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While no firm definition exists, independent watchmakers tend to share several characteristics, including a commitment to craftsmanship, creativity, and invention.
Operating outside of big corporate groups, these talented individuals create limited numbers of distinctive watches, usually reflecting their own vision and a mastery of ancient techniques.
As consumers search for unique substitutes for mass-produced timepieces the desirability of the independents continues to grow and, with it, their contributions to the development of watchmaking.
Independent watchmakers have attracted a lot of attention over the past two decades and, where they were once viewed as slightly eccentric artists working on projects that served only a few equally eccentric buyers, today these artisans are major players in the field of horology.
While the output is small, the demand is high, their creations acting as the best examples of horological perfection and their work appealing to the widest demographic, from experienced collectors through to eager beginners.
While a definitive list of the greatest living watchmakers is all but impossible to create – there are simply too many and the choices are too subjective – one thing can be almost universally agreed upon: the father of modern independents is the late George Daniels, the man that paved the way for all who followed and who François-Paul Journe has referred to as “the pioneer; the first watchmaker who showed us the path to horology of Art”.
Daniels questioned the conventional wisdom of horological history and changes brought about by industrialisation and democratisation.
Whether artistic, technical, conceptual, or handcrafted, the independents approach represents horology as an art form without regard for cost or time, therefore separating these craftsmen from the main players in the market.
Their effect on watchmaking is typically inversely related to their production output by concentrating on a more specialist area of research where inherent purpose takes precedence over commercial expectations.
The first watchmaker to master 32 of the 34 fundamental skills needed to build a mechanical watch, Daniels dedicated his life to improving the mechanical watch and developing the first useful escapement in 250 years able to replace the Swiss lever on a commercial basis (now the Co-Axial movement used by Omega).
His life’s work encouraged a future for horology not motivated by rapid profit but based on ideas of significant intellectual depth.
Like Daniels, all of the watchmakers here are motivated by a personal need to challenge horological limits.
They are among the modern stars who have achieved significant progress in their respective disciplines, as well as the upcoming watchmakers who in turn have been inspired by them.
As many others have also taken on the challenge set by Daniels, it feels that this should really be labelled as Part I of a series paying tribute to our greatest independent and free-thinking makers.
Philippe Dufour
Believed by many to be the world’s greatest living watchmaker, Philippe Dufour has earned his position over decades of extraordinary workmanship and relentless dedication to classic methods.
Working from his Vallée de Joux workshop, Dufour’s painstaking approach to watchmaking places artistry above mass production, resulting in rare and beautiful timepieces.
Possibly his most famous work, the Simplicity, highlights Dufour’s unique ideas and exquisite design skills. Only 206 examples of the watch, launched in 2000, were ever made making it a grail for many collectors who value its external beauty and precise manually wound movement.
Adding to Dufour’s legacy, his daughter Danièla recently joined him in the atelier. After studying at École Technique de la Vallée de Joux, Danièla started building her own watches, including a one-off 20th Anniversary Simplicity.
Combining historical and contemporary concepts, this is a significant milestone with Danièla’s work displaying both her father’s influence and her own vision.
Laurent Ferrier
With a drive to combine traditional elegance with modern mechanisms, third-generation watchmaker, Laurent Ferrier developed his talents at Patek Philippe, where he worked over four decades honing his skills before starting his own brand in 2009.
His style is distinguished by a flawless blend of modern design with classic watchmaking methods, producing technically advanced timepieces.
In 2010, Ferrier introduced the Galet Classic Tourbillon Double Spiral, which received immediate praise and was awarded best men’s watch prize at the GPHG.
Celebrated for its understated elegance and the technical mastery of its double hairspring tourbillon, which improves accuracy and lowers positional errors, the Galet Classic reflects Ferrier’s commitment to advanced engineering and aesthetic purity reminiscent of the golden age of watchmaking.
Beyond his technical prowess, Ferrier’s love of motorsports has shaped his work and given his designs the vitality and accuracy of high-performance racing.
His brand was developed thanks in part to his collaboration with fellow racing enthusiast François Servanin, thereby combining his two loves – horology and motor-racing.
Denis Flageollet
Co-founder of De Bethune, Denis Flageollet is praised for his creative approach and strong appreciation of conventional workmanship.
