Adrian Buchmann and Jörg Bader of Christopher Ward at Time to Watches

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Real Time Show – Episode Featuring Adrian Buchmann and Jörg Bader of Christopher Ward

Introduction

In the April 5, 2025 episode of The Real Time Show, hosts Rob Nudds and Alon Ben Joseph engage in an insightful conversation with Adrian Buchmann and Jörg Bader of Christopher Ward. The discussion delves into the brand's remarkable achievements in 2024, its strategic evolution, and future aspirations within the competitive watchmaking industry.

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1. 2024: A Record Year for Christopher Ward

Jörg Bader opens the discussion by highlighting the unprecedented success Christopher Ward experienced in 2024. He emphasizes that the year was not only stellar in terms of revenue but also marked significant internal advancements.

"It was a record year, not just in revenue but in how the company evolved across all facets, from customer service to supply chain and marketing."
– Jörg Bader [01:28]

This holistic growth underscores the company's commitment to excellence beyond the visible aspects of their products.

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2. Evolution of the Brand

Adrian Buchmann (referred to as David in the transcript) discusses the maturation of Christopher Ward, emphasizing the importance of clarity in brand identity as the company scales.

"As the company grows, the necessity for crystal clear clarity on what we are, what we do, and why we do it has never been better than now."
– David [02:16]

This clarity ensures that the brand remains focused and cohesive as it expands its team and market presence.

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3. Direct-to-Consumer Model and Pricing Strategy

A significant portion of the conversation revolves around Christopher Ward's direct-to-consumer (D2C) approach. David elaborates on how eliminating traditional retail channels allows the brand to offer high-quality watches at more accessible price points.

"Being a D2C business allows us to remove a lot of overhead costs, avoid big brand ambassadors, and reinvest revenue directly into our products, ensuring exceptional value for our customers."
– David [09:18]

This strategy not only makes luxury watches more affordable but also fosters a closer relationship with consumers.

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4. The Bel Canto Collection: Impact and Innovation

The Bel Canto collection emerges as a pivotal point in Christopher Ward's portfolio. Jörg explains how this collection attracted a new customer segment and enhanced the brand's reputation within the watchmaking community.

"Bel Canto introduced a whole new customer segment to us, demonstrating the effectiveness of our innovations and strengthening our value proposition across all products."
– Jörg Bede [04:17]

The collection's success is attributed to its unique design and technological advancements, setting Christopher Ward apart in the industry.

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5. Design Philosophy and Supply Chain Excellence

Adrian and Jörg delve into the brand's design ethos and supply chain management. Jörg highlights the importance of integrating price considerations into design and execution, ensuring that every element aligns with the brand's affordability and quality standards.

"Price is intricately woven into our design and execution processes, pushing us to be innovative and cost-effective without compromising on quality."
– Jörg Bede [10:53]

This meticulous approach allows Christopher Ward to maintain competitive pricing while delivering exceptional products.

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6. Sustaining Growth and Future Outlook

The hosts and guests discuss the sustainability of Christopher Ward's rapid growth. While acknowledging the impressive trajectory, Jörg remains cautiously optimistic about maintaining this pace long-term.

"We've overperformed in recent years, and our team has made strategic decisions that have kept us on track. However, maintaining this momentum is an open question that we're continuously addressing."
– Jörg Bede [12:55]

David adds that the brand is now implementing more structured planning to ensure continued success and customer satisfaction.

"We're now putting a calendar over several years, learning from past mistakes, and prioritizing both product excellence and exceptional customer service."
– David [13:33]

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7. Upcoming Releases and Community Engagement

Looking ahead, Christopher Ward is set to launch a new watch accompanied by a one-hour documentary detailing its creation process. This initiative reflects the brand's commitment to transparency and community involvement.

"On the 23rd of April, we'll release a new watch along with a documentary that captures the entire making process, highlighting both the successes and the challenges we overcame."
– David [14:52]

Alon encourages listeners to mark their calendars and stay engaged with Christopher Ward's upcoming projects.

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Conclusion

The episode concludes with a light-hearted exchange, reinforcing the strong rapport between the hosts and guests. Adrian and Jörg express their gratitude for the engaging conversation, hinting at future collaborations and continued innovation from Christopher Ward.

