We’d been planning a city trip to Prague for a long time—after all, it’s only a few hours by train from Berlin. And when I recently discovered Infinitywatches on Instagram and then, shortly afterwards, Knud told me about the shop, I knew I absolutely had to go there.
Infinitywatches is a watch boutique entirely dedicated to microbrands and independent watchmakers: no Rolex, Omega, Patek, or Longines. Instead, you’ll find Baltic, Echo/Neutra, Beaubleu, Brew, Vario, Dennison, DUG, and so many more. Of course, the selection changes from time to time, so if there’s a specific watch or brand you’d like to see, it’s best to reach out on Instagram before your trip or book a slot through the website.
Infinitywatches has been around for more than three years now; it was founded by Ondřej and Bhanu, and they still run it together. There’s a pretty good chance you’ll run into one or both of them in the store. I was lucky enough to have a long chat with both of them while Petr showed me a wide variety of watches.
I like the atmosphere there—it feels cosy and welcoming. You can tell that everyone there is a true watch enthusiast; they don’t just sell watches—they live and breathe them. I learned so much, and it wasn’t just about what I saw. But of course, I also saw plenty of watches. By the way, Infinitywatches is located right in the heart of Prague’s Old Town and is easily accessible on foot, no matter where your hotel or Airbnb is.
Disclaimer: There isn’t one—this post isn’t a paid advertisement, and I haven’t received any discount or other perk. I’m simply thrilled by the concept and execution of a microbrand store, and I’m already planning my next visit.
But now let’s get to the reason we were there: amazing microbrand watches. Anyone who’s been following my previous posts has probably already noticed that I view watches both out of a fascination with their technical aspects and as jewellery and fashion accessories. A watch has to feel great, and in my opinion, microbrands achieve this just as well as the established, centuries-old niche and luxury brands. I’ve worn Rolex watches on my wrist—which I received as gifts, mind you—but I’d really only wear them reluctantly, and some of my “cheap” watches get worn more often and are just as much fun as the special models. And it’s the same in the microbrand sector. There are larger and smaller manufacturers there, too—you don’t necessarily like every watch from a brand, or they might not feel right, even if you do like them. And then there’s the problem that it’s so hard to try these watches on, because they’re sold almost exclusively online or only have small boutiques in major cities. And Berlin, unfortunately, is rarely—if ever—one of them. In any case, I don’t know of any boutique in Berlin that carries microbrand watches. And that’s why I came to Prague with such anticipation—to finally get to try on many watches that I’d only seen online. We head into the gallery.
I had even more watches on my wrist, but in all the excitement, I forgot to take pictures of them all.
Microbrand watches that I didn’t really like
Beaubleu wasn’t really my thing. The watch felt too thick on my wrist, and the whole thing didn’t look as high-quality as I’d thought it did from the photos and renderings. The floating hand is a fun idea, but the newer models would have to really impress me at some point for me to take another look at them. I would have expected more from Baltic, too. It does look more high-quality, and I really like the vintage look of the watches, but the proportions weren’t quite right for my wrist. I’ve been looking for the right salmon-colored watch for quite some time now, and I’ll probably never buy a Patek Calatrava 6196p, but the Baltic was too washed-out for my taste. I’d like to try on Baltic’s larger watches again sometime—36 mm just isn’t my size, even though my wrist isn’t that big (17.5 cm). The same applies, to a lesser extent, to the two Arcange watches, which at 37 mm are slightly larger but unfortunately didn’t quite fit me either. I really liked their delicate vintage design—they’re also nice and slim and seemed very well-made. I would have liked to see the salmon version, but unfortunately it was out on a shoot that day and being photographed. I think the Dennison watches are really fun and look much better on the wrist than in the renderings, but they just weren’t my style. My partner thought about them for a long time, though—in the end, it was just that the colors weren’t her thing.
Microbrand watches that I really liked
Let’s move on to the category of watches that, while they didn’t blow me away right away, still made a big impression on me: I really liked all three watches from Echo/Neutra. I liked the Rivanera Picollo the most, and I’m excited that a salmon/pink version of it has just been released—I definitely have to check it out. The watch is small, but that suits me better with tank-style watches than with round ones. The standard Rivanera looked good too, but it was a bit too big for me. The Averau is a truly great watch that stands out with its very realistic moon phase display, yet still remains a stylish and understated tool watch. The proportions are just right, and the craftsmanship is superb. If I hadn’t fallen so hard for the DUG, I would have really struggled with the decision of whether to buy it. But as a tool watch, it was too similar to the DUG for my taste, and I had firmly resolved not to buy more than one watch in Prague—at least on this visit.
Microbrand watches that wowed me
Let’s start with the Maen Manhattan 37 Ultra Thin. What a great dial. And it was impressive just how thin the watch is and how well it hugs my wrist. If I hadn’t known that I’d be getting my Rolex Pistachio soon, I would have bought the Maen right away as my green watch. I’d been looking at it online for a long time, but I always thought it wouldn’t be nearly as high-quality as the renderings suggested—but I was wrong, and it feels even better in person than you’d expect from the photos. I’m sure I’ll add a Maen Manhattan to my collection at some point—I just haven’t decided on the color yet.
The same goes for the Brew Metric Anniversary Limited Edition. I’ve been looking at Brew watches online for a long time, but I wasn’t quite sure. And I didn’t like the Super Metric on my wrist either, because it was too bulky for me. But the Metric, like the Maen, was super thin, comfortable to wear, and the design really blew me away—I had to fight hard to stick to my rule of buying only one watch in Prague. The way the Metric sparkled in the sun—not too much, but just right. Awesome.
The Microbrand watch I bought at Infinitywatches in Prague
The Purist from Deutsche Uhrenmanufaktur Glashütte (DUG) was one of the reasons I was so eager to visit Infinitywatches. I’d had my eye on it for a long time—actually, ever since its release—but until then, I hadn’t had a chance to wear it on my wrist. And what can I say? See for yourself:
The watch is even more beautiful than I thought, and it feels absolutely fantastic on both the steel and leather straps—it’s exactly the everyday watch I’d actually hoped for from the Traska Venturer, which I bought a good year ago but was never quite satisfied with. The DUG has a more classic design but is very robustly built, and I wear it all the time. Since my trip to Prague, it’s by far the watch I’ve worn most often, and while the initial excitement about watches sometimes fades pretty quickly after a purchase, that wasn’t the case at all with the DUG—I still enjoy wearing it almost every day. I’ll write a review of the DUG at some point, too.
But back to Prague. After I bought the DUG, Petr showed me his watch: a Laine P37 with an incredibly interesting dial that shifts from purple to blue depending on the angle. I’ve never seen anything like it before:
We chatted for a long time about watches, the store, the Micro Praha Festival in November, and Czech beer. I complained about my Galo because the rotor sometimes gets stuck, even though it’s brand new, and Ondra offered to have his watchmaker take a look at it if I left the watch there overnight. That was a good enough reason for me to come back the next day, and my Galo has been running like a charm ever since.
I’ll definitely be back, and hopefully I’ll make it to Micro Praha in November, if my schedule allows. If you’re ever in Prague, stop by Infinitwatches—I’m sure you’ll have just as much fun there as I did. In any case, I’m already looking forward to my next visit with Ondřej and Bhanu.
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