Our Story
Watches of Switzerland is Australia’s leading official luxury watch retailer.
Established in 1997 as a single storefront in Perth, Watches of Switzerland is today Australia’s leading and largest official boutique retailer of exclusive luxury watches. Family-owned, the company delivers an expertly curated customer experience through its portfolio of prestigious boutiques in major cities across the country; Melbourne City, Melbourne International Airport, Sydney City, Barangaroo Crown Sydney, Perth and Canberra. Watches of Switzerland is also proud to operate the largest A. Lange & Söhne boutique in the Southern Hemisphere, located at the esteemed Martin Place in Sydney.
We are proud to offer our clients a carefully curated selection of the world’s finest luxury watch brands, including Rolex, Tudor, Vacheron Constantin, IWC Schaffhausen and A. Lange & Söhne, for which Watches of Switzerland has served as the exclusive retailer in Australia since 2012.
A Family Affair
Watches of Switzerland was founded by Eric van der Griend, who today serves as our Chairman. After spending 10 years importing and developing premium Swiss brands into the Australian market, he recognised the opportunity to do more. To create a business that focuses on the traditional values of offering the highest quality watches in the world matched by the finest customer service at all stages during the buying process as well as after sales. These are the core values that we still live by today.
Eric’s son, Sam van der Griend joined the business in 2004 and became Managing Director in 2013. Eric’s youngest son, Ed van der Griend joined in 2012 and was appointed to the role of Director in 2021.
We invite you to visit us in-store or online today and discover for yourself what makes Watches of Switzerland Australia’s leading official luxury watch retailer.