Podcast Summary: The Entrepreneurs – Watchmaking Special: Aera and Highlights from Geneva Watch Days

Host: Tom Edwards (Monocle Radio)
Guests: Jasminas & Olaf Larsen (Aera), Brenda Tuohy (Monocle)
Date: September 17, 2025

Main Theme

This episode dives into contemporary watchmaking through the lens of Aera, a boutique brand redefining modern horology, and delivers exclusive insights from Geneva Watch Days, the pivotal event in the global watch calendar. The show highlights craftsmanship, design innovation, evolving market trends, and the significance of meaningful collaborations.

In-Depth Discussion & Key Insights

1. The Aera Story: Passion, Patience & Product Evolution

With: Jasminas and Olaf Larsen, Founders of Aera

• Origins and Philosophy (01:47–04:05)
  • Aera began as a personal passion project for watch collectors, aiming for watches they themselves would want to wear.
  • The founders emphasize meticulous engineering, difficult tolerances, and material challenges, especially at mid-market price points.
  • Quote:
    “It does take time to really make something. And beautiful things, they don't just appear, they get made. And it takes time to do that. But we know at the end of it that we're gonna have something pretty fantastic.” — Jasminas (00:30)
• Product Line Development (03:44–04:05)
  • Aera deliberately adds new models slowly to ensure each meets their strict standards.
  • Patient expansion resists external pressure and trends.
  • Quote:
    “Instead of rushing in… we've been taking it slowly and slowly just to be able to get every product exactly right as we wanted to have them.” — Olaf (03:44)
• Collaborations and Customer Engagement (04:24–07:18)
  • Partnerships are built organically, often initiated with friends or fans of the brand.
  • Recent and future collaborations include motorsport and fashion crossovers.
  • Transitioning from strictly D2C to select retail, prompted by customer demand for in-person experiences.
  • Quote:
    “Going along, these are tactile products… There are instruments that need to be felt and worn.” — Jasminas (05:01) “Our audience… do have their own style to them. We feel that our watches do offer… a little bit of flavor.” — Jasminas (06:04)
• Retail Partnerships (07:18–08:43)
  • Aera places its products with prestigious retailers like Richard James in London and Riddell in Birmingham.
  • Also available in Olaf's own watch store in Stockholm.
  • Quote:
    “It's beautiful because of the brands that we are now sitting next to… we feel very, very rewarded.” — Jasminas (07:22)
• Emotional Impact of Success (08:43–10:18)
  • Olaf compares seeing their watches in stores to seeing a child graduate: pride mixed with a sense of achievement.
  • Founders knew they’d created a “fabulous and fantastic” product, but seeing customer validation was profound.
  • Quote:
    “It feels a little bit like you're having a kid and he's graduating from high school…” — Olaf (09:12)
• Focus and Iterative Improvement (10:49–12:59)
  • The founders rely on input from a circle of respected advisors, blending perspectives from watchmaking, design, and business.
  • The brand defines itself by pushing the boundaries of design and materials, with new models branching beyond 904 stainless steel.

2. The Craft and the Challenge: Product Favorites & the Value of Time

• Current Favorites & Product Highlights (12:59–14:50)
  • Olaf’s favorite: upcoming Kron Special Edition, born from a partnership with Kronz—his own Stockholm store.
  • Jasminas’ pick: the C1 Cloud chronograph, developed over 2.5 years.
  • Quote:
    “Every watch has to be designed from scratch. It all starts with the movement, the choice of movement, and then really building around it.” — Jasminas (14:15)
• Patience, Perfectionism & Process (14:50–17:41)
  • Both founders confess impatience but recognize that true craftsmanship necessitates discipline and waiting.
  • Iterative prototyping yields better results, upholding the original vision while enhancing comfort and fit.
  • Quote:
    “It's gonna take a year, a year and a half before you, you know, you're gonna hold it in your hand. So it's sort of teaching you to become more humble and more patient.” — Olaf (15:27) “Beautiful things aren't just… They don't just appear, they get made. And it takes time to do that.” — Jasminas (16:06)

3. Geneva Watch Days: Trends, Craft, and the Growing Power of Women Buyers

With: Brenda Tuohy, Monocle's Luxury Markets Editor

• Scene Setting (19:54–20:54)
  • Geneva Watch Days is a more intimate, city-wide alternative to Watches and Wonders, featuring around 60 brands.
  • Event mood was buoyant, despite wet weather—“a wonderful rainbow appeared as the torrential rain stopped.”
• Major Industry Trends (21:23–22:55)
  • Noted upsurge in women’s watches: more feminine, smaller, and gentler designs, not mere jewelry pieces.
  • Blancpain plans to relaunch the Marilyn Monroe-linked Ladybird line, targeting female buyers with agency and spending power.
  • Quote:
    “There has been a big turn up for the books in that women are being considered as a completely separate entity, which we haven't seen for many years… now we've got a watch that can be truly feminine in its form.” — Brenda (21:23)
• Strategic Realignment for Female Buyers (22:55–24:08)
  • Brands like Piaget are reviving vintage-inspired design, using precious metals and hard stones, feeding demand for nostalgia and unique style.
  • The economic logic: by 2050, women are projected to control the majority of global wealth.
  • Quote:
    “Ignore that fast-growing sector at your peril.” — Tom Edwards (22:55)
• Innovation in Watchmaking (24:48–25:54)
  • TAG Heuer’s new ceramic carbon spiral spring, a decade in development, is “groundbreaking” for mechanical reliability.
  • The tiny, invisible technology is a revolution for functionality, even if it’s unseen by the owner.
  • Quote:
    “This tiny little, microscopic spring that you can only see under a microscope has changed the face of watchmaking for them.” — Brenda (24:48)
• The Power and Poetry of Craft (26:10–26:59)
  • Brenda reflects on the enduring magic of horological craft, maintained across centuries, evoking the romantic past in a contemporary context.
  • The dedication of craftspeople (“devoted all this huge chunk of his life to creating something that we don’t even see”) encapsulates the spirit of watchmaking.
• Collaborations & Pop Culture Moments (27:20–28:31)
  • Zenith x USM collaboration: four colorful, limited-edition Defy Skyline Skeleton watches, presented in USM-style modular boxes.
  • Playful, successful intersections between watchmaking and design, offering standout, day-to-day luxury items.
  • Quote:
    “They were just really fun day watches. They were fantastic.” — Brenda (28:42)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It does take time to really make something. And beautiful things, they don't just appear, they get made.” — Jasminas (00:30 / 16:06)
• “It feels a little bit like you're having a kid and he's graduating from high school and you're standing there as a proud father, releasing him into the world.” — Olaf Larsen (09:12)
• “There has been a big turn up for the books in that women are being considered as a completely separate entity… now we've got a watch that can be truly feminine in its form.” — Brenda Tuohy (21:23)
• “This tiny little, microscopic spring that you can only see under a microscope has changed the face of watchmaking for them.” — Brenda Tuohy (24:48)
• On limited editions: “That's not to make them limited editions, but actually the idea was… when we made the next edition, it would be… visually the same… but there would be improvements.” — Jasminas (17:41)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Aera's founding philosophy: 01:47–02:35
• Product expansion and collaboration strategy: 03:44–07:18
• Aera in retail & international markets: 07:18–08:43
• Emotional resonance of customer validation: 08:43–10:18
• Focus and input from advisors: 10:49–12:59
• Current watch favorites & development challenges: 12:59–15:56
• Geneva Watch Days overview: 19:54–20:54
• Women’s watches as a growth driver: 21:23–22:55
• Vintage inspirations and Piaget’s offerings: 23:16–24:08
• Technical innovation at TAG Heuer: 24:48–25:54
• Zenith x USM collaboration: 27:20–28:31

Episode Tone

The conversation is filled with warmth and fascination for horology. Both hosts and guests exude passion for craft, design, and innovation, weaving in dry wit and a reverent appreciation for detail—whether in engineering or in the culture of watchmaking.

This summary captures the episode’s essential insights and moments, offering a full sense of its narrative arc and its key takeaways, for listeners and watch enthusiasts alike.