87. Petrodvorets watch factory
The Petrodvorets factory is the oldest factory in Russia still in operation. It was founded by Peter the Great in 1721 as the Peterhof Lapidary Works and originally focused on producing marble components for churches, fountains, and palaces. In the middle of the 20th century, it converted to watch production under guidance from Stalin. In the 1960s, it produced the most popular watch in the world, and also made the first watch that was brought into outer space. The factory barely survived the breakup of the Soviet Union in the
1990s, going from 8,000 employees to fewer than 150 at present, but the
company is doing well and is now one of the premiere Russian brands. A few years ago, it manufactured the largest clock movement in the world for a store in Moscow.
Raketa watches were quite popular in Russia in the 1960s-1980s. They have recently re-positioned themselves at a higher price point in the market, and compete with mid-range offerings from some of the top brands in Switzerland and Japan. In fact, it now exports watch components for use by other European watchmakers in Switzerland and beyond. The factory now produces two brands: Pobeda ("victory", inspired by the end of the Great Patriotic War beginning in 1945) and Raketa ("rocket", inspired by cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin beginning in 1961). However, I don't think these watches are generally available in the United States.
The company is one of just four manufacturers in the world that produce hairsprings for timepieces (the most delicate component, now a closely-guarded proprietary process), as well as one of the only brands that produces its entire watch mechanism completely in-house. So, this factory is watch-geek heaven, and it offers an unprecedented level of access to anyone who is interested in learning more about how automatic watch mechanisms are made.
The factory includes a small museum and offers tours of the shop floor, but it could not be further off the tourist trail. Although it's a short walk from one of St. Petersburg's top tourist destinations (Peterhof Palace), very few people make the effort to visit here or are even aware of it. One of the first things the staff asked me when we arrived was how we had heard about the museum and factory tour because they really don't put any effort into marketing themselves as a tourist attraction.
The factory (located in a St. Petersburg suburb) was hard to find. I knew the basic location of where we were going after some internet research, but the cab driver couldn't find an entrance so he let us out on the street. After walking in circles for 10 minutes, I asked some nearby landscapers (in broken Russian) for help and they delivered us to a nearby watch repair shop (not where we wanted to be). I then called the factory and they sent me an annotated map, which provided enough information to find exactly where we needed to go. There were no signs anywhere and we ended up at a basically unmarked building, hidden by several other unmarked buildings, behind a gate and through an unmanned security checkpoint. Once we were buzzed in through the entrance (which does have a sign, but it is hard to see unless you're standing right in front of it), we climbed to the third floor (still not seeing any signs to confirm that we were in fact in the correct place). It was definitely the most challenging place I've tried to find in Russia.
The museum manager was fluent in English, and as we were the only visitors for most of our time there, she gave us a private tour. She first discussed the history of the factory, showed us pictures of some of their 18th century work, let us inspect all the watch models that have been made during the last 60 years, reviewed the different components that go into a modern mechanical wristwatch, and then took us onto the shop floor to see the component manufacturing and assembly process at work. This wasn't an American-style factory tour where you peer through a window or stand behind a rope; we were in the middle of things standing right next to busy employees hard at work. It was amazing to see the range of equipment (some modern and state-of-the-art, others decades old) that is used to produce tiny metal springs, gears, and plates with such precision. Some steps in the manufacturing process are computerized but many components are still created by hand.
In the last five years or so I have become a watch enthusiast and collector, and my favorite timepieces are ones that are a bit unusual or have some kind of story. Our adventure to find the factory and then walk around on the production floor is hard to beat. It was awesome to see in great detail how the watches are made. So, at the end of the tour we purchased three watches: a quartz Pobeda for my wife and two mechanical Raketa watches for me. These are the first souvenirs I've purchased in Russia.
Instead of a "12" (or "24") at the top of the dial, both Raketa watches show "0" - a unique design element of many Raketa models throughout the decades. The Pobeda watch has a "12" at the top position but it is the color red (in contrast to the other numbers), a common design element of this brand.
The first watch I selected is the "Polar" model - inspired by timepieces the factory made for Russian Arctic and Antarctic expeditions beginning in 1969 (which were not available for sale to the general public at the time). This mechanical automatic watch features a 24-hour dial - which is very helpful in the polar regions (or in St. Petersburg!) when it is light or dark for most of the day at certain times of the year and it can be hard to know whether it's AM or PM.
The second watch I chose was designed by Emir Kusturica (a Serbian filmmaker) in honor of the 100th anniversary of Russian avant-garde art (and inspired by the early twentