A dizzying recollection of how fun Singapore’s largest independent/microbrand watch fair can be.

---

When I first popped by Spring Sprang Sprung 2 years ago, it was held in a slightly hidden corner of Lavender at XM Studios. The venue seemed to be reflective of the event – niche and targeted at collectors who could appreciate the joys of indie timekeeping. Suffice to say, I’m part of the target market and I thoroughly enjoyed weaving from booth to booth and uncovering new horological gems.

I wasn’t able to attend the event in 2024, so when the 2025 edition popped up in my mailbox, I made sure to save the date. This year’s event was held at the National Design Centre, a beautiful Art Deco heritage building dedicated to design related programmes and exhibitions. With design being a cornerstone of the watch as a product, I thought it was a fitting venue but also a good indication of how the event had grown from just 2 years earlier.

You may not have heard of Spring Sprang Sprung (SPRG) before, with it being located in our little sunny island of Singapore. Started in 2022, SPRG is a Singaporean watch fair focusing on independent watch brands – kind of like Worn & Wound’s Wind Up Fairs I’ve heard so much about. Essentially, if you’re looking to connect with independent watch brands, or just keen to check out what’s happening in the microbrand scene with a focus leaning towards local and regional brands, then this 2 day event is the place to be.

Now, when I rolled up at SPRG25, I wasn’t ready for the crowd and when I say the event has grown, it has grown.

With more brands exhibiting and a larger venue, I had expected a larger crowd, but I didn’t expect this large a crowd, though more enthusiasts is always a good thing for all of us. Stepping into the main hall, the brands are split across 3 rows, with booths set up along both sides of the rows. Suffice to say, there’s more than enough watch for everyone and you’re sure to find something that will pique your interest. I had the chance to take a little walk around, and here are some of my highlights from this year’s show:

Lima Watch

After getting over the initial shock at the larger than expected crowd, I made it a point to drop by Lima Watch as my first stop, having recently purchased their GMT Transit that launched recently (the review will eventually go up on the site…once I wrestle some time from daily life). True to my expectation, the GMT transit was on display which gave me a chance to try on the other colours and bracelets. It’s a great watch with a unique case design expressing the brand’s design ethos.

Aside from the GMT Transit, I also saw the Kronosprinter, a great squircle (square-circle) that I first saw 2 years ago also at Spring Sprang Sprung. I must admit I still look at it periodically and am tempted to pull the trigger, but let’s see if I can fight off the urge a bit longer eh?

The great thing about visiting a watch fair full of microbrands is that you get to actually speak to the founder directly (which I did!) It was nice speaking to Herman and giving him my feedback on the GMT Transit, and hearing more about the design considerations that went behind this timepiece. I probably wouldn’t get the chance to do this with larger brands, and its always nice to see the people behind the hard work that spurs this little hobby of ours.

Nivada Grenchen

Next up and right beside Lima Watch was Nivada Grenchen. I’d heard a bit about this brand through the buzz its created online, with the brand in its modern form being a relatively faithful historical revival. I was always curious about what their watches were like, so I was excited to finally see and touch them in person.

I was immediately drawn to their F77, a sporty steel sports watch with an integrated bracelet and Gerald Genta influences. The highlight was a piece featuring a tiger eye dial, which was stunning to see in real life. It was also surprisingly a good fit for my wrist.

The next piece I tried was their Chronoking series. Interestingly, the bezels were interchangeable and you could simply pop them off and pop in another. Powered by a mecaquartz movement, they allow for a more affordable entry point into the brand. I particularly liked the vintage touches, with the brightly coloured triangle chronograph hand reminiscent of vintage watches.

Scanning the booth, I caught sight of what I was looking for: the Chronomaster. This was a watch that I had been interested in since having seen with; something about the broad arrow handset spoke to me and I also liked that it continues to be historically accurate in design. Admittedly however, I did find that it was larger than I would have liked on my wrist (which in all fairness – and as with most Asians, is not the largest) and it does seem unlikely that I will be picking one up in the near future.

I wrapped up my visit with the Antarctic. Smaller in size than the Chronomaster and adopting the simple 3-hander approach, this was certainly oozing vintage vibes but with modern day technology on the inside.

Loth

Ambling my way through the crowd, I made my way to the other side of the hall, where there were more brands situated behind the photo booth. I caught sight of Loth, a brand I’d also recently seen some press coverage on. Loth was founded by Tristan Ho, a self-taught watchmaker who had learnt the craft of watchmaking himself online. Everything is finished by hand, and his first run of 12 watches has been sold out, with the piece on display being his own personal one. I think that this is a brand to look out for, especially if you’re into artisanal craft and I really wouldn’t be surprised if it continues to gain traction not just amongst local collectors but also with those overseas. All the best Loth!

Atelier Wen

Atelier Wen is no stranger to most, and it was one of the brands I was most excited to see when I last popped by SPRG. It was nice to see them again, and their booth was unsurprisingly one of the more crowded ones. After I managed to squeeze my way in, I got a chance to see the Ancestra Jiao which was a stunner to behold in real life. It was chock full of details and fine finishes, and even the rotor had 446 Chinese characters from an ancient Chinese poem engraved onto it. Simply a beauty.

