About this episode
Erik and Max interview watchmaking legend Kari Voutilainen about his career and the challenges of independent watchmaking.
This week Erik & Max are thrilled to be joined by legend of independent watchmaking Kari Voutilainen. We explore the early days of branching out on his own, what makes him excited in watchmaking, the challenges of being independent, why big brands don’t innovate, and of course how things are going reviving Urban Jürgensen. It was an honor and delight to capture Mr. Voutilainen’s thoughts on watchmaking this point in his career, which we hope you enjoy. Links Mentioned: Voutilainen’s Early Story: https://www.acollectedman.com/blogs/journal/watchmaking-journey-kari-voutilainen The 2013 V-8R with Power Reserve: https://watchesbysjx.com/2013/04/baselworld-2013-voutilainen-v-8r.html Comblémine SA: https://comblemine.ch Observatoire: https://hairspring.com/blogs/finds/brown-guilloche-dial-voutilainen-observatoire-1 Urban Jürgensen Relaunch: https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/introducing-urban-jurgensen-returns-2025 Pratt Oval Pocket Watch: https://www.phillips.com/article/149733060/derek-pratts-oval-pocket-watch-voutilainen-urban-jurgensen-phillips-reloaded Watch Mr Voutilainen is Googling Recently: https://www.phillips.com/detail/andreas-strehler/190853 Last Watch which Impressed…
People in this episode
Hosts: Erik, Max
Guest: Kari Voutilainen
Topics covered
- independent watchmaking
- challenges in watchmaking
- innovation in watch brands
- Kari Voutilainen's career
- Urban Jürgensen relaunch
Keywords
- watchmaking
- Kari Voutilainen
- Urban Jürgensen
- independent brands
- innovation
- challenges
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Urban Jürgensen, Comblémine SA, A Collected Man, Hodinkee, Phillips, A. Lange & Söhne
Products: V-8R, Pratt Oval Pocket Watch, Zeitwerk, 1815, 3 Watch Roll
More episodes of Hairspring
- Episode 96: Q&A (Pt. 8) · June 9, 2026 · 1h 25m
- Episode 95: A. Langer One (Pt. 2, 2000-Present) · May 25, 2026 · 1h 37m
- Episode 94: Dissecting an Auction Catalogue & Sports Betting · May 14, 2026 · 1h 20m
- Episode 93: Winners & Blunders 2026 · April 29, 2026 · 1h 4m
- Episode 92: Pub Trivia · April 22, 2026 · 1h 10m
- Episode 91: Enamel 101 · April 10, 2026 · 1h 6m
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Hairspring podcast page.