"It was a pure pleasure. Thank you for having us on the glass igloo."
– Jörg Bede [16:08]

Listeners are left with anticipation for Christopher Ward's forthcoming releases and the brand's ongoing journey in redefining accessible luxury in watchmaking.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Jörg Bede [01:28]: "It was a record year, not just in revenue but in how the company evolved across all facets, from customer service to supply chain and marketing."

• David [02:16]: "As the company grows, the necessity for crystal clear clarity on what we are, what we do, and why we do it has never been better than now."

• David [09:18]: "Being a D2C business allows us to remove a lot of overhead costs, avoid big brand ambassadors, and reinvest revenue directly into our products, ensuring exceptional value for our customers."

• Jörg Bede [04:17]: "Bel Canto introduced a whole new customer segment to us, demonstrating the effectiveness of our innovations and strengthening our value proposition across all products."

• Jörg Bede [10:53]: "Price is intricately woven into our design and execution processes, pushing us to be innovative and cost-effective without compromising on quality."

• Jörg Bede [12:55]: "We've overperformed in recent years, and our team has made strategic decisions that have kept us on track. However, maintaining this momentum is an open question that we're continuously addressing."

• David [14:52]: "On the 23rd of April, we'll release a new watch along with a documentary that captures the entire making process, highlighting both the successes and the challenges we overcame."

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This episode offers a comprehensive look into Christopher Ward's strategic maneuvers, highlighting their commitment to quality, innovation, and customer-centric practices that have propelled them to industry prominence.

Transcript

[David]

Foreign.

[Alon]

Watch fans, welcome to the Real Time Show. I'm your friendly neighborhood jeweler sitting in the glass igloo in front of Villa Saracen. A time to watch 2025. We're doing a spontaneous recording with two friends, two dear friends, two guys that together with their families, their teams are rocking the Watch world. I'm talking about the brand Christopher Ward and we have in front of me a very handsome Jorg Bede and a friend of the show, a member of the Real Time show community, the one, the only, the infamous and famous Adrian Bochman. Welcome, gentlemen.

[Jorg Bede]

Thank you, sir.

[David]

Thank you very much for the invitation in this very last minute.

[Alon]

I love spontaneity. It's all about agility. You guys are rock stars. I know you're busy. Thank you for coming and sitting down with me. I lost Rob somewhere in the villa, but we don't need him because we have actually a lot to discuss. I know you're tight for time. I want to ask you how has been 2024? Because I've seen Christopher Ward all over the place. You graced me also with an opportunity to add a little pebble into the pond that's full of rocks of success. Talk to me, how was 24?

[Jorg Bede]

I mean, it was an absolutely amazing year. I mean, we had a record year. And it was not only an amazing year in terms of revenue, I think how the whole company evolved after Bel Canto and doing so many things internally to really ramp things up to get better at every aspect. You know, you always see very the shallow thing of a brand, right? You see the product, but you don't see like what happening with customer service. What is happening, for example, in supply chain we made huge effort in supply chain we made huge effort in marketing, CRM and all of that. So it's been a fantastic year, but I think it's really been a year of growth on all areas which made a customer doesn't see in the first place. Would you agree to that, David? Yeah.

[David]

I mean the company is completely maturing, going to another level and what is very cool about it is now getting even more clarity on what is Christopher Ward and what we plan to evolve in the coming years. So as the company gets more and more people, the necessity of it really crystal clear clarity on what we are, what we do and why we do it. Never been better than now.

[Alon]

It's interesting to catch you two gentlemen here. So most of the listeners would think or not know that Christopher Ward is not solely British. Mike France has been on the show and if you Listen properly. You know, there is a second half which is Swiss. The better half, I emphasize, you know. You know, I have an English wife at home, so I love to egg them on. The English, they can take a little a pinch. Your, your dad and you were already a family business. You guys do, I dare to say, merged with the family in England, which is Christopher Ward. You guys became a power team together. You're head of product development, if I remember correctly. Adrian, today's non executive board member. But you have a lot to say about design at Christopher Ward.

[David]

Still holding the pen.

[Alon]

Yeah, still holding the pen at several brands. But you do a lot at Christopher Ward. So what I think a lot of things put you guys on the map. You've been growing nicely, steadily. I think the Bel Canto really, no pun intended, shook the grounds in the watchmaking industry. I think that puts you on the map with the collecting community and maybe the more international community. Am I correct to assume that?