A fourth-generation watchmaker, Flageollet started his path in France but developed his talents in Switzerland, where he combined modern technologies with the elegance of 18th-century horology.
His work is distinguished by a special ability to combine science and art to produce technically sophisticated and aesthetically beautiful timepieces.
Renowned for his avant garde thinking, De Bethune’s DB28, perfectly embodies Flageollet’s futuristic style.
A high-frequency tourbillon that is the lightest of its type with 63 components weighing just 0.18 grams. The watch shows Flageollet’s skills in pushing the limits of watchmaking and has been awarded the highly contested Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) “Aiguille d’Or”.
Seen by many as a cross between horological genius and magician, Flageollet has fostered a new generation of watch lovers who are inspired by his creativity and commitment to quality.
Tim and Bart Grönefeld
Known as the “Horological Brothers”, Tim and Bart Grönefeld are well-known for their creative ideas and painstaking workmanship. Hailing from Oldenzaal in the Netherlands, they are the third generation of watchmakers in their family – a lineage that began in 1912.
Before launching their own brand in 2008, their path took them through many watchmaking colleges and workshops throughout Europe, where they perfected their craft.
The Grönefeld brothers have won praise for their abilities to create visually attractive, technically advanced watches by fusing current innovation with classic methods.
The 1941 Remontoire, a watch that epitomises their dedication to accuracy and quality, is one of their most famous works.
This model achieves improved accuracy through the continuous energy delivery to the escapement by means of a unique constant force mechanism.
Among other honours, the 1941 Remontoire has been awarded a GPHG prize.
The limited output of the Grönefelds emphasises their quality above quantity approach, with every watch stretching the limits of horological innovation.
Through amazing design and a relentless pursuit of excellence, Tim and Bart have established themselves among the best watchmakers in the world, inspiring both their peers and collectors.
François-Paul Journe
Generally considered as one of the most influential watchmakers of the contemporary age, François-Paul Journe was born in Marseille in 1957.
Journe first became interested in horology through his uncle’s restoration factory, and this was cemented when he discovered the work and writing of George Daniels.
Journe’s work is distinguished by an unrelenting quest for accuracy and a dedication to create watches totally in-house.
In 1999, Journe launched his innovative Tourbillon Souverain, the first wristwatch to use a constant-force remontoire for controlling the force applied by the mainspring to the escapement, therefore improving the precision of the movement.
The Chronomètre à Résonance, is a further example of Journe’s mastery, using resonance (where two close vibrating frequencies synchronise) to improve precision.
Both of these are representative of his ability to take theoretical horology to its practical limits.
Beyond his technical skills, Journe’s work is distinguished by design cues that make his watches instantly recognisable.
The recipient of many GPHG awards, among other honours, his work has inspired a fresh batch of independent watchmakers, including Rexhep Rexhepi.
Raúl Pagès
Born in La Chaux-de-Fonds to Spanish parents, Raúl Pagès founded his own brand in 2012.
Operating from his studio in Les Brenets, Switzerland, Pagès remained something of an underground sensation before coming to the attention of the world when he became the inaugural recipient of the Louis Vuitton Watch Prize for Independent Creatives in 2024.
Possibly his best-known work to date, the RP1 Régulateur à Détente shows his dedication to both technical perfection and artistic beauty.
Inspired by the accuracy demanded of 18th-century naval chronometers, this watch has a rare pivoting détente escapement, a mechanism modified for wristwatches with an anti-tripping layout.
Housed in a stainless-steel case, the RP1’s simple yet attractive design highlights Pagès’ ability to combine modern aesthetics with classic horological details.
Along with honouring Pagès’ workmanship, winning the Louis Vuitton Watch Prize offers him a year-long mentoring programme at La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton.
Along with a financial grant, this mentoring will help him to explore new ideas and polish his brand.
The prize emphasises Pagès’ status as a top independent watchmaker, underlining the original vision and painstaking artistry that define his work.
Dominique Renaud and Julien Tixier
Co-founder of the legendary movement skunkworks Renaud & Papi, Dominique Renaud has been instrumental in creating high-complication movements for companies from Audemars Piguet to IWC, Parmigiani Fleurier and Richard Mille.
His knowledge of complications has established a standard in the business and earned him great respect among collectors and watch aficionados.
Renaud kept innovating after leaving Renaud & Papi, developing the DR01, a million-dollar-timepiece with a futuristic design and a ground-breaking blade oscillator, albeit only one was made because of legal issues.
Meeting Renaud during the DR01 launch, Julien Tixier quickly became a protégé and friend. Together the duo combine mechanical mastery with creative expression that that goes beyond the limits of conventional watchmaking.
Their most recent project is the Renaud Tixier ‘Monday’ watch, which has a micro-rotor movement and showcases their dedication to intricate but efficient designs.
Ever inventive, Renaud and Tixier have established themselves as two of the best watchmakers in the world by their combined skills and quest for excellence.
Rexhep Rexhepi
Celebrated for his uncompromising and creative ideas, Rexhep Rexhepi is a leading light in the field of horology.
Born in Kosovo, Rexhepi moved to Geneva as a child and started his watchmaking career with an apprenticeship at Patek Philippe before stints at BNB Concept and FP Journe, where he developed his skills in both complex movements and immaculate finishing.
Starting his own brand, Akrivia – an ancient Greek word for ‘precision’ – in 2012, Rexhepi’s reputation for commitment to technical perfection and artistic beauty grew quickly.
One of Rexhepi’s most acclaimed series of watches, the Chronomètre Contemporain I (RRCC I), premiered in 2018.
This watch reflects a rare mastery of conventional watchmaking techniques and Rexhepi’s dedication to accuracy and simplicity is demonstrated in the hand-finished movement and the Neo-classical design of the RRCC I with its wonderful symmetrical dial.
The watch’s popularity was underlined when an example sold at auction for almost $1 million, stressing its value and appeal among collectors.
Still just 37-years-old, Rexhepi is already a major player in independent watchmaking and known to be among the best watchmakers in the world. His commitment to creation and perfection is testament to the future of high horology.
Roger W. Smith
Hailing from Bolton, UK, Roger Smith started his watchmaking career at the Manchester School of Horology, where he excelled, receiving the British Horological Institute’s (BHI) Bronze Medal in 1989 after being voted the most outstanding student of the year (in 2012, he was also awarded the BHI’s Barrett Silver Medal).
It was while a student in Manchester that Smith met George Daniels, whose subsequent mentoring shaped Smith’s approach to watchmaking and his future career.
Daniels’ only apprentice, Smith moved to the Isle of Man to learn from the master and today continues to practice hand craftsmanship there, based on the ‘Daniels Method’.
Smith’s Series 2 watch, introduced in 2006, is known for its hand-crafted component construction and use of the co-axial escapement, invented by Daniels and further developed by Smith.
The painstaking workmanship and classic looks of the Series 2 have made it highly sought-after and the waiting list for a Roger W. Smith watch currently runs at many years.
Receiving an OBE in 2018 for his contribution to horology, Smith continues to distinguish himself in a field dominated by mass production through his commitment to handcrafted timepieces and centuries-old processes.
As dedicated to teaching as he is to making, Smith currently employs 11 watchmakers in his workshop, ensuring that the legacy of conventional horological workmanship lives on.
Kari Voutilainen
Originally from Finland, Kari Voutilainen honed his trade at the Tapiola watchmaking academy before travelling to Switzerland in 1989 to finish his studies at the International Watchmaking School, where he completed the WOSTEP complicated watch course.
Beginning his career at Parmigiani Mesure et Art du Temps fixing rare and complex timepieces, set him on the road for achieving perfection and, in 2002, he started his own independent watchmaking business in Môtiers, Switzerland, quickly developing a demand for his fine, handcrafted timepieces.
The Vingt-8 reflects Voutilainen’s respect of traditional watchmaking techniques combined with modern technologies.
A large balance wheel for enhanced regulation and an unusual balance-spring arrangement combining a Breguet overcoil with a Grossmann curve define the in-house Calibre 28, movement.
This timepiece highlights Voutilainen’s exquisite hand-finishing and individual touches such as the guilloché dial and unique teardrop lugs, confirming Voutilainen’s commitment to both aesthetic beauty and technical excellence.
The holder of several GPHG awards, Voutilainen is inarguably one of today’s most outstanding watchmakers. Limited production and covetable quality, make the watches he creates some of the most highly prized of the 21st century.