In the Trade - An interview with Rebecca Struthers: the Watchmaker, Historian & Co-Founding Director of Struthers Watchmakers
A multi-award-winning designer, watchmaker, and historian; Rebecca is half of the founding husband and wife team behind Struthers Watchmakers studio and workshops. Just over 8 years ago, Rebecca became the first watchmaker in British history to earn a PhD in Horology.
Who, what, where, how long?
I’m Rebecca Struthers and I’m a watchmaker and historian from Birmingham, UK, now working in Leek, Staffordshire. I’ve been in the trade for 22 years.
How you started, route into the trade, any qualifications?
I started out taking the ND Jewellery and Silversmithing course at Birmingham City University (then the UCE) then went onto the British Horological Institute course after completion.
After graduation from my full-time studies, I completed a part-time DGA and masters in the history of art and design, before being awarded a grant to study a PhD in horology which I completed in 2017. The last one was finished full-time around running the business, so it was a busy few years!
Bit about the job, tasks, market etc
As both a watchmaker and a small business owner my job is incredibly varied. I work with my husband and fellow watchmaker Craig. Together, we do everything from making our own watches from scratch to social media and marketing, book keeping and project management.
I also write about horology in my spare time and have a second book, called About Time, coming out soon. It’s a children’s book written in collaboration with a physics teacher that uses watch and clockmaking to teach curriculum science.
Favourite Task
Wheel cutting. We use manual indexing and I find the process incredibly satisfying.
Least favourite task
No surprises for a creative here... Admin!
Thoughts for dream client
Our dream client is anyone who really gets what we do. Our watches can take several years to make, so it’s incredibly important our clients are fully on board and we all work well together.
Favourite Walsh tool/product
If I had to pick one thing, your jewel selection is fantastic!
I'd like to give an additional shout out to HSW's Andrew for helping with our random specialist enquiries and to both Darrel and Lee at your Birmingham branch, for always being on hand to give their amazing advice!
Many thanks to Rebecca for being this month's 'In the Trade'. To find out more as well as keep up to date on Rebecca's work:
