A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to discover the work of Oriorwaith J. Sarnowski during the AuroChronos Festival in Warsaw, Poland.
I was immediately captivated by his pieces. Honestly, given the price, one might have doubted it, but to my great surprise, the quality is undeniable.
I took the opportunity to interview Janek (Founder of the brand), and I’m very happy to share our conversation with you today.
Could you tell us a bit about you and about your story with watches?
My name is Jan, I’m a mathematician by education, teacher by trade and a watchmaker by passion. My watch collecting started almost by accident, when I was around 13 years old. When visiting a car boot sale (a UK version of a yard sale), I came across a vintage watch that I really liked. It was a 2209 Poljot Deluxe, made in the USSR in the 60s. It was very cheap and wasn’t in working condition.
A couple of months later, I took it on a visit to my grandparents, as my grandfather is very much a mechanically minded person. He not only explained to me how the watch worked, but also took me to a watchmaker who fixed it (changed the mainspring) right in front of my eyes. This is what started a seemingly endless quest of learning how to do it myself and opened the doors for me to start collecting and repairing watches.
When the idea to create a new brand came to you? and when do you start working on the creation and on the launch of it?
A few years ago, I decided to make a watch for myself, without any consideration to selling it. This is something that I did previously, but it usually involved very basic techniques and lots of random, old parts I’ve had lying around. Now, this time I decided to make something more elaborate and more “mine”. This is how my first watch – Y Derwydd was born. I showed it to one of my colleagues in the industry, who encouraged me to show them to people online and offer it for sale. A year after I started designing my first watch, our first Kickstarter campaign brought around 170 customers, making this an actual watch business! With our latest project selling over 400 pieces in only our second year, I’m hoping I can soon turn this into my full time job!
The first time I saw your brand the name was Oriorwaith J. Sarnowski. Could you tell us from where comes this name?
When speaking to a Welsh specialist friend of mine, I realised that the Welsh language does not have an existing word for “watchmaking”. We therefore decided to make one ourselves, in accordance with the rules of the language. It translates directly as “watch work”.
What’s the most important thing in the process of creating your timepieces?
Strangely, it’s time! I find that before I even put pen to paper, having the idea in my head and adjusting it over time really works wonders in setting my expectations for what the watch should be. I feel that rushing the design would result in something that isn’t as “polished” as it should be!
What steps do you go through to develop and produce them?
The first step is always the idea. These come to me seemingly randomly – some start with a piece of design I really like (eg. A piece of architecture), some from an interesting material, others from a conversation with other watch friends. I then keep the idea in my head and adjust it, while writing details as bullet points on a piece of paper. Once the idea is “set” in my head and I’m happy with what the watch should be, I take my compass, ruler and pencil and start on the first sketches and layout drawings.
Next, I will send those over to a colleague of mine, who helps translate my ideas and designs into 3d models, to better visualize what I’ve created. This stage is usually the most difficult for me, as some of the things that worked in my head do not work in real life. This stage usually drags out, with repeated conversations between my colleague and myself, trying to get the watch to the point where I am happy that it delivers what I imagined it to.
From there, we move onto engineering the watch. Other than ensuring the “basics” are as good as they could be, this involves things like calculating the glass and shaping the case. This stage is where I am constantly 3d printing, filing, adjusting and ensuring that the watch not only looks like I wanted it to, but also sits comfortably on the wrist. Only once the case is ready, does the engineering of the dial and hands take place. This is followed by months of prototyping and finding flaws, before I assemble a final prototype.
When it comes to full production, I assemble and adjust all watches myself to ensure that every one of them is up to my standard.
From where comes your inspiration concerning the design of your pieces?
I’m not a fan of “locking myself” into a certain frame of mind, taking inspiration from specific places. The watches I design are often a combination of things that I liked in vintage pieces, some inspirations from outside the watch world, as well as new ideas that I’d like to incorporate. My first watch was designed to resemble a “marriage watch” from the first half of the 20th century, whereas my latest design combines a 1960s/70s look with a modern twist. I also use each of my designs to pay my respects to some of my idols in the industry, with Y Derwydd showing slight nods to A. L. Breguet, while Y Sgowt features a very slight homage to G. Genta.
Do you have an anecdote about the design and creation phase of your timepieces?
Since I still work as a full time maths teacher, most of my watch designs are born late at night! I also find this time of day to be the most creative for me, allowing me to solve problems much quicker. When assembling watches, I also often work until the early hours of the morning.
From your perception, what makes your watches so special?
