Digital Social Hour
How Independent Watch Brands Are Making a Comeback I Jason Lu DSH #1282
Sun, 30 Mar 2025
Independent watch brands are making a comeback in a big way! 🎉 Join Sean Kelly and Jason Lu of 1776 Atelier as they explore the artistry, challenges, and innovation driving this resurgence in the watchmaking world. ⌚✨ From hand-crafted skeleton watches to the rich history of American watchmaking, this episode of *Digital Social Hour* is packed with valuable insights you don’t want to miss! Discover why collectors are turning to independent brands for unique, artisanal timepieces that combine tradition with modern craftsmanship. Jason shares the fascinating process behind creating bespoke watches, the hurdles U.S. watchmakers face, and why demand for independent brands is skyrocketing. 🚀 Plus, hear the inside scoop on Rolex, Patek, and the growing market for personalized designs. Don’t miss out on this captivating conversation! Watch now and subscribe for more insider secrets. 📺 Hit that subscribe button and stay tuned for more eye-opening stories on the *Digital Social Hour with Sean Kelly*! 🔥 CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Jason Lu Intro 02:11 - Made in the USA Label Challenges 04:52 - Rolex Market Share Trends 09:01 - Independent Watch Brands Comeback 11:24 - Craftsmanship of Handmade Watches 15:14 - Skeleton Watch Making Process 18:45 - Restoring Vintage Watches 22:29 - Understanding Water Resistance 22:32 - Watch Manufacturing Costs 22:37 - Impressive Mainstream Watch Brands 24:52 - Watch Production Expenses 26:30 - Future of Vortic Watches 28:07 - Jason’s Favorite Watch Selection 30:45 - Where to Buy Watches APPLY TO BE ON THE PODCAST: https://www.digitalsocialhour.com/application BUSINESS INQUIRIES/SPONSORS: jenna@digitalsocialhour.com GUEST: Jason Lu https://www.instagram.com/1776atelier https://1776atelier.com/ SPONSORS: KINSTA: https://kinsta.com/dsh LISTEN ON: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/digital-social-hour/id1676846015 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5Jn7LXarRlI8Hc0GtTn759 Sean Kelly Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmikekelly/ #timmosso #independentwatchmakers #lainewatches #independentwatchbrands #modernvintagewatches
Chapter 1: What makes independent watch brands unique?
There's this term that is probably one of the most contentious terms in watchmaking where people say, did you design everything from the ground up? And did you manufacture everything from the ground up? I like to use the word that we have a manufacturer. So I am using a traditional Swiss architecture.
So we're using somebody else's architecture where we manufacture those plates and bridges that are our own.
All right, guys, we got Jason Liu here today, 1776 Atelier. Thanks for coming on, man. Hey, thank you for having me. Yeah, would you label yourself as a watchmaker? I would. What a title to have. Not many people have that title.
It's sadly, the title is disappearing in the United States. It's still prevalent in some other parts of the world, but as the world becomes more digital, it's an area that's truly, it's dying.
Right, you're the first one I've met in the US. Why do you think that is? Why do you guys think you're a dying breed right now?
Well, so in the 1950s, one of the last Hamilton watchmaker, watch company left the United States. There are a couple of us left. There's four or five, probably less than half a dozen truly independent U.S. watchmakers left. But... Swiss have done a fantastic job of making fine timepieces that people crave, that Japanese have.
And as we all know, the Chinese have also done a good job of bringing mass production to the watch world. And the U.S. has just shed its capability, which is something I think we can do a good job to try to overcome.
Yeah. What are the big watch brands in China? I haven't heard of those.
Well, I think if you look, so the Swiss have a watch award called the GPHG.
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Chapter 2: Why is the 'Made in the USA' label challenging for watchmakers?
But, you know, what we feel blessed is that I think we got in the right time where made or the high amount of American content is something that the market generally craves. We sought a lot of feedback, both positive and negative on our designs. And so we put it out. Not everything was a hit, but what we've put out so far has been really, really, really well received.
That's smart that you were getting feedback on the designs before you made them into real products. Yeah.
Well, this was not a road without failure. We call it the R&D box. It is a graveyard of parts that we tried that probably some people could say, what were you thinking? And maybe my answer is I wasn't. It looked good to us, but not to many.
Well, coming up with design can't be easy. No, it's hard. Because you got to think of something that hasn't been done before, but also that people would want.
And the fact that every single time we try something, it has a high cost. You figure every single one of those is manufactured for us. Right. And I can't just buy one. Usually if I'm begging a machine shop to make 10, 15, and then if I throw, if we decide after the first one we don't want it, we throw away 15 pieces.
Damn. Yeah, that ain't cheap. Yeah.
And then when we put it in production, right, we're ordering hundreds.
Yeah. Well, what's the next step here? You're about to sell out of everything. What's next?
So we have a, that time piece that you got is kind of a halfway prototype. You actually, if you look on the back of that, I think it's serial zero, zero, zero on the very top. On the top. On the balance bridge. When the parts that's spinning.
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