Making a mark

 

"Nick and Josh you are both truly the finest ambassadors for not only proudly Australian made product but also the finest craftsmanship. Well done." - Glenn Rundell, Master Chairmaker, Victoria.   As much as I would like to claim all the credit for myself, the Mark II has been a team effort. To complete a project of this importance, in any year, would be worth highlighting. To complete it in a year where we've still struggled with COVID for the best part of it, is little miracle worth celebrating. This year, we lost three staff members. We counted on them. Yet the Mark II has been completed, on time, as promised. As you followed our progress, you would have realised that the Mark II is not just a slightly better version of our Mark I; it is a watch that challenged us to do our absolute best. To learn. To perfect. To be humble. To invest more. And above all, to work long hours.  For most of the year, Josh started his work day well before 6 am, and stayed machining well past midnight. I would go to bed, wake up in the middle of the night, tune in to the security camera, only to find him still working.

We are not smarter than our fellow watchmakers; we just work much harder. And we are proud of it. Our time is yet to come. We have reached this point thanks to your support. But we will get where we want to be, supported or not. Because watchmaking is a life quest and, as we say, you don't pick watchmaking; watchmaking picks you.  Ironically, our biggest challenge this year was finding enough time to allocate to the Mark II project. Ultra-precision machining is still not something Australia is known for. And yet, there are a number of industries that require our services: medical, aerospace, optical, quantum computing. These are our customers who, this year, expected a great deal of our machining hours for their projects.  With each of these customers, we migrated from the prototype stage (making one offs) to the production stage (making multiple parts and assemblies). And please, be assured, these customers are under significant pressure to deliver their final products successfully, and on time. That pressure has also fallen on us.  Should you invest in the Mark II? Not if you think there is a better Australian-made watch out there. Or a more perfect watch by a small, independent watchmaking team, who actually make components in their own workshop. And definitely not if you believe that you can get better customer service elsewhere.  Our watch is intended for those who appreciate what we can offer, a this point in time, in a country so far away to be of any horological importance at all. The Mark II is a watch that will make you proud to be an Australian. What price tag can you put on that privilege? We are here to serve you.