I think people see my watches as special, because I make them first and foremost for myself. I’ve been a collector for the vast majority of my life and would never design a watch that I would dislike or question the quality of. This results in me obsessing over the smallest details, some of which will be completely invisible to customers – but all contribute to a cohesive and appealing design.
Could you tell us how your collection is composed and what is the price of your watches?
I have released two watch lines – Y Derwydd and Y Sgowt, both with multiple stone variations. I focus on stone dial watches for their amazing colours and their uniqueness and try to make them as affordable as possible – my watches so far have sold between 400 and 550 USD.
Currently I am selling my watches as single runs, limited to a short time. Now that we have grown, however – I am hoping to switch to holding stock and selling in “drops” starting next year. This would also see the first, non-limited versions of my watches in production.
Do you have an idea of how many watches do you already have delivered?
We have delivered around 320 watches so far, with the next 420 leaving our doors in the next few weeks. We are now in the process of advertising my next model, “The Naked Druid”.
Do you have an idea of what is your flagship watch?
At the moment, my latest project – Y Sgowt, is what I’d consider to be my flagship model. It is the watch that consumed by far the most of my time.
Do you have a favorite piece in your brand’s collection?
This honour has to go to the very first watch I ever made – Y Derwydd, with its malachite dial. To this day I simply can’t stop looking at it! It’s also a reason why I’m rereleasing this watch in a new version soon!
My own Derwydd really shows off the difficulties in starting this brand, with its dial cracked by temperature testing in my home oven.
Social networks are really important for microbrands like Oriorwath J. Sarnowski. Could you let us know how and why do you use them? and what’s your strategy to stand out from other brands in your price range?
Social media has been an incredible tool to expose my creations to as many collectors and enthusiasts as possible, at a surprisingly low cost!
As a collector of around 20 years, I want to first and foremost show people that a lower priced watch does not necessarily mean sacrificing good quality, bespoke design and longevity. I design all of my watches to be reasonably priced, but long lasting and high quality. I’d like to think that this is what comes to people’s minds when they see my pieces on social media.
We are also extremely lucky to have an amazing whatsapp community, where our customers can share their opinions and input about my current and upcoming projects.
Let’s talk about distribution. Obviously, you use the direct sales strategy which is better for a young brand like yours. Could you explain to us your distribution strategy?
Due to us being very small, we limit ourselves to selling directly to customers through our community Whatsapp group (over 500 people) combined with Kickstarter campaigns. I assemble all the watches and my wife is in charge of packing every order.
What is your first market? Will you try to develop other markets in the future?
Since the start of this company, we have sent our watches to many countries across the world. It seems that the UK, US and Poland are where we sell most of our watches, but so far we have sent them to over 20 different countries around the world.
Do you plan to participate in watchmaking events in the coming months?
We love attending watch shows! Next, we will be attending the Manchester Watch Show on November 8th. We hope to attend more international watch shows from 2026.
Now and more generally, what are your plans for the future?
Every watch I sell allows me to expand my workshop and learn new skills. I’m hoping to continue this line of amazing value for money watches and slowly develop a separate, more premium brand creating custom timepieces on commission and in very small batches.
What aspects of your brand do you think people should know more about?
I think our brand is interesting, as it was created purely out of passion. When designing my first watch, I never expected to make more than the ones for myself. This results in watches that are designed for enthusiasts, without “cutting corners” or charging high prices. We are also extremely close to our customer base, with an average of over 100 daily messages in our Whatsapp community chat, where people can see and have an input on my work and designs before it is shown off to the wider world.
After a year of trading, the company is still just my wife and myself. Whereas I am responsible for the technical side (design, assembly etc), my wife deals with the logistics and accounting side of the company.
OK, now something more personal. For you, what’s the most important thing to find in a watch?
In my opinion there is nothing more important than the wearer’s comfort. It doesn’t matter how nice a watch is when it isn’t comfortable to wear! This is why I spend an unreasonable amount of time wearing 3d printed, plastic watch mockups as of late!
To finish, are you also a watch collector? If yes, what kind of watches do you collect?
Of course, I’ve been collecting watches since my early teens. My collection is very eclectic and consists of pieces that I find interesting, from 18th century pocket watches, through rare Soviet pieces to modern, Swiss high end – in almost 100 watches that I own, there is bound to be something to interest anyone!
For years now I have also been collecting early pocket watch movements, whose cases have been long melted for their precious metals.
Hope you guys have enjoyed this interview. You can follow Oriorwaith J. Sarnowski on the social networks :
Facebook / Instagram / YouTube
If you’re interested to buy one of them jump right here on this LINK.
Jonathan Kopp
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