The Netherlands is a small country with a long history of producing high-quality watches. One of the best ways to learn about Dutch watch brands is by visiting one of the many international trade shows in Amsterdam, such as Watches & Jewelry, Baselworld, and The Watch Show. This blog post will cover some popular Dutch watch brands from these events.
The Dutch watch brands have a rich history that has been handed down from generation to generation with the knowledge and skills. If you are looking for quality watches, then consider one of these brands. They all offer their style, but they also represent a tradition that we should respect and appreciate in this day and age.
1. Cincy
Cincy watches are known worldwide as one of the best luxury watchmakers in The Netherlands. They have been around since 2009 and specialize in automatic mechanical movements, quartz movements, and hybrid (mechanical+quartz) movements for both men and women on three continents. Their most successful models to date include the Club44 S6 Automatic and the Club 44 Quartz Chronograph Titanium. Later this year, their first Tourbillon will be presented at SIHH, which is considered a breakthrough for any watch brand, especially when they are only five years old!
2. Bovet
Bovet was founded in Switzerland in 1822 as a jewelry shop but quickly became famous for making clocks using precious metals like gold, platinum, or silver and diamonds. They were also the first watch brand to use these materials for watches such as the Octo Grande Sonnerie and the Grande Sonnerie. They are renowned for making very expensive watches with unique complications, such as world premieres. The most well-known model in their collection is the Royale Mécanique which has two balance wheels and chimes on demand. Last year they also released a new skeleton movement clock, one of only 10 in the world.
3. Christiaan van der Klaauw
Atelier Christiaan van der Klaauw is one of the best watch brands from The Netherlands, making both men’s and women’s watches (unlike others who tend to focus on men’s watches). Their basic collection consists of classically designed pieces, while their more special collections consist of avant-garde pieces such as the Clandestino, which has a moon phase and date indicator. This watch is the world’s first “moon phase-lunar phase,” indicating both the exact age of the moon and its day at all phases. Another remarkable piece from Christiaan van der Klaauw is their Viva Relogio with two balance wheels, one for timekeeping and one for making an accurate jump hour display (usually, jump hours are only displayed when it’s noon).
4. NOMOS Glashütte
NOMOS was founded in 1990 as a ‘watch family,’ meaning that they make watches that appeal to everyone thanks to their large range of designs. Their basic collection consists of very clean, slim lines and often very small cases with thin movements. NOMOS timepieces are based on modular construction, which means they can design a movement for any case size as long as it fits. Their most famous models include the Tangomat 41, the Orion 36 (available in rose or white gold), and the Ludwig 38, which all have clean, timeless aesthetics resulting in beautiful minimalistic watches that work perfectly as everyday wear.
5. Roland Chaplain
Roland Chaplain is one of those Dutch watch brands that make both luxurious, sporty watches and avant-garde pieces with unique complications and materials such as their Gyroscope Jus d’Orange. Every one of his watches has something special in it, and he is always trying out something new. The most well-known pieces are his Tourbillion watches, such as the Cosmic Moonphase Tourbillon with three gravity escapements.
6. Vandenbergh
Founded by Jan Willem van den Berg, Vandenbergh has a long history of manufacturing high-quality tourbillons for almost 30 years now (not to mention pocket watches). A tourbillon is a device used to counter the effects of gravity on precision timepieces while being worn, plus an interesting feature on luxury watches; consequently, tourbillon watches can be extremely expensive depending on their complication and rarity. Only one company has been able to create some very exclusive tourbillons, including the Chopard V4, the A. Lange & Söhne Saxonia with a perpetual calendar, and the Tourbillon within a tourbillon (called the double-axis Tourbillon), which is as rare as hen’s teeth: only five were made! Vandenbergh also makes some other complications, such as triple calendars.
7. Piaget
One of the most well-known watch brands from The Netherlands is Piaget. They make watches for many famous luxury retailers, including Tiffany & Co., Cartier, and Van Cleef & Arpels. They have been making high-quality timepieces since 1874 when they started making diamond jewelry. Their movements are all hand-finished by expert technicians at their workshops in La Côte-aux-Fées in the Jura Mountains since 1874, which is why they are of such high quality. Their most famous watches are their Petit Complications. They have an openwork dial with very fine details, including roman numerals, Arabic numerals, and small second hands surrounding the main dial to indicate all of the complications (such as day/night indicators for dual-time zones).
8. IWC Schaffhausen
IWC Schaffhausen is one of the best watch brands from The Netherlands that also makes unique watches thanks to their traditional pocket watch movements that they started manufacturing once again. They also focus on chronographs and pilot’s watches along with many other types of timepieces since 1868. The most well-known piece is the Portugieser which has many complications, including chronographs, dual time zones in both central and subsidiary dials (for 24 hours), and a perpetual calendar with a moon-phase display for up to one year.
9. Joris Binshof
Joris Binshof, founded by the husband and wife team Jean François Paulus and Anna Maria van der Weel-Binshof, is one of those Dutch watch brands that combines design with traditional horology. They make high-quality watches with special attention paid to the use of negative space on their dials while also incorporating many different materials such as carbon fiber into their cases or sapphire crystals instead of regular glass. What makes Joris Binshof watches so special is that they combine traditional watchmaking with a contemporary design which gives them a unique feel in the luxury watch industry, where many other brands fall into the trap of making watches that are less than desirable to wear.
10. Christophe Claret
Christophe Claret is another company from The Netherlands that makes some of the most avant-garde watches ever. Christophe is a watch engineer and designer who made his first watch when he was just 18 years old; now 59, he has made over 80 different models, which are all designed by him in his factory located at Nieuwe Wetering in Amsterdam. The most famous one had to be La Monégasque, inspired by a 1930s Bugatti car that also featured an automatic movement with hand winding capabilities and two mainspring barrels for 72 hours of power reserve (which is much better than many other companies’ 40-hour reserves).