When you are an established watch journalist working for respected publications, you get several invitations for press trips during the year. The brands certainly know how to make them tempting, often serving more champagne than water in breathtaking areas of the world with accommodations that rarely rate below five stars.

It sounds like heaven on earth, but I refuse quite a few as they do not always serve a distinct purpose. I got into the watch industry because I am driven by a deep passion and fascination for watchmaking. Press trips, for me, are only really worthwhile when they give me a better understanding of specific topics and inspire content for at least a handful of stories.

Hublot’s Manufacture in Nyon, Switzerland
One of my favorite types of trip to be invited on is to see the manufactures. So much so that I usually also make a few of them on my own accord (and on my own dime). Traveling to the manufactures is where our beloved watches come to life.

In general, there are a few things that nearly all manufactures have in common. With the exception of fine technical details, things like casing watches, setting hands, and even making parts in a CNC machine are pretty similar in all these places. It is the exceptions that ultimately make visiting them so worthwhile.

The CNC machines at Fleurier Ebauches

Just last week I ran into a great example as I enjoyed a fascinating presentation at the manufacture of Hublot about how they developed col...