TEMPORIS International Awards, Celebrating The Full Spectrum Of Today’s Watchmaking

While some thirty years ago, watchmaking was an industry like any other, generating only moderate interest, it has transformed into a center of interest that today commands sustained and multifaceted attention worldwide. An emotional product and bearer of human genius in a disembodied world, the subject of fiercely contested economic issues, the world of watches unites a passionate international community. This evolution has been accompanied by multiple initiatives, beginning with the emergence of annual events, awards celebrating a creator or brand, and a significant watchmaking innovation. Among these is the Temporis International Awards, whose twelfth edition will be held in Zurich on October 2nd. An interview with its founder, Dan Vardie, about his project and his ambitions.

Pascal Brandt, MONOCHROME Watches: Can you explain why and how you launched the Temporis International Awards? History of the event

Dan Vardie, Temporis Watch; The TEMPORIS International Awards (TIA) were born from a desire to reimagine the way we celebrate horology in the 21st century. When we founded TEMPORIS as a magazine and community more than 15 years ago, our vision was clear: to create a meaningful bridge between those who craft time and those who are enchanted by it — everything from a contemporary approach.

We began by telling stories – stories about watchmakers, their legacy, their inventions, their silent revolutions. But we soon realised that these stories deserved more than just pages in a magazine; they deserved a stage. Thus, the TEMPORIS International Awards emerged, not only to honour excellence but to gather a global community around it.

The early editions took place in Bucharest, which, at the time, was symbolic of our passion-driven, independent approach. As we grew, we looked for a city that could reflect the international essence of the project – and Zurich, with its elegance, neutrality, and deep ties to the financial and watchmaking worlds, became our new home. From the beginning, this has never been just another awards ceremony. It is a unique concept, a living dialogue between tradition and transformation. We bring together CEOs of major Maisons, daring independent creators, passionate collectors, forward-thinking designers, and curious newcomers – all united by the timeless language of horology.

TEMPORIS was never built to imitate or compete against another competition; it was built to inspire, to recognise, and to create a community where credibility, emotional resonance, and storytelling matter just as much as technical mastery.

What is the focus of the TEMPORIS International Awards?

The TEMPORIS International Award stands out in the international landscape through its broad, thoughtful, and forward-looking focus. Unlike many other recognitions that narrow in on a single technical aspect or focus on heritage alone, our Awards celebrate the full spectrum of watchmaking today – across style, function, philosophy, and innovation.

TEMPORIS International Awards pioneered many of the values it stands for. It was the first real global watch competition, having the most reputable independent Jury, which decides the 6 finalists in each category, leaving the watch lovers from all around the world to vote for the winning watches! This is unique, giving power to the people who vote based on the best possible selection! It is probably the best of both worlds!

The TEMPORIS International Awards pioneered a wide range of categories that go far beyond traditional boundaries. We look at horology as a living, breathing cultural expression — one that evolves with the world, and must therefore be judged not only on precision, but also on relevance, creativity, purpose, and identity.

That’s why our categories are structured to highlight diverse values and consumer mindsets. For instance:

• Best Everyday Watches (both for men and women) honour mechanical timepieces that are practical and versatile – watches designed not just for collectors, but for real lives of normal people and what they really wear.
• Best Value for Complication Watches recognises pieces that manage to balance haute horlogerie craftsmanship with accessible pricing, challenging the idea that innovation must come with a six-figure price tag.
• Best Travel Watch, Red Carpet Lady’s Watch, and Best Complication Watch each reflect lifestyle choices, aesthetic impact, and storytelling.
• Best Connected Watch and Best Sustainable Watch speak directly to our times, highlighting progress in technology and responsibility. TIA was the first to create dedicated categories for these two areas, when others still considered them marginal.
• From the very beginning, TIA was the first to promote a category for popular quartz watches, which still represents more than 85% of the total number of produced watches on our planet.
• Maverick Watch celebrates bold design and original, contemporary thinking, reinforcing our belief that watchmaking must be allowed to surprise, provoke, and evolve.
• Best Start-Up Watch acknowledges emerging players, giving them a voice in a landscape typically dominated by long-established maisons.
• And finally, Watch of the Year and Jury Watch of the Year offer two different lenses – one based on the event’s wider narrative, the other strictly on the Jury’s collective instinct – to identify the standout timepiece of the moment.
• A special place is also reserved for the “Masterpiece presented at Watches & Wonders”, a digital campaign and award that generates remarkable public interest and celebrates incredible watches unveiled during the most important global trade fair in the industry. Here, we don’t just showcase novelties – we invite the world to interact, vote, and fall in love with watchmaking anew.

IWC winning two awards last year; Best Complication Watch & Masterpiece Presented at Watches & Wonders

IWC’s award-winning Portugieser Eternal Calendar.

