Ted Gushue.
My name is Ted Gushue, and I’m the founder and creative director of ERG Media, a publishing and brand consultancy based in Milan. We work with cultural institutions, luxury brands, and artists to create meaningful, collectible objects – books, campaigns, films – that stand the test of time. Prior to ERG, I launched Type 7 for Porsche and spent years as a journalist and editor, telling stories at the intersection of design, craftsmanship, and automotive culture.
Ted & Lola.
It was a mix of things: love, work, and a deep appreciation for the Italian way of living.
My wife is Italian, and over time Milan became not just a base but a creative anchor point for me. It has this rare balance of culture, design, and elegance. There’s an energy in Milan that’s both refined and constantly evolving – it just made sense.
Cars were my first visual language. There is an amazing video my father recorded of my mother holding me in her arms as we leave the hospital after I was born. The film is about 30 seconds of us, and then a 5 minute walkthrough of his 911 SC. That hereditary fascination eventually became professional when I began writing about cars and later helped build Type 7 with Porsche. Now, through ERG, I have the privilege of publishing books and stories that explore car culture on a deeper level – across generations, geographies, and disciplines.
Ted’s Porsche 911S.
I think it comes from a lifelong curiosity about how things are made – and why. Whether it’s a camera, a watch, a chair, or a book, I’m drawn to objects that are built with intention and a sense of timelessness. Design, for me, is storytelling without words. It’s part of the reason we founded ERG – to celebrate that level of craftsmanship.
Ted’s office in Milan.
ERG Media is a hybrid publishing house and creative consultancy. We design, produce, and publish books, campaigns, and objects for some of the world’s most iconic brands and artists. Our ambition is to elevate publishing into something more experiential and culturally relevant. In addition to client work, we produce our own titles and are expanding into Japan this year to support our growing footprint in Asia.
My first visit to Japan completely rewired the way I think about aesthetics, ritual, and restraint. I’ve returned countless times since, always learning something new. Japan has a reverence for detail and a respect for time that aligns deeply with my values. Through ERG, we’ve been building projects in Japan for years now, and we’re currently working on a book that celebrates the jazz café culture of Tokyo – a passion of mine. During Salone 2025 we will launch a book on Kaikado, the 150 year old Tea Caddy maker for the Imperial family of Japan.
Type 7: Tokyo Travel Guide – ERG.
That’s always a difficult question. But if I had to choose, I’d say Tokyo. It’s endlessly layered – visually, culturally, emotionally. Every trip reveals something new. There’s also an intimacy to Tokyo that contrasts beautifully with its scale. The little engine in your head that is worried about bad things happening to you in western cities just turns off there.
Jazz is the backbone of my day. I listen to it constantly – especially in the office. There’s a rhythm to jazz that mirrors how we work: intuitive, fluid, structured but never rigid. It’s a huge source of inspiration. As I mentioned, we’re working on a book about jazz culture in Japan, which has one of the most unique and preserved jazz traditions in the world. My Grandmother introduced me to the Jazz piano of Chick Corea when I was very young.
Jazz at the office.
Definitely. Watches have always fascinated me – not just as objects, but as vessels of time and memory. A good watch tells you more than the hour – it tells you a story. The Daytona was a gift to myself at a moment of personal transition, and it’s become something of a companion over the years. My father had a similar Zenith Daytona with a white dial and it really made an impression on me as a young boy. All of my collection has some sort of hereditary connection I suppose. We also work with Grand Seiko which is a very special hybrid of my passion for Japan and craftsmanship.
I think the Patek Philippe ads always resonated with me. They are something that we look after for the next generation. Of course many people buy and trade and sell, but I seem to hang on to everything so that someday my next generation can have this physical connection to when I wore the watches.
From left to right: Rolex Daytona, Rolex Submariner, and Grand Seiko Spring Drive.
It’s a short but considered list: Rolex, obviously, for its legacy and functionality. But I’m also a huge admirer of Grand Seiko. Their approach to detail, to finishing, to storytelling – it’s on a completely different level. Their dials drive me wild.
Both, really. It depends on the piece. Vintage carries a certain aura, a history you get to inherit. But modern watchmaking is experiencing a golden age, especially in places like Japan.
I have yet to own a Patek, this would be quite interesting to me at some stage. Perhaps after a major milestone…
Probably the Zenith Daytona, or perhaps my Everose Gold GMT. It’s not the rarest watch in the world, but it’s tied to too many personal milestones to part with.
Rolex Daytona, ref. 16520.
Absolutely – several, in fact. At ERG we’re working on a few different watch-related titles, all with a slightly different lens: some brand-specific, others more cultural. It’s a space we love and understand deeply, and we’re excited to contribute to it in a meaningful way.
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