[Jorg Bede]

No, you're fully right. I mean we gained with the Bel Canto a whole new customer segment which was never in touch with us. As it is we see from pure customer data. Right. This is one of the beauties of being a D2C business that you immediately understand like what is happening. But we not only see it on internal data, I think you see it also very much on social media. For example, you see on YouTube, we see suddenly that people want to be affiliated, they want to be in touch with Christopher Ward, they want to speak about Christoph Reward. So yeah, I really believe like it put Christopher Ward on the map and it kind of like put the innovations which are going on next to Bel Canto also more in the spotlight. You know, we're doing hell of a lot with, with for example the C60 Lumiere we brought out with Global Light for example last year. I really think it's an innovation on a different level, but the really like unique innovation. Nobody has done Global Light Lume watches as we did last year. So yeah, I think it's really cool to see that Bel Canto spreads on all the brand, on all the products and really the value proposition rather than only one single piece. You know, I think that's nice.

[David]

It did really spread the word and I think while we launched the Belkount and people might had this wrong belief that we will only do this high end, the brand didn't forget that this is still aimed to speak watchmaking as to as many people as possible. And while Bel Canto is probably one of the best value proposition out there, it's still not for everybody. You know, it's still three and a half thousand pounds or up to 4,000 depending the models. The brand still does a lot of focus on accessible watches, you know, £6,000. And that's the area that is harder to bring innovation and to bring new things. But as Joerg said, we didn't forget this and this is the roots of the company and this is what the company still gonna continue to pursue while still bringing some fun and some high endowment. As you can see, I got some cool stuff on the wrist so the both world can speak to each other.

[Jorg Bede]

No, if I can jump into that. No, I fully agree because I think the fundamentals on the core values very much come from this entry price. And I think right now we can take the core learnings and the core values from there into the higher end products because it forces us to think differently. And also from a price perspective, from an architecture perspective, from a design perspective, we think differently and we're way more price value driven. This is a bit my point which I'm going on since quite a few days. But like as the Swiss watch industry, the export all in the expensive stuff goes up. Why would you care really to be so sharp on price? You don't because like you look at expensive watches, everything works. So I think the industry is generally a bit losing touch with being razor sharp with costings and and I think this is something and somewhere where we can really make a difference within the industry.

[Alon]

You guys gave me a perfect segue because I was well fortunate enough as a retailer to be the first ever retailer to do a collab with you. Because our retailers, our dear listeners might know or might not know you have always been a direct to consumer brand. Since December I believe you guys did a test run with our dear friends and colleagues at Time to Watch is in the London studio. It's an experiment. You want to see what retail does for you guys. Our mutual friend Mike Pearson in the US is doing a showroom. Okay, that's a brand boutique. So you guys are firing an old cylinders. Me myself, I think I'm a good retailer. I've been in the business 45 years and I'm 45. So I had a mouth full of teeth when consumers asked me alon are you sure the price for the 12? We did a call about the 12 platform in stainless steel, €1350 in VAT in Euro. Didn't you make a mistake? I'm like no, why is it so cheap? And I didn't know what to answer. Now if they're interested in their watch nerds, I'll go deeper. I'm like, listen guys, fully integrated. This stuff isn't private label, it's not made up by an external designer. It's vertically integrated own designer. They have uk, they have Switzerland, they have father and son plus a huge team producing stuff. Let me swing back quickly to the bel canto. The mechanism, I call it baby minute repeaters. It's not, not many brands have them but how the heck can you make that for three and a half?

[David]

I think, you know, let's go back on the fundamentals. Christopher Wood is a direct to consumer. Therefore you don't have the extra of going to retailer and distribution. And again this is a certain type of business model that the watches go through retailer are not expensive, the price is right because everybody needs to make a living. But we have this chance that the business only focus on direct to consumer only online. You remove a lot of overhead cost. Another thing the brand doesn't do big brand ambassadors and that kind of marketing stuff. A lot of the time we, I mean not a lot of the time, all the time. We put all the revenue into the product and reinvest a lot. So that's where the value goes. And you know, just by avoiding the normal retail chain you save half, even more than half of, of the price. And then I think is another way to design the products. We're very sensitive. It's quite easy to just say okay we're going to go to this supplier or this supplier, but go and being sharp knife and sometimes taking decisions that will affect the design to get to a special cost, that's something that is, that is always in the track. So it's, you know, and that's something that brands used to do a bit more and now a bit less and less because at the end of the day Nowadays if paying 1 Swiss francs or 2 Swiss francs on a screw when you sell a watch at 14 grand it doesn't make much difference. But when you want to really get to a specific price point where you look at every corner.

