British Watchmakers’ Day is taking place this weekend and we caught up with one of the major players in the British industry to see what he has a planned for this special occasion. We’re talking about Roger Smith, one of the legendary watchmakers of the modern period known for the reserved charm of his watches and immaculate attention to detail. So here is what Roger Smith has planned for British Watchmakers’ Day.
However, before we get into the conversation with Roger, if your eyes are firmly fixated on Switzerland, you might have missed that the British watchmaking industry is in its ascendency. Hell, I’d posit that we have one of the most vibrant, eclectic, and exciting cross-section of timepiece designers in the world, and definitely outside of the traditional bastions of haute horology. In fact, we have enough British brands that a celebratory event was less a good idea, more an inevitability.
And so, we have British Watchmakers’ Day, the first major event from the Alliance of British Watch and Clock Makers. Launched in 2020, the Alliance is a non-profit organisation that’s been doing some sterling work promoting British watchmaking in its various facets, supporting the individual brands and working as the official trade body of British watchmaking.
While the Alliance has been relatively behind-the-scenes since its foundation during the initial Covid outbreak (for obvious reasons), British Watchmakers’ Day is their way of announcing to the world that homegrown watch brands are here to stay – and the world at large needs to pay attention.
There are some big names involved in the Alliance, including Christopher Ward’s Mike France and consultant and documentarian Alistair Audsley. But perhaps the one that will make even hardened collectors sit up and pay attention is none other than Chairman – and inimitable independent watchmaker – Roger Smith.
“This whole thing is really down to the passion of the team behind the Alliance” explains Smith of the event. “Alistair’s a vinyl record collector and when the vinyl industry was in its doldrums they created Record Store Day, a chance to buy unique records from your local shop. We wanted to do a similar thing, a chance to buy a British watch that you can’t find anywhere else in the world.”
Given his propensity for customised watches and the kind of inimitable handmade finishing that defines the George Daniels method of watchmaking, Roger Smith timepieces are nearly always unique. So, what does one of the founding members of the Alliance do when called upon to build a watch for an event like this?
“Obviously I wanted to play my part in the day, so there was no question that I’d turn up without a watch,” said Smith. “It’s been an interesting process – for the first time since I’ve been selling my watches, I’ve been able to make one for myself. I decided to go for the Series 1 in 18kt Red Gold, as I like very simple watches and we’re using a new engraving fittingly called English Rose.”
Despite demand for his pieces at auction soaring to eye-watering numbers – his No. 2 Pocket Watch fetched $4.9 million and he regularly smashed records for British timepieces – Smith has closed his order book. Forever. He doesn’t expect to be taking any more orders until he retires. If you’re not on the list already, that might be painful to hear, but it also means that the unique piece created for the Alliance might be the last new, for sale Roger Smith that will ever be built.
Not that it’s simply for sale of course; there will be a closed auction in the run-up to the British Watchmakers’ Day, so keep an eye on the Alliance of British Watch and Clock Makers’ website to register your bid. If you really want to avoid disappointment, you’ll need to aim high. Very high – even with a reserve price confirmed at £297,500 (excl. of VAT).
As for what else has caught Roger’s eye so far – bearing in mind that at the time of writing not everything has been revealed – it turns out he’s into a very particular combination of colour, cushion case and fun use of typography. “I really like the Duckworth Prestex actually. The colours are great, but what Neil did with the lettering of the Alliance is inspired!”
As Roger hinted, he’s not the only British watch brand celebrating the Alliance’s big day in horological style. And while there can be only one watchmaker of his status, a huge cross-section of attendees will be showing off unique or strictly limited pieces on the day. To that end, you can check out some of the best watches being created specifically for British Watchmakers’ Day on Saturday 9th March here.
More details at Roger Smith.
