Brent Robillard, AKA Calibre321 on most social platforms, is helping emerging Canadian watch brands gain traction in the market for their well-crafted watches. When Whitby Watch Co. planned the launch of its Intrepid X Chronograph Dive watch, with the formidable Valjoux 7750 movement at its heart, Robillard was an integral player, sharing the first review and images to an audience hungry for innovation and value. The watch enthusiast, published author, teacher, art photographer, and watch influencer, who hails from Lake Eloida in Ontario, Canada, has captivated a growing international following.

A smattering of Canadian watch companies has been around for quite some time, but with the wide range of subjective watch preferences and the ability for watch enthusiasts to start their own brands, the Canadian market is seeing new entrants. Whitby Watch Co. was founded in 2017 and launched its first watch, the Intrepid Dive Watch, in late 2018.  By late 2020, the brand had the confidence to take its microbrand efforts up to a higher level of luxury with assembly in Canada, using the highly recognized ETA/Valjoux 7750 movement found in watches made by Breitling, Sinn, and IWC.

When putting a watch on Ryan Reynolds, Sidney Crosby, or Steve Nash’s wrist might be a lofty dream for many, small Canadian brands have had to find their way to a local niche of influential Canadian social media players like Calibre321, Ian_Cognito, TimeToGoTravel, RJ Kama, Watch Fanatics and Rico’s Watches Podcast, to name a few. These Canadian content creators offer a range of artistic photography, education, and informative talking points through social media, Youtube, blogging, and podcasts — all invaluable to startup watch companies finding their audience.

Robillard’s work, in particular, is compelling, as he immerses himself into every timepiece that lands on his wrist. He reviews each watch, learns the history behind each company, and produces his own recognizable artistic perspective on the watches he photographs.

“Without the support of Calibre321, Ian_Cognito, and Bob from TimeToGoTravel, among others, small companies like Whitby Watch Co. might not find the ability to resonate with Canadian watch enthusiasts and offshore enthusiasts,” says co-founder Travers Hartley-Smith. “They really do a fantastic job of connecting us with a range of people that only an extensive amount of advertising, and certainly time, could maybe give us a look into,” Hartley-Smith stressed.

The Canadian uprising of watch enthusiasts is progressing hand-in-hand with the rise of watch brands whose positions are strengthened through the collaboration of local influencers.

The Intrepid X is about as Canadian a watch as you can find. Whitby Watch Co. is thoughtful in its storytelling around Camp X in Whitby, Ontario, the training ground for spies of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) during World War II. The SOE was a secret British organization that Sir Winston Churchill instigated at the height of the war — he put close confidant and Canadian Sir William “Man Called Intrepid” Stephenson in charge of the British Security Coordination in New York before Camp X was established as the SOE special training school on the shores of Ontario.

Stephenson, whom Ian Fleming referred to as “the real James Bond,” was the liaison between Churchill in the UK and Franklin Roosevelt and J Edgar Hoover in the U.S., as well as being influential in the foundations and personnel of the CIA.

The Intrepid X is a robust watch inspired by the idea of what an agent of the SOE might be found wearing — stylish but subtle, technical but useful. The watch is full of subtle intelligence tributes, from the Canadian Intelligence Branch and the Canadian Intelligence Corps mottos to emblems on the watch. The package includes Intrepid Tartan, an official Scottish Tartan, and is completed with a Nanuk utility case that is, of course, made in Canada.

The recent path being paved by both influencers and watch microband startups in Canada will simultaneously carve out exposure to a larger group of watch collectors all over the world. As the pages turn for watch companies in Canada, an exciting new chapter of Canadian watchmakers will surely be written with it.

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