Collector Profiles: George Bamford of Bamford Watch Department

By now, most collectors have probably heard of George Bamford, the founder of Bamford Watch Department. Known for his beautifully executed custom variations of prestigious luxury watches from Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and Patek Philippe (among others), Bamford is a polarizing figure—especially to the brands whose watches he modifies—but he has brought a level of legitimacy to the world of watch customization that could not be found in years past. Of course, those in charge of the aforementioned brands still take issue with the customization industry, as we learned after running our Watch of the Week coverage of a Bamford Daytona, but there is no denying the ever-growing call for bespoke services in horology, and if the brands themselves will not provide an option, then operations like Bamford’s will continue to flourish.

The last time we spoke with George, it was evident that he had quite an obsession with used Invicta watches, so when the opportunity arose to drop in on Bamford headquarters in London, we opted to have a sit-down with Bamford to learn more about the man behind the business, what fuels his passion for horology, and what his outlook is on the industry as a whole.

George Bamford: At a personal level, it started with an old Breitling Navitimer I picked up back in 1995. That’s what really fired up my fascination with watches, and where I started collecting vintage. It was beat up, it had the wrong hands on it, but I loved it. Shortly after buying it, I set myself to tearing it apart and had it all into bits in about a week. Putting it back together was another story. I think it took me about a month to get it all back together and running properly. After that, it was the black Rolex Daytona you see here that was the trigger for starting my business. I was so excited to own that watch, and I was out for dinner with the family, and next thing I knew, I spotted the same watch on the wrist of a half dozen or more folks in the room. I was gutted. I loved the watch, but I wanted a Rolex that was different than everyone else’s. I decided to make a black Rolex GMT Master, and after wearing it around for a summer I wound up with 25 orders and the business was born.