udging from their plans, it seems Knot is well under way with its goal, as stated on its website “to pass down the magnificent knowledge and techniques of traditional Japanese craftsmanship to future generations. And naturally, to do this at a price that everyone can afford.”

Europa Star: What does Knot offer to the world of watches that no other brand does?

Airi Endo: Knot is probably the first and largest all-round mix-and-match business model brand in the world. We offer over 150 SKUs of watch heads and 300 SKUs of watch straps and bracelets separately, and let users play mix-and-match to customise their own watches. Watch heads are priced between approximately [CHF 95 and 950, and the straps and bracelets range from CHF 35 to 140.]

Hiromitsu Endo, founder of Knot

Where do you make your watches?

All products are truly made in Japan and are a fusion of traditional Japanese craftsmanship and advanced technology. We have about 20 manufacturing partners throughout Japan who supply us with the traditional materials and techniques. In particular, our premium lines of high-beat automatic mechanical watches are made by first-class manufacturers who also produce other high-end branded watches like Grand Seiko.

Approximately how many timepieces do you produce?

The brand just celebrated its 10th anniversary. We have produced approximately 600,000 watch heads and nearly 1.5 million straps in the 10 years since the company was founded in March 2014.

The dial on the Knot Sumi Monochrome combines crushed seashell with urushi lacquer.

What developments are you planning for the near future?

At present, the proportion of premium line (high-end mechanical watches) among all products is about 15% in SKUs, but we have a plan to build up the field and increase it to over 30% in the coming few years, and more than a half in mid-term. And, importantly, we will increase our sales outside Japan, mainly targeting the US and European countries where our “Japan concept” models – premium mechanical watches with dials featuring traditional Japanese hand crafts such as Japanese lacquer, raden (mother-of-pearl) inlays, gold powder and platinum leaf – are very popular.

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Japanese watches can be hard to find outside Japan. How can an international audience buy your timepieces?

We have several distributors in Asian countries such as South Korea, Taiwan and the Philippines, and they are developing several Knot shops in each country, but for the last two to three years, our main sales have come from our global online site which we run from our headquarters in Tokyo and deliver directly to customers all over the world. Overseas (inbound) visitors to Japan are also increasing and are buying our products in our Knot Gallery shops, of which we have 12 across Japan. They now account for around 20% of our sales in Japan. Customers from the US and mainland China are the top two.