British Watchmakers’ Day toasts triumphant third edition

The third edition of British Watchmakers’ Day took place on Saturday, with hundreds of watch lovers packing into London’s Lindley Hall to see the best and brightest from British watch brands.

About 50 exhibitors were swamped by collectors and enthusiasts all day long, with anchor exhibitors like Christopher Ward and Studio Underd0g being particularly busy.

“We were absolutely delighted with the way it went,” Alistair Audsley, co-founder and CEO of organisers the Alliance of British Watch and Clock Makers told Watch Insider. “We made a few adjustments to the format (mainly moving to three sessions from two; but also tweaks to layout and introducing our first Artist-in-Residence), and genuinely felt that this third edition evolved the show while retaining the essential formula.

“As organisers/hosts our aim is to create the stage and our main criteria is how smoothly the event went. After that, it’s over to the exhibitors and the visitors to create the magic and we’ve had wonderful feedback from everyone.

“You had to be there to experience the buzz and, walking the queue before doors opening (which has become something of a tradition for me) I was struck by how many international visitors had flown in specially, especially from the USA,” he concluded.

The passion and knowledge among the gathered crowds was quite something to behold. I spoke to a number of visitors about the reasons for their attendance, and the common feedback I got was the chance for people to meet the brains behind the brands (owners, designers, etc.).

There is clearly a huge market for this type of event, and British Watchmakers’ Day continues to raise the bar.