Ubiq

Ubiq is another brand that I’ve heard and seen before on social media, but never had the chance to handle physically. It’s always nice to see a Singaporean brand, and I like that their watches are different from what you usually see. The first series I was introduced to was the colourful Dual, which were dive-style watches with dual timing bezels and bright colours.

The other series was the newer Trek, which was Ubiq’s take on the field watch, featuring a lightweight but sturdy titanium case. The Trek maintains the same consistent design language and retains the same pops of colour seen in the Dual. Overall, both watches also feature nice detailing, such as in the crown and the case shapes.

While I’m personally not drawn to the designs, I’m sure it will have its fans and Ubiq definitely deserves some kudos for having developed its own unique style.

Hz

Next up was a first for me: an Australian watch brand Hz (pronounced hertz). I’ve seen this brand pop up now and then, but I never really knew what their selling point was till today. As its name (kind of) suggests, Hz is a brand focused on making high quality and affordable watches – the affordable part comes from a choice to focus on making quartz watches, which are generally cheaper than their mechanical counterparts.

Not going to lie, they got me just purely based on their value proposition – I am a fan of affordable good things, and I think a solid good quartz timepiece is a gem to have, especially when you just need a grab-and-go. I got a chance to see the Hz.01 Everyday, which kind of reminded me of a record player. The piece on display had a nice red tone to it, which the founder shared he had created for his uncle who happened to be living in Singapore. The story goes that his uncle wanted a watch he could wear during Chinese New Year, and so this special edition was created. Bonus points for the “福” medallion at the caseback! I particularly enjoyed the enamel like finish.

Also on display was the Hz.03 Blue Marble, inspired by the Apollo 17 mission and the iconic photograph that was taken of Earth (the Blue Marble). The aventurine dial was very fitting for the whole space concept, and the sub-dial had a little Earth moving about in place of a seconds hand – good fun and a great idea overall.

Leger A Fah

Ambling along, a familiar sight catches my eye and I find myself drawn to an interesting character watch and a brand I’ve never heard before. Embarrassingly, I had to ask the person manning the booth how to pronounce it and the inspiration behind it. As I now know, “Leger” was his name, while “A.Fah” stood for “A Fusion of Art and Harmony”.

Hailing from Hong Kong, the two watches I handled were the Momentous and the Whistle 1928. Both were stunning executions of the jump hour concept, with high levels of finishing. The Whistle in particularly even had the music notes “lighting up” with the pass of every hour – I could almost hear Steamboat Willie playing in the background.

That being said, the watches are really chunky and on the larger end, which I assume is somewhat related to the choice of movement that has been used and the complications that have been incorporated. Nonetheless an interesting experience, and a good reason why one should visit watch fairs.

Geylang Watch Co

Coming back to the local scene, Geylang Watch Co impressed me with the Geylang Lorong 0 Carbon field watch, which had a matching carbon bracelet and was insanely light. Also on display was the Apex Hybrid Chronograph, with an interesting case shape that reminds me of Fear’s Brunswick collection. It gives me a retro-modern vibe, with vibrant pops of colour. There was also one other piece that seemed to be the brand’s interpretation of Seiko’s famous Grammar of Design, but I don’t think that’s been released publicly yet.

And yes, I asked. Their office really is in Geylang. Truly local represent!

Waktu

Still staying close to home, Waktu Horology brings to the table something I have truly never seen before. Proudly claiming the title of Singapore’s first Malay watch brand, Waktu Horology seeks to create watches based on Malay heritage and history and I think they are doing a great job.

Looking at the Klasik Hitam (which means classic black in Malay), it’s hard to believe that its the brands first watch. The black enamel dial is somehow mesmerising to stare at, and the handset features unique floral patterns inspired by geometric songket patterns (a type of handwoven fabric).

They’ve also released a second collection, this time featuring a Mother of Pearl dial with an open heart, while retaining the same case shape and handsets.

While I was there, I overheard a Malay couple asking if they could customise a pair of watches for their wedding and how they really liked that their culture was being represented in the world of horology. I don’t know about you, but that’s a clear sign to me that Waktu Horology is doing something right.

Straum Watches

I happened to walk by Straum watches nearing the tail end of my visit to SPRG, and I was glad I stopped over. The brand was founded in Norway, and their watches were designed based on the raw beauty of Norway’s nature. Having been to Norway myself, I can testify that its truly a country with nature to behold, and Straum has definitely done a great job in capturing a slice of that in their watches.

The Jan Mayen series had such spectacular dials, I felt like somehow the raging sea had been bottled and poured onto the dial, kept only in its place by a robust case and threatening to spill out at any time. The texture on the dial was fantastic, and I had no idea how they executed it so well.

Vario

Last but not least, I popped by Vario to say hi to Ivan, and check out Vario’s latest piece, the Futurist. This was a really interesting piece, and another great job by Vario. Inspired by space-age 1970s aesthetics, the highlight of the watch was the faceted sapphire crystal, which generated a lot of visual interest.

I also took the chance to try on the Versa and the 1945 A-11S Solar Quartz field watch; both are solid picks in their line up.

…and that’s a wrap!

That sums up my adventure at this year’s Spring Sprang Sprung 2025, and if you’ve read this far, congratulations! It’s rather difficult to cram a day’s worth of excitement and buzz into words on a screen, but I hope you enjoyed that dizzying recollection and I’m looking forward to the next edition!