The real focus of the TEMPORIS International Awards is this: to map the full emotional, technical, and cultural ecosystem of watchmaking in our time. We are not only celebrating the best products – we are shining a light on what they mean to people and how they reflect the evolution of values and aesthetics.

In parallel, the TEMPORIS Hall of Fame is an integral part of the Awards gala. It honours individuals whose contributions to horology transcend any one product or year. This includes legendary master watchmakers, disruptive designers, and inventors who have elevated the art of watchmaking and the conversation around it. Being inducted into the Hall of Fame is a moment of legacy – a way to underline not only what someone has done, but how they have helped shape the collective identity of modern watchmaking. Ultimately, the focus of the TEMPORIS International Awards is not just to recognise excellence – it’s to narrate it, to give it context, and to elevate it into a global cultural moment.

The Award ceremony takes place in Zurich while most of the Swiss watch industry and brands are located in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Why this choice?

Choosing Zurich as the home of the TEMPORIS International Awards was not just a logistical decision; it was a statement of identity.

While it’s true that the epicentre of Swiss watchmaking is traditionally associated with the French-speaking regions – Geneva, Neuchâtel, La Chaux-de-Fonds – we deliberately chose Zurich for what it represents: openness, neutrality, elegance, and global reach. Zurich is Switzerland’s financial capital, a city where decisions are made, collections are curated and watch lovers from all over the world converge. Statistically, it is home to the largest concentration of high-end watch collectors in the country. This is no coincidence; it’s a city where heritage and innovation coexist in quiet harmony.

But even more than that, Zurich aligns with our philosophy. TIA was never created to serve just the industry; it was created to connect the industry with the people who admire it, invest in it, and are emotionally moved by it. In our audience, you’ll find CEOs and artisans sitting side by side with passionate collectors, cultural figures, and future-forward entrepreneurs.

Our message has always been clear: TEMPORIS International Awards does not belong to a canton, a language, or a trade group. It belongs to a global community of watch lovers. It’s an independent, international platform built on media credibility and community trust. Zurich, in its cosmopolitan clarity, reflects exactly that.

Hosting the ceremony here also allows us to offer a world-class experience with unmatched sophistication. The venue, the atmosphere, the access – everything is crafted to offer both intimacy and international prestige. So, while we are proudly rooted in Swiss excellence, our perspective is broader. TIA doesn’t just celebrate where watchmaking comes from -including other watchmaking countries besides Switzerland- but we also celebrate where it’s going. Zurich is not a compromise. It’s a compass.

How do you position Temporis International Awards on the watch/ watchmaking landscape stage?

The TEMPORIS International Awards are positioned as a genuine, independent, and modern perspective in the global watchmaking landscape. We are not a replica, and certainly not an extension of an institutional framework. Instead, TEMPORIS is a platform born from passion, observation, and courage, a project that started with a blank sheet of paper and the desire to rethink how we honour excellence in the 21st century. Our mission has always been to reflect the realities of today’s watch culture: it’s no longer enough to judge watches only by complication count or brand heritage. Today, design, sustainability, cultural relevance, user experience, and emotional impact matter just as much. And TIA is built on that very belief – that excellence is multidimensional.

From the beginning, we’ve pioneered new directions: we were the first international awards to recognise smartwatches, long before they were embraced by the broader industry. We were also the first to launch a dedicated sustainability category, understanding early on that the future of horology must be ethical and responsible. We created the Best Start-Up category to give voice to new creators, and we opened the door to the public vote because we believe that authentic appreciation doesn’t only live in boardrooms – it thrives in communities.

We also built the TEMPORIS Hall of Fame, a unique space honouring true visionaries — not just those with commercial success, but those who changed the rules of the game. Over the years, we’ve welcomed into the Hall of Fame legendary designers, daring independents, and inventors who left a human, not just technical, mark on the industry.

So where do we stand on the global stage? We are the independent awards – the `Golden Globes of Global Watchmaking`. A place where credibility, innovation, storytelling, and cultural intelligence come together. We don’t claim to be “the” authority — instead, we create space for many kinds of excellence to shine. We listen to the industry. But we also listen to the pulse of the world beyond it.

There are many international awarding events, such as the GPHG. What does Temporis bring in addition compared to the others?

We have deep respect for institutions like the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. It has set standards and brought well-deserved recognition to the industry. But TEMPORIS International Awards brings a different kind of energy, legitimacy, and perspective — one that is global, community-driven, and future-focused. Where GPHG is rooted in the traditions and structure of Swiss watchmaking, TIA is built as a freely evolving global cultural platform. We’re not constrained by membership, lobbying, or rigid categories.

What sets TEMPORIS International Awards apart is not just our independence it’s our 360° perspective. Our jury is a carefully selected group of experts that spans journalism, design, cultural theory, innovation, product development, visual storytelling and more. We claim to have the most 360-degree Jury in the watchmaking universe, with diverse personalities giving their perspectives to the selection process. We’re not just asking what the best movement or case is; we’re asking how a watch lives in the world, how it inspires, and what its long-term cultural significance could be. Our jurors are global independent journalists, designers, and tastemakers from around the world who nominate based on knowledge and instinct, not politics or proximity. Brands do not pay to be included or awarded – the process is merit-based and transparent.

We also bring something rare: dual legitimacy — from both the professional and the public side. Our public votes bring in passionate voices from around the world. This is not a marketing stunt; it’s a celebration of how watch culture lives today, in the hearts and on the wrists of real people. We witness millions of unique visitors from over 80 countries landing on our voting platform – not just to scroll, but to engage, react, and support the watches that move them. This makes our audience the largest and most culturally diverse voting process in watchmaking. It’s not just about choosing a favourite; it’s about shaping the future of horology through collective emotion and digital democracy. TEMPORIS is not only judged by experts but also validated by the people around the world. And that makes all the difference.

TIA is also known for its 360° relevance: we’re not only about the “best” watches in a technical sense, but about the watches that move the needle culturally, emotionally, and socially. From red carpets to travel, from connected technology to sustainability, we map watchmaking as a living, breathing language, not just a mechanical art.

And unlike other awards, we have evolved beyond the trophy. The TEMPORIS International Awards are part of a wider ecosystem: a media platform, a cultural archive, a community, and a legacy – built with honesty, passion, and courage. In a world full of recognitions, TEMPORIS brings something irreplaceable: relevance with soul.

How do you select the jury members?

We are incredibly intentional about the composition of the TEMPORIS International Awards jury. We don’t go for fame alone, nor for institutional roles. We look for independent thinkers, outstanding personalities, with a strong point of view on watchmaking, design, culture, or innovation. The TEMPORIS jury is not a committee, it is a constellation of passionate professionals, each bringing a unique lens to the world of horology.

Our jury is international; TIA is not a Swiss or European-only event. We include members from across continents, reflecting the true global heartbeat of watch appreciation. Journalists, editors-in-chief of respected publications, product designers, brand historians, and even voices from art and tech intersect here to evaluate what really matters today in watchmaking.

What makes our jury distinct is that they don’t vote based on industry politics or commercial ties. They vote based on expertise, authenticity, and the ability of a watch – or a person – to push boundaries and create meaning. We ask our jurors to be both informed and intuitive. We challenge them to consider not just “what is the best chronograph,” but “what story is this watch telling? Why does it matter now?”

And to maintain the integrity of the process, we never accept brands to “apply” or submit watches. The selection starts with the jury – they are the only ones to nominate. The Jury is totally independent in making all the nominations. That ensures we are not a pay-to-play ecosystem, but a genuinely merit-driven community.

What kind of impact do the Awards have on participating brands and the industry at large?

TIA is a badge of relevance. Winning or being nominated places a timepiece at the centre of an influential conversation across media, collectors, retailers, and cultural circles. It’s also a platform for newcomers. Many of the brands we highlighted early in their journey have grown significantly after their visibility at TIA. We shine a light where others haven’t yet looked.

In the end, the popular vote of people who love watches from all around the world is the biggest accolade a watch brand can win! I recall a CMO from a very well-known Swiss brand told me once: `If we win, it is the first time without any payment or influence of other kind. It is simply a genuine recognition of our watch’s value and relevance on a global scale. This is the biggest compliment we can achieve. ` And they won…

What does the future of the TEMPORIS International Awards look like?

We believe in continuous reinvention because the world of watchmaking never stands still, and neither do we. The TEMPORIS International Awards were never meant to be a fixed ritual; they are a living platform, always growing, always adapting to the cultural and technological tides of the moment. From new cities and partnerships to new categories and immersive formats, the future of TEMPORIS International Awards is dynamic and authentic.

Looking ahead, we see the future of TIA as increasingly bold, increasingly inclusive, and increasingly global. We are exploring the expansion of our categories to reflect the new frontiers of horology – from breakthrough innovations in sustainable materials and AI integration, to boundary-pushing design philosophies and youth-led microbrands.

We envision TEMPORIS as not only the awards ceremony of today, but the cultural observatory of tomorrow, a mirror of where watchmaking is going, and a pulse-check on what truly matters to its global audience. Whether through partnerships, innovation hubs, or community engagement, TEMPORIS International Awards will always be the bridge between the craft and the culture, between tradition and transformation.

For more information, please visit Temporis.watch.