The story of Michelsen watchmakers goes back a whole century, to 1909, when the first of the Michelsen watchmakers established a small business in Iceland under the Michelsen name.
The Michelsen watchmakers‘ family history has been closely interwoven with the story of Icelandic trade and industry during the past century and they have always enjoyed respect as good tradesmen and craftsmen with a special flair for customer relations.
A brief account of the history of the enterprising and energetic watchmakers’ family Michelsen starts in the year 1907 when King Frederick VIII of Denmark came to Iceland on a royal visit. The King’s retinue included a young watchmaker, J. Frank Michelsen (b. 1882), who took a good look around and decided Iceland was a good place to settle down. In 1909, J. Frank Michelsen established his own watchmaker’s shop in the north of Iceland, selling watches, clocks and jewellery.
One of his sons, watchmaker Franch Michelsen (b. 1913), learned the trade from his father and set up a second Michelsen shop in Reykjavík in 1943. The two shops merged in 1946 when J. Frank Michelsen moved from Sauðárkrókur in the north of the country to Reykjavík and father and son worked together until the death of the elder Michelsen in 1954. Third generation watchmaker Frank Michelsen (b. 1956) started as an apprentice to his father and completed his training with WOSTEP in Neuchatel, Switzerland. He then returned home and has since worked as a watchmaker side by side first with his father, and later his son, Robert (b. 1984), who is the fourth generation and also a WOSTEP watchmaker. Frank Michelsen formally took over the family firm in 1999 on the occasion of its 90th anniversary. In keeping with the Michelsen watchmaking family history the youngest Michelsen, Robert, was chosen the year 2005, one of six students worldwide, for two year training at the famous WOSTEP watchmaking school in Neuchatel, Switzerland, which is a leading school in the watchmaking field. There he learned all the latest watchmaking technique and technology and built his own watch.
The Michelsen watchmakers have kept abreast of progress through the years, adopting new technologies as they emerged, at the same time respecting tradition. Their dedication has earned them a solid reputation, which has been passed on from one generation of clients to another. December 1st 2009, on their 100 years anniversary, the Michelsen watchmakers launched their own watch under the name MICHELSEN WATCHMAKERS, in a numbered and limited edition of 100 pieces. The Anniversary watch became an instant success and proofs how respected and known they are in Iceland, people wanted a piece of their family history on their arm. A new watch in the Michelsen line will be launched later this year, most likely this summer.
