Happy Chinese New Year! To commemorate the official start of the celebrations, We’ve collated five of the very best Chinese brands for you to discover.
“Made in China” has become something of a derogatory label. Too often, it’s associated with flimsy products and counterfeit goods, overshadowing the true depth and breadth of Chinese craftsmanship. In the world of watches, this perception is especially pronounced.
With the industry constantly flooded by fakes, clones and borderline homages, it can be difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. That said, there are plenty of remarkable Chinese watch brands out there for those willing to look a little deeper. Better yet, let us save you the trouble of doing do! As Chinese New Year kicks off, here are five of the very best watch brands from the East, each one capable of changing your perspective on “Made in China” for good.
Seagull
When it comes to iconic Chinese brands, it would be disingenuous to overlook Seagull. Founded in Tianjin (天津.) in 1955, Seagull, branded as SEA-GULL, has been a cultural staple of Eastern horology for over seven decades. Its most iconic creation, the D304, is still celebrated as one of the greatest and most accessible chronographs of all time.
Revived as the 1963 collection, Seagull has kept the spirit of the original aviation watch alive. However, it shouldn’t remain the only timepiece the brand is known for.
Combining aesthetic skill with raw industrial power, the Seagull manufacture produces well-crafted industrial movements on a scale few others in the industry can match. Name a type of watch or a complication, and Seagull has probably already made it, likely thousands of times over.
From dive watches to moonphase pieces, and all the way through to ultra-thin tourbillons and rattrapante movements, Seagull seems limited only by its imagination. So, if you’re tired of being priced out of the wildest horological complications, or you’re looking to explore a fascinating corner of watchmaking history, Seagull might just be the place to start.
One important note, however: there are three websites that all claim to be Seagull, four if you count the Seagull 1963 homage brand. That’s a story for another time, but don’t worry, we’ve linked the real deal below.
Discover more about the brand online at SeagullWatch.com (The real one!)
Peacock Watches
Peacock Watches may not have had the same mainstream exposure as Seagull, but the brand certainly has one heck of a history to compensate. Beginning life as the Andong Clock Factory in 1957, the Dandong (丹东市) company became remarkably advanced thanks to the geopolitical tensions surrounding it. The influence of the Americans, Soviets, and even Mao Zedong turned Dandong into an economic powerhouse, nicknamed “the Orient’s Geneva.”
Today, the brand claims to specialise in producing blank movements, often described as imitations of Swiss counterparts. However, their ever-expanding roster suggests quite the opposite. Once again, Chinese craftsmanship and industrial capability collide as Peacock introduces a growing array of thoughtfully crafted timepieces to its repertoire.
The piece that truly captured the world’s attention was the Black Hole, an eccentric centrally mounted tourbillon with a movement made entirely in-house. In fact, the tourbillon complication is a core speciality, appearing across a wide range of the collection without compromising aesthetic appeal. The brand is far from a one-trick pony, however, having also ventured into more conventional collections, some of which even feature hand-finished guilloché patterns.
Discover more about the brand online at PeacockWatches.com
CIGA Design
Okay, this one is a personal favourite of mine. Founded in 2016 in Shenzhen (深圳市), CIGA Design quickly built a reputation for its outlandish designs and relative accessibility. Committed to original aesthetics, the brand defies convention, pushing past traditional boundaries to develop a distinctly contemporary, hyper-modern ethos.
Since its inception, CIGA Design has been at the forefront of the micro and independent watchmaking scene, racking up several awards throughout its tenure. In 2021, its abilities came to a head at the GPHG, where it stole the show by winning the Challenge Watch Prize. This landmark achievement marked the first time a Chinese watch brand had ever won a GPHG award, a fact that CIGA Design is, understandably, immensely proud of.
The watch that claimed such a prestigious honour, the Blue Planet, remains CIGA Design’s pride and joy. That said, the brand’s in-house capabilities extend well beyond its GPHG winner. Focused on delivering high-tech aesthetics and solid craftsmanship at a respectable price point, CIGA Design primarily specialises in skeletonised timepieces. With tourbillon movements and even mineral crystal cases also in its catalogue, the watch world is eagerly watching to see what emerges next from the CIGA Design workshop.
Discover more about the brand online at CIGADesign.com
Behrens
If you thought Peacock and CIGA Design were examples of radical watchmaking, just wait until you hear about the madmen over at Behrens. Also based in Shenzhen (深圳市), Behrens was founded in 2012 and initially pursued a similar goal to CIGA Design. What a difference a few years can make, though, as Behrens’ design language pushes even further into the radical and abstract.
It’s honestly surprising they’ve produced even a single watch, given the sheer complexity of each piece, which might lead you to assume the brand exists in a constant state of R&D. That doesn’t appear to be the case, however, as Behrens has released several watches, each more remarkable than the last.
Eventually, their work caught the attention of Russian master watchmaker Konstantin Chaykin, who would go on to collaborate with the brand on multiple occasions.
From there, it was off to the races. With an unprecedented level of attention and guidance from master craftsmen like Chaykin, Behrens quickly became a force of nature within the Chinese contemporary watchmaking scene. In 2023, they released the Ultralight 20g and 11g models, two of the lightest watches in the world, both featuring in-house double retrograde movements.
Collaborating with local master watchmaker Qian GuoBiao, Behrens also created the Kung-Fu collection, which earned them a spot at the 2025 Louis Vuitton Watch Prize for Independent Creatives. More recently, yet another iconic name joined forces with the brand: Vianney Halter. Together, they unveiled the spectacular KWH, seemingly setting Behrens on a date with destiny as China’s premier haute horlogerie brand.
Discover more about the brand online at BehrensWatches.com
Celadon
When I first came up with this list, this was actually the first brand that came to mind. Although I was already aware of the history of Chinese legacy brands like Seagull, Celadon completely blew me away with its technically and aesthetically brilliant timepieces.
While the brand is primarily based in Singapore, founder Benjamin Chee is of Fujian ancestry. During time spent living abroad in London and Shanghai, he developed a deep fascination with, and appreciation for, Chinese culture. By combining his inherited love of watches with traditional Chinese craftsmanship, he went on to found Celadon in 2012.
Initially equipped with movements from the Beijing Watch Factory, Celadon has since moved significantly upmarket. Proudly designated as “Made in China with Pride”, its in-house movements are produced under the guidance of AHCI Master Watchmaker Lin Yong Hua.
Beyond mechanics, the brand also specialises in enamelling, creating, and in some cases recreating, spectacular works of art designed to be worn on the wrist. Through their watches and movements, Chee and the Celadon team showcase just how rich the tradition of Chinese handcraft truly is.