[Jorg Bede]

Yeah, sorry quickly. But I think it is two things I think really here A I think like it's like the price is very much incorporated into thinking of design and execution. For example, Adrian is absolutely master on this. So also the bel canto taught us a hell of a lot of things because we had shapes in there which were a bit costly and hell of a lot of learnings out of that. And that's in the second thing is really about supply chain and going there where it hurts. Two things. First of all like really going to tier like two or three supplier because basically with the suppliers we're working like the same. Like the big brands are working right. But you just have two middlemen and you have twice margin and then really working together with them and kind of price engineering. Can we adapt the shapes and not to also be too stubborn and sometimes about your own design. And I think if you collect all of that, I think then you achieve something really great.

[Alon]

You're firing on all cylinders quite some time. It seems you don't know what stopping means or taking it easy. Your agent just said a word. I clicked on. We take the profits, we reinvest. So you're actually turning on the flywheel. What you have on your wrist is again mind boggling. I had the honor to see it already. I was way off in the guessing game because you always tease me by doing the guessing game of price and I'm always very close in the delta and our listeners know because Rob and I played the game for the only watch auction. So I'm often my delta of guessing is not that off. But here I was off. Don't you think you guys are going too fast? Can the market even keep up with you guys?

[David]

Is that a bad thing?

[Alon]

No, it's an open question. I'm not forcing you any direction. Or is the pipeline of creativity so full and big that you can keep this up for a decade plus?

[Jorg Bede]

Well, I think it's very well. Can we do this? I mean, I'm not sure. I think me as a product director, I think we over performed over the last few years. I think our team has absolutely done a magnificent job and nothing really went crazy wrong. Somehow we could always take the right exit, the right decision and everything worked out. So how long can we keep on doing this? To be honest, I'm not sure. Obviously we're trying everything to secure that the creativity is still there. But yeah, it's an open question.

[David]

I mean the good thing nowadays is that there is plenty of ideas on the table. We just came out from a session last week, was part of the product team and we now try to be a bit more sensible to that question and try to put a calendar over a few years. I remember 10 years back when I started we had the visibility maybe six to eight months and we were, yeah, we were less prepared. And now there is a bigger responsibility, There is more people. We cannot do whatever we want last minute. We need to plan it. We also made some mistakes. The mistakes have Been corrected. You know, we don't want to have people waiting too long for watches because that's not a great experience. We as Joerg and myself, we watch collectors. We experience that you get frustrated. So we are on the two sides and we want to provide the best service. So one thing is the product, the other thing is the service. And we really care about the service. It's the same as the restaurant. You can have a great food on the plate. If the service is no good, you're only going to remember the service being bad, not about how good was in the plate.

[Alon]

The watch I'm holding in my hands will launch still in April, I think.

[David]

Yes, 23rd of April. It will come with a documentary, a little movie. I mean, a little movie over one hour movie. That has been so. The whole process of making that watch has been recorded for the last few months. With the good times, I cannot say the bad times, we didn't have something unexpected. But the more difficult times, sometimes you need to find solutions.

[Alon]

Setbacks.

[David]

Yeah, exactly. I think that's the exciting part is fixing solutions. And. And. Yeah. Let's see.

[Alon]

Mark your calendars. If this episode airs before that time, set your calendars to check out what they're dropping. Hereby I invite you, please, to come back on the show to do a full length episode. Because you guys need to run. The next guest is waiting. Thank you so much for popping into the glass igloo. Darn you. I need to buy another watch. Are you telling my wife, Adrian or me?

[David]

I'm telling you.

[Jorg Bede]

Okay.

[Alon]

Should we meet at the RAF museum again?

[David]

Absolutely. Thank you alon for the invitation. It was a pure pleasure. Sorry for not seeing Rob. The whole point was to show him the watch because he got excited, but. Well, for next time he should come to the museum.

[Alon]

His loss. When he's editing this episode, he'll ping me immediately, send me a picture which I did not take. So don't start dming me, please.

[Jorg Bede]

It.