence watch, they are my everyday staples.