Why does Leica make watches?

Russell Sheldrake

Last week, I had the privilege to travel to the German town of Wetzlar and stay in the Leica campus. And campus is really the only word for it, 35,000 sqm with over 800 members of staff working across camera production, archiving, and hospitality, with the brand’s own hotel on site, where I spent two nights. Everything is cast in the same slate grey concrete and has been done in the Bauhaus style with a few clever details thrown in to give nods to the origins of the Leica company. Whether it is the camera viewfinder window built into the side of the museum, or the buildings themselves being constructed to look like a camera lens and binoculars from above. They thought of everything in this place.

And while we were given a tour of the brand’s camera manufacturing plant – one of two, with the other being in Portugal – I was really there to discover more about its watches. Having only started on this adventure back in 2015, it is still relatively young in the watch game, and it is a new addition to the brand’s output compared to its 100+ year history. Because of its position inside a wider luxury business that is better known for a different product, these watches are unique in our industry, and that is what fascinates me. Right now, nobody mentions watches when they think Leica.

Leica does not produce any of its watches end-to-end. It uses some great suppliers for its movements and every other component, however, the design stays truly Leica. The ZM1 and ZM2 models draw design cues directly from the brand’s best-selling cameras, while the ZM11 and ZM12 are more conceptually drawn from the world of photography. “I think being accepted as one of the product areas Leica is active in is my goal. We need a couple more years to get there,” is how Henrik Ekdahl, Managing Director of Leica Watches and Accessories, put it when I asked him about the position of watches in the overall Leica product catalogue.

“We need to expand,” says Henrik, “we need to sell more, we need to come up with new watches. Once we take the next steps, I’m pretty sure we are being accepted more and more, also internally as being one part, one pillar among five, six pillars. Of course, the big one is photography, but we play a certain role in opening up the brand towards luxury.” While the brand’s watches are obviously competing against other watch brands in their price segment, they also have to compete with the other product categories inside Leica itself. And it’s this internal competition that seems to drive them more than the external right now.

That then begs the question, who exactly is buying these watches? Are Leica using this new product to push themselves into new markets, or are they using it as more of an upselling tool to those who already own one or more Leica products? Well, it would seem that there is a bit of a split, according to Henrik. “The existing Leica customers go a bit more for [the ZM1 and ZM2], while new-to-the-brand customers might be a bit more open-minded and just see the beauty of the [ZM11 and ZM12] styles.” This does not feel accidental either. The integrated style of the ZM11 and 12 are recognisably drawing on traditions and trends we are actively seeing in the watch world right now, while those earlier pieces have an infinite number of easter Eggs for the Leica camera obsessive.

However, overall, these are watches that are very much for someone who knows and loves Leica. I even got chatting to a Leica camera collector in the museum gift shop who, after learning more about the Leica watches, was considering getting one, after shooting on a Leica camera for years and exclusively wearing a smart watch for the last 10 years.

There is something on the horizon from the Leica watches department which may change this strategy slightly, and that is a completely new model line that aims to be a more affordable entry point into the collection. “We need this for credibility. I consider this to be the top of the pyramid,” Henrik says of the ZM1, “and what we lack is something below — something a bit easier to sell to customers who want a mechanical watch who are not really willing to spend €15,000.”

But that is going to be hard to do if they stick to the strategy and suppliers they are currently using. The ZM1 and 2 use a movement developed and produced by the German manufacturer Lehmann, and the ZM11 and 12 use one from Chronode. Neither of those companies is known for its entry-level movements, just as Leica is not really known for its entry-level cameras. So how does Henrik plan to hit his target price of between €5,000-€6,500?

“I’ve never had a problem with Sellita or ETA. It’s just that the price needs to be lowered.” Going to these more accessible movement suppliers is certainly a start to creating that entry-level watch. Henrik also mentioned wanting to bring more of the production of the watch in-house. We know that Leica is also an expert in glass production, and having seen first-hand its processes at work, you could well imagine watch crystals becoming a part of that. Not to mention its ability to make cases from solid blocks of metal or work with real and fake leather to produce the straps. However, when they are producing 80-100 cameras a day from its Wetzlar plant, it can be hard to disrupt that for a less popular item.

But that doesn’t mean the team isn’t willing to try. Henrik was pleasantly surprised when, on a recent trip to the Portuguese workshops, they had laid their hands on a case for the ZM11 and mocked up prototypes in a wide variety of metal types. “They had just measured the case of a ZM11 and done it in brass, aluminium, steel, and titanium. There are so many possibilities to do things in different materials which we use for cameras.” And Henrik made it clear that this was not something that he had requested, but rather a project they pursued on their own to show the site’s ability to make these cases in any metal they might want. The question does remain as to whether they build out this capability in Germany, Portugal, or find a new site in Switzerland and double down on the Swiss-made stamp.

So what is the end goal of Leica watches? Are we going to one day be talking about the Leica watch brand that also happens to make cameras? No, of course not, and Henrik is quick to highlight that himself. “I will not be working anymore when or if accessories and watches are as big as cameras. And honestly, I hope it will never happen, because for me, Leica should be a camera manufacturer.” But it does feel as though this is a brand that is pushing to be more of a group than it is a single-product producer. The accessories business is booming right now, whether that is the straps or lens covers for the cameras, or assorted leather goods that support its main product lines. So, before watches can be taken seriously internally, they will need to compete with the accessories side first.

Personally, I am a big fan of what Leica is producing right now. They are approaching the watches with the same fervour and attention to detail that they do everything else, and that has led to some highly considered timepieces. They are not for everyone, and they are currently still very expensive. But the same could easily be said for the brand’s cameras and optics. The upcoming accessible watch sounds like a great option, as it doesn’t go too far and risk cheapening the brand. As long as the same care is paid to it, then we should have a well-rounded product selection for those Leica obsessives to choose from.