A Q&A with Sergey Chutov

[TimeTexas]

 

Note from Sergey: Firstly, I want to thank Chris for this unique opportunity to share a little bit about myself and my journey in watchmaking. Chris believed in me, helped me always, and I really appreciate it. 

 

Where did your love of watches come from?

 

Watches were not my childhood dream, I don't have any stories that guided me into watchmaking. About 15 years ago I got into collecting vintage watches, at one point there were so many that I didn't have time to maintain them, after that I sold most of the collection and kept only 1 Omega Seamaster from the late 50's which I completely restored. And one day I had the idea to make a watch for myself, in fact I challenged myself. At first I thought it wouldn't be hard to buy the movement and other parts and just assemble it, but I was wrong. I found myself in a different universe, changing my life radically.

 

I know you talked about frustration with the legal/justice system being the reason you decided to leave the profession. But was it your plan to leave and become a watchmaker or did you decide to become a watchmaker after you had decided to leave being a judge? 

 

These thoughts were inseparable. For a long time I had been thinking of leaving my legal work, I had taken great joy in making wristwatches, I lost track of time, I couldn't stop and the decision came by itself. I have not regretted for a minute what I did, now I am doing what I love. The judge's colleagues discouraged me from leaving, saying that this was the highest status for a lawyer, that I would not find anything better, but I did not listen to them and began to master a completely new profession from the very beginning.

Talk about your journey and the process of becoming a watchmaker. 

It's actually a very complicated path, it's like an Advent calendar, one window per day. I learned from my own mistakes, first I attended watchmakers' courses, learned the basics. I bought several movements, studied all the nuances, found international literature on watchmaking, instructions for assembling different movements. It is a very hard and long way to go. 

 

I spent a long time looking for a supplier of quality movements and a manufacturer of watch cases, drawing my own drawings of cases and hands. Today I make my own hands and dials, I order cases in Germany and France, and I participate in the design process. For example, I’m working on two watch models right now, and the challenge for me is that the dial base is 0.8 mm thick. with top pad 0.4 mm. It doesn’t fit in the standard case, so we had to increase the height of the case and the geometry of the hands by raising the hour and minute tribs. This thickness is necessary for precise and durable microwelding. And I got the help of micro-engineers who helped me to design and implement some projects, to get the best results. It’s hard for me to say which challenges were the hardest to overcome. I think everything is difficult, but it’s not easy and you have to overcome everything.

Do you have anyone who works with you or are you doing everything on your own?

It's hard to tell if I'm working alone or not. I often turn to different masters for help and advice. For example, to engineers, to masters of painting for the selection of shades, I ask you to share secrets.

 

What inspires you as a watchmaker?

 

I am very inspired by the work of independent watchmakers, their vision, way of implementation, and non-standard solutions. I am also inspired by unusual architectural solutions. With the help of specialists, I try to seek help from people who are far from watchmaking, since they do not think in patterns, do not know the rules and impose non-standard options. It's always so interesting.

 

What do you want people to takeaway from your designs?

 

I wish people would stop looking at the watch in a formulaic way. So that they stop looking for similarities with other models, so that they stop paying attention to the lack of mandatory elements in the design. The watch should be enjoyable.

 

Fortress was a very distinctive in its design. The First Anniversary was a departure in case design, are you planning on using the new case design going forward for future models? Are you done with the Fortress series? 

 

The design of the new case turned out to be very successful, I am very happy with it. I plan to use it in new models, but this time they will be chrome instead of matte painted. With a diameter of 41 mm. it is very light and not bulky, fits perfectly on the wrist. I receive a lot of requests for the Fortress model, which unfortunately I could not fulfil due to the limited edition. Due to the great interest in this model, I plan to revive the Fortress by the end of this year, using a new case, new paint technology and new materials.

 

Your distribution model has been somewhat unorthodox - you only release a very limited number of each series. Do you plan to continue that model going forward, or are you looking to increase production in future series?

 

I plan to increase the limited editions from 3 to 10 pieces to meet the increased interest of collectors. I have chosen a different form of production, I first make the watches and only then offer them to collectors, eliminating the waiting time for production and without waiting lists. This form of work was chosen because of respect for the customers' time, so as not to keep them waiting for years.

 

The Russian war in Ukraine has caused significant difficulties with the sanctions and Russian watchmakers not being able to sell watches outside of Russia. Do you see this as a challenge or as an opportunity to continue to refine your watchmaking and expand awareness of your watches so when the war ends you are in a better position to grow your business?

 

It's actually a huge challenge to overcome every day. Purchasing Western equipment for production has become almost unaffordable due to double logistics, long delivery times, and double customs payments, as it is impossible to deliver or ship anything directly to Russia. I am a citizen of two countries, Russia and Armenia, which helps me to bypass sanctions, receive payments and send watches through Armenia, but all the costs have doubled, which of course is a big problem. I don't think anything will change much after the war is over. It is very sad when people who are far from war and politics are not able to interact with each other. But I really hope that the war will end soon and that this event will give my cause a new impetus.  

 

What's in store for the future?

 

I have big plans to expand the range of models, a lot of ideas regarding the development of production. I am very happy to be working with the Swiss manufacture Jean Marc Fleury. He is an amazing person, with a great team of professionals, I am very excited about this collaboration as it is a big step for me. I hope to strengthen our co-operation and take our development to the next level, step by step.

 

What other watchmakers are doing something that you enjoy or think is exciting?

 

Хhevdet.Rexepi, Dervish Uhrenmanufaktur, James Lamb, Armand Billard, Vincent Calabrese,  Felipe Pikullik, Michal (Molnar Fabry), Keaton Myrick, Florent Lecomte, Garrick Watchmakers, and many others. I really like their approach to watchmaking, design, attention to every detail, complications. I follow their work with great pleasure and try to learn something new from them every time. What they do is a completely different dimension, they think beyond watchmaking standards, which is beautiful in itself.

 

A quick note: Thank you very much to Sergey for taking the time to respond to these questions in such detail. I know he is incredibly busy, but still finds the time to interact with clients and even help promote many great watch accounts on Instagram. He is an amazing individual and his watchmaking is new and exciting to see him progress. I urge you to follow him on Instagram at @sergeychutov and follow his journey.