About Us

For almost 80 years and three generations, Pilbrows has been putting New Zealanders' watches and clocks back into working order.

Paddy J. Pilbrow founded the business in Gisborne in 1947, working right underneath the Gisborne Town Clock. His son Ian began his own apprenticeship under Paddy in 1966, later working overseas as a watchmaker before eventually relocating to Taupo in 1980 and renaming the business Pilbrows Watchmakers. Ian's son Rowan began his own apprenticeship in 2001, qualified as a horologist in 2006, and purchased the business in 2014, becoming the third generation to run Pilbrows.

Since then, the Taupo team has grown to include Rolex- and Omega-trained watchmaker Leon Wedgwood, alongside Werner Mueller, Duncan Rens and watch technician Vanessa McGrath. Ian remains involved too, bringing over 50 years of watch and clock making experience to the business he helped build. Alongside this growth, Pilbrows has become an authorised service agent for a number of major watch brands, including Citizen, Bulova, Frédérique Constant, Claude Bernard, Victorinox and Wenger.

In February 2020, Nick Parker — Omega-trained and OWME21-certified — joined Rowan to open a second branch in Burnside, Christchurch. The Christchurch team now includes watchmakers Reuben Olsson, Alice Busson and Francis Donaldson, and clockmaker Hayden Marshall. Behind the scenes, Julz Brown, Aimee Barber and Ursula Huesgen keep both stores running smoothly.

Today, Pilbrows' aim remains the same as it was in 1947: to be the hub of New Zealand watchmaking, producing high-quality work for the best watch brands from around the world.