Spanish watch brands are known for their high-quality, luxury timepieces with an emphasis on style. With such a wide selection of watches to choose from, it cannot be easy to decide which one is the best option for you. Our blog post will go over some of the most popular Spanish brands and what they offer.
Spanish watch brands have been around since 1854 when Antonio Lopez founded his company which later became Iberia Watch Company in 1898.
Antonio Lopez created the first Spanish brand in 1854. After that, many other companies followed suit and began producing watches made in Spain, including Rolex and Movado, which opened factories here back in 1905-1906 respectively, and Omega, which opened its factory just last year in 2015.
The Spanish watchmaking industry has a history that dates back over 100 years. Nowadays, it is mostly dominated by Swiss and Japanese producers. Here’s our list of these top 10 best Spanish watch brands:
10) Beurer
This company started its life at the beginning of the 20th century but only produced wristwatches less than ten years ago. The first watches had a quartz mechanism, and they still do today, although with slightly different-looking dials. They also offer solar-powered watches for people who are after something more environmentally friendly.
#9) Fortis
This is probably the unknown brand on this list, which makes it quite interesting. The company started out producing watches in Barcelona. It became a part of Swatch Group in 2010, but they still manage to retain their own identity and have an even greater market share now than they did before joining the big Swiss power.
#8) Guess & Co S A
Despite being more famous for its clothing line, Guess has produced such great timepieces that they deserve to be mentioned as one of Spain’s top watch brands. They are especially known for their innovative G-Steel collection, designed by Marc Newson (a famous Australian designer).
#7) Llama Minuterie
A relatively new brand, which was founded in 2007. They produce watches with old-fashioned style mechanisms, like their classic pocket watch. Their premises are located in the small town of Cebreros near Madrid. The company makes it hard to get any information about them because they have a single website where you can buy online or find some limited warranty information. If you’re not planning on buying anything and want to learn more about the brand’s history and plans, then this is the only place where you can do that for free as well!
#6) Festina
It was started in 1856 by German immigrant Johann Wilsdorf, and at the same time, he registered a trademark for his logo “Oyster” and later on the famous Rolex crown. The company was shut down in 1993 amidst financial troubles, just like many other brands on this list, but in 2004 it was bought by an American investor Tom Kartsotis who got the rights to sell watches under the Festina brand name.
#5) Delirium
A small family-owned business located in Valencia, founded in 2000. They create very interesting collections that make use of vintage-style mechanisms like retrograde or cylinder escapement. Their most notable collection is called Caldera and features wristwatches with a look of steam locomotive engines from the 20th century. Another fairly new watch line that might be worth checking out is called Blue Sixties (great name); it’s a collection of unique watches inspired by the sixties.
#4) Festina Lenter
Another brand with a story similar to Festina, but the other way round. It was originally called Lenter and founded in Germany in 1896, but due to trademark issues with another watch company called Armitron, it was shut down in 2001. After that, the new owner Peter Stas set up a new factory in Portugal called “Festina” (the name itself already registered there) and brought some of his old staff over from Germany. They now make very affordable automatic watches that you can buy online or at their shop near Oporto, where they also offer free pick-up service if you order more than €50 worth of stuff!
#3) Grana
They are a very small watch company that is located in the Galician town called Cambados. Swiss-made ETA mechanisms power all their watches, and they only have an online shop where you can buy them, but if you live in Spain or Portugal, it might be possible to find their products at jewelers as well. They also produce some hand-made luxury watches that are usually sold exclusively to their high-profile clients. The Grana’s trademark is a small pocket watch with spade-shaped hands, just like this logo.
#2) Omega Watches
This Swiss brand is one of the most prominent ones on this list because they survived a lot longer than other newcomers from Spain and due to their good reputation in the watchmaking industry. They are known for producing high-quality watches and long-lasting 100m diving professional watches like Seamaster Professional 300m Co-Axial Chronometer and Planet Ocean GMT.
#1) Zenith Watches
This Swiss brand has its origin in 1865 when Leon Fr o u d e r started to sell his pocket watch chain parts to jewelers all around Switzerland. In 1879 he started to produce his first complete watches in partnership with Jules Racine, who was adept at designing movements.
Over 120 years later, Zenith still produces great watches and collaborates with top-notch professionals like Girard-Perregaux, JeanRichard, and MB&F.
Conclusion
The Spanish watch market is one of the most competitive in the world. We’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite brands so that you can find your next timepiece without any hassle! If you’re looking for something luxurious and stylish, Patek Philippe watches are an excellent option.
They are known for their high-quality craftsmanship and timeless design that will never go out style. For those with simpler taste who need to make sure they have reliable accuracy, we recommend Omega Watches or Rolex Watches. When it comes to fashion-forward trendsetters on a budget, there’s no better choice than Casio Gshock or Fossil watches (or both!).