William Wood Watches: The Green Valiant
The year is 2022. The pandemic is seemingly coming to a close with so many of our favorite events and pastimes coming back in full effect. But one thing has remained constant since the beginning of the pandemic – time. Time has been ever fleeting but also so important, now more than ever. And through the years we have all kept a record of time in many different ways, but the most artful way of doing so, in my mind, is with watches.
I’ve owned and worn watches for as long as I can remember. From wearing oversized Fossil watches to the classic Casio watches of the early 2000s, they were always a part of me. But it wasn’t until the middle of 2021 that I really got serious and truly admired the beauty and the craftsmanship that makes a watch tick. As is common for most collectors, we start by buying what looks nice and has cool color combinations and usually looking for the best bargain deals we can find. But a change happened, something shifted in the watch metaverse inside my mind that caused me to re-evaluate how my watch collecting was to progress – evolve even.
I was invited by my cousin to attend the Wind Up Watch Fair in San Francisco at the end of April, the first watch show I had ever attended. So as a good marketing graduate I did my homework and researched each and every vendor listed, looking closely at each website, Instagram, Facebook, you name it. The majority of the brands I had never heard of save names like G-Shock, Seiko, and Hamilton – but one company stood out amongst the sea of watches. William Wood.
Who Is William Wood?
Based in London, the company was founded in 2016 by Jonny Garrett who pays homage to firefighters (and first responders in general) and most specifically his own grandfather who the company is named after. What caught my eye was the bold firefighter red that is almost synonymous with the brand – for obvious reasons. Their watches come in various colors from the aforementioned red, yellow, blue, green, and straps in the same colors. What I truly enjoyed the most was finding out that each strap is made from recycled firefighter equipment, whether it be firehose or the uniform themselves from various local British firefighters to the British Armed Forces Fire & Rescue. To make it even cooler, every sale goes to support first responders around the world and the company continues to give back to the firefighting community, outside of sales alone. And if that weren’t enough, they even melted down original 1920s bronze firefighter helmets in order to place their logo onto the crown of the watch. Now of course there are even more hidden gems that pay homage to firefighters and to Mr. William Wood himself, but I’ll let you find that out for yourself.
Now fast forward a few weeks to the Wind Up Watch Fair in San Francisco where I met the owner, Jonny Garrett and immediately we were BOTH impressed. He was impressed by how much I knew about the brand and I was impressed by his passion for watchmaking and giving back to first responders. I immediately told him I HAD to try on their Green Valiant, which is their automatic watch with a green dial and green strap, without getting too detailed – for now.
They were also featuring their Triumph collection which is their chronograph that has dials based off a fire engine cockpit all packaged in a unique fire alarm box and included with brass cufflinks.
The next thing I knew I was ordering my first William Wood watch – The Green Valiant with the Swiss Sellita SW200 movement (Seiko movement is also an option but it wasn’t available until September). Upon leaving the show, I was filled with excitement and anticipation, but also a weird feeling of spending over $1000 and not having anything to take home with me. But nonetheless, the watch came just as quickly as Jonny said it would. Ordered Friday, shipped Monday, and delivered Wednesday.
The Unboxing
Firstly, the level of detail in their packaging & display as a so-called “micro-brand” rivals the likes of Bulova, Seiko, & even Omega. I was blown away at the firefighter red packaging and even more so with the red travel roll that can fit up to 3 watches or straps (preferably all William Wood watches I’m sure). Now this next part might not impress or excite many people, but for me being in marketing I truly appreciate it when a brand puts the effort in their packaging and presentation. The booklet and thank you card that comes inside is made with some of the best matte finished pages and artwork that I have seen yet – I can’t imagine the printing costs.
The Watch
As for the watch itself, I of course had the unique opportunity to try on the Valiant watches in person with the owner Jonny, before I ordered it and I was blown away. As was mentioned above, the upcycled straps were something to marvel at while at the show, but to own a set was something I felt proud of. I chose the Green Valiant with the green strap and Jonny included the fire kit strap as well, which looks beautiful on the watch, but there’s even more brilliance with the double domed glass that has a hint of blue sapphire detectable at certain angles – something that has to be seen in person to truly be appreciated.
The bezel has great detail but it isn’t perfect. It has a satisfying click but there is a little too much movement in between each click, but you only notice it when making small adjustments – so definitely not a deal breaker.
The open case back beautifully showcases the movement, limited edition engraving (mine is 058 out of 200 since I’m sure you wanted to know), and the proudly displayed William Wood name. Paired with the Sellita SW200 movement this “Time Capsule” as Jonny states, is a true masterpiece and one of England’s best and exciting offers in watch making.
CJ
