Untitled-13 2-319/08/2026 17:34Untitled-13 2-319/08/2026 17:34RADO DPS.indd 4RADO DPS.indd 419/08/2026 17:4119/08/2026 17:41Untitled-13 2-319/08/2026 17:34Untitled-13 2-319/08/2026 17:34 MASTER OF MATERIALS RADO.COM ANATOM SKELETON Untitled-13 2-319/08/2026 17:34RADO DPS.indd 5RADO DPS.indd 519/08/2026 17:4219/08/2026 17:4204 • SEP TEMBER 2026 / USA.W AT CHPR O . COM IN THIS ISSUE 16 04-06_US_CONTENTS_sept_13973194.indd 404-06_US_CONTENTS_sept_13973194.indd 421/08/2026 09:5221/08/2026 09:52RE GU L A RS 10 NE W S Maurice Lacroix appoints Joel Chabanne as the brand’s new managing director 16 INNER W O R K ING S The latest Grand Soir Automate transforms Christian Dior’s childhood garden into a moving work of art for the wrist 64 IN T H E HO TSE AT Norqain’s Tobias Küffer talks launching one of the watch industry’s fastest-growing independent brands 66 T H E L A S T W O R D Content creator Lucy Kapetanovic shares her advice on building a career in watches TH IS M O NTH 18 RETA IL LE AD E R S TIMELUXE CEO tells his extraordinary family story and how he built a retail group that stretches from the Caribbean to Miami 24 ED U C AT I O N A N D C A R EER S SP E C I A L We survey the watchmaking institutions, brands and retailers racing to close the skills gap across the globe 30 G E N E VA WAT C H DAYS 2 0 2 6 Geneva Watch Days president explains how the event has evolved from a pandemic solution into an essential f ixture for the watch industry 44 R O TA RY ’ S N E X T CH A P T E R With a Ministry of Defence collaboration on the horizon, Peers Hardy believes Rotary Watches is ready to reclaim its place at the forefront of the affordable watch market 24 USA.W AT CHPR O . COM / SEP TEMBER 2026 • 05 44 04-06_US_CONTENTS_sept_13973194.indd 504-06_US_CONTENTS_sept_13973194.indd 521/08/2026 09:5221/08/2026 09:52ITP Media (UK) Ltd 140 Old Street, London, EC1V 9BJ Tel: +44 (0)20 3176 4228 ITP Media Group CEO Ali Akawi CFO Toby Jay Managing Director Martin Chambers Deputy Managing Director Holly Sands ITP Media UK Managing Director Lee Cashman Editorial Director Andrew Seymour WatchPro Editor May Garland may.garland@itp.com Tel: +44 (0)20 3176 4228 Digital Editor Ella Kirby ella.kirby@itp.com Tel: +44 (0)20 3176 4238 Editor-at-large Rob Corder rob.corder@itp.com Publisher Andrew Wingrove andrew.wingrove@itp.com Tel: +44 (0)20 3176 4230 Brand Development Director Richelle Rimmer richelle.rimmer@itp.com Tel: +44 (0)20 3176 4239 Account Manager Nicholas Amarquaye nicholas.amarquaye @itp.com Tel: +44 (0)20 3176 4228 Senior Designer Ogo Ikeogu ogo.ikeogu@itp.com Production & Distribution Senior Production & Distribution Manager Balasubramanian P balasubramanian.p@itp.com Circulation Subscription customer service +44 (0)20 3176 4228 subscriptions@itp.com Web www.watchpro.com usa.watchpro.com www.itp.com The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error or omissions in this publication, however caused. 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IN THIS ISSUE The standout timepieces making the biggest impression ahead of Geneva Watch Days PAG E 54 04-06_US_CONTENTS_sept_13973194.indd 604-06_US_CONTENTS_sept_13973194.indd 621/08/2026 09:5221/08/2026 09:52PHOTON Eco-Drive | POWERED BY ANY LIGHTMay Garland, Editor may.garland@itp.com 08 • SEP TEMBER 2026 / USA.W AT CHPR O . COM A WORD IN YOUR EAR A WORD IN YOUR EAR here is a question hanging over the watch industry that is becoming harder to ignore: who, exactly, is going to service, repair and make the watches of the future? For an industry built on patience, precision and skills passed from one generation to the next, education and training have never been more important. Switzerland employed more than 65,000 people at the end of September 2024, with more than 46,000 working in production-related roles. Crucially, Switzerland is not simply maintaining that workforce; it is continuing to upgrade it. The number of employees with higher education increased by 2.7%, while those with a vocational diploma rose by 1.1%. In the UK, there is plenty of reason for optimism. The latest Bellwether survey found more than 140 British watch businesses employing around 1,600 people and generating $2.78 million in sales, up 65% in three years. Two-thirds of those businesses were founded since 2015. This is a young, growing and increasingly diverse sector. But education and training has to keep pace with that growth. The British School of Watchmaking remains the country’s most prominent specialist institution, producing hundreds of graduates since 2006, all of whom have been retained within the watch industry, while other organizations including the British Horological Institute, the British Watch & Clock Makers Guild and the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers provide important education, support and professional development. There is also valuable collaboration between industry and education. Swatch Group, for example, operates Nicolas G. Hayek Watchmaking Schools and has strengthened its training activities in the UK and US, including collaboration with the British School of Watchmaking. Its schools are designed not only to teach traditional watchmaking, but to prepare students for changing products, materials, tools and methodologies. In the US, there are fewer than 2,000 professional watchmakers in the country, according to recent reporting, while specialist education remains concentrated among a small number of programmes. Rolex’s decision to establish its tuition-free, 18-month Watchmaking Training Center in Dallas is perhaps the clearest demonstration of both the problem and the opportunity. And demand is clearly there. More than 560 applications were reportedly received for just 27 places in one recent Rolex intake. That statistic should make us pause. The problem is not necessarily a lack of people interested in becoming watchmakers. It may be that we simply do not have enough places, teachers and accessible routes into the profession. There is an important lesson here for the UK and US. Switzerland’s advantage is not just its historic concentration of watch brands and manufacturers. It has built an ecosystem in which vocational education, industry and professional development are deeply connected. If Britain and America want to preserve and expand their own watchmaking industries, they need to think beyond individual schools and individual brand initiatives and ask what a genuinely sustainable education ecosystem should look like. That means more training places. It means making courses fi nancially accessible. It means encouraging brands and retailers to invest in apprenticeships and scholarships. This month, we explore this issue further to assess the progress the industry has made and the work that still needs to be done to futureproof our sector. As an industry, we need to protect the knowledge, creativity and craftsmanship that give this trade its identity. A race against time T “WE NEED TO PROTECT THE KNOWLEDGE, CREATIVITY AND CRAFTSMANSHIP THAT GIVE THIS TRADE ITS IDENTITY” 08_WP_Eds Letter US_sept_13973193.indd 808_WP_Eds Letter US_sept_13973193.indd 821/08/2026 10:0421/08/2026 10:04THE FIRST BRITISH WATCH BRAND TO GO TO THE MOON BREMONT BOUTIQUE • 501 MADISON AVENUE, NEW YORK • 212-321- 0012 T AKE IT FURTHER SUPERNOVA CHRONOGRAPH Untitled-16 1Untitled-16 121/08/2026 14:5421/08/2026 14:54Next >