Nico Leonard van der Horst better known as Nico Leonard (born August 21, 1987) is a Dutch YouTuber and entrepreneur credited with a genre of YouTube videos that centers on high-end watches, being the biggest watch-related YouTube channel and largest cross-platform creator regarding horology. Amongst other businesses, Leonard founded and owns luxury watch boutique Pride and Pinion, headquartered in Belfast, the capital and biggest city of Northern Ireland (UK).[5][6]

Nico Leonard
Personal information
Born
Nico Leonard van der Horst

(1987-08-21) August 21, 1987 (age 36)[1]
Amsterdam, Netherlands
NationalityDutch[2]
Occupations
Children2
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2020–present
Genres
Subscribers1.59 million[4]
Total views500 million[4]
Associated actsPride and Pinion[a][3]
100,000 subscribers2021
1,000,000 subscribers2023

Last updated: August 27, 2023

Early life edit

Van der Horst was born on August 21, 1987 in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. He was mainly raised in a middle-class household. He moved to Northern Ireland in 2013[7] to start working in a watch company. Leonard founded "Pride and Pinion" in 2019 and has been the director since.[8] Leonard also founded, owns and directs clothing company GodTier, The Vault Competitions[9] and The Watch Repair Centre[10]

YouTube career edit

Channel (2019–present) edit

Leonard's channel started as Pride and Pinion as an extension of his watch boutique in 2019 and later rebranded to Nico Leonard to depict his personal life in vlogs in a less formal manner. The channel surpassed 1 million subscribers in early 2023.[11][12]

Outspokenness edit

Leonard became known for his informal tone, something that earned him a big following yet some distance within members of the watch community. Leonard has been a vocal and avid critic of Swiss brand Hublot[13] and also criticized at times the operational form of management of company Hodinkee.[14]

Personal life edit

Leonard is in a long-term relationship and had a son in 2022.


[15]

Explanatory notes edit

  1. ^ Stylized Pride & Pinion

References edit

  1. ^ "Companies owned by Nico Leonard van der Horst; UK Gov". August 27, 2023.
  2. ^ "Expert Reveals Cost of YouTuber Watches". August 27, 2023.
  3. ^ "Pride and Pinion". August 27, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "About Nico Leonard". YouTube.
  5. ^ "GQ Magazine: Nico Leonard on Choosing Your First Watch". August 27, 2023.
  6. ^ "Oracle of Time: Interview with Nico Leonard". August 27, 2023.
  7. ^ "Techie Gamers: Interview with Nico Leonard". August 27, 2023.
  8. ^ "Pride and Pinion". August 27, 2023.
  9. ^ "Companies owned by Nico Leonard van der Horst; UK Gov". August 27, 2023.
  10. ^ "Companies owned by Nico Leonard van der Horst; UK Gov". August 27, 2023.
  11. ^ https://oracleoftime.com/nico-leonard-interview/
  12. ^ https://www.watchfinder.co.uk/articles/feature-top-25-channels-watch-enthusiasts-should-follow
  13. ^ https://www.voguebusiness.com/fashion/how-rude-youtube-reviews-are-driving-watch-sales
  14. ^ https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/an-earnest-exploration-of-hublot-the-worlds-most-polarizing-watch-brand
  15. ^ https://www.independent.ie/life/the-most-expensive-watch-i-ever-sold-cost-7-million-i-cant-tell-you-who-bought-it-but-i-can-tell-you-how-to-spot-a-fake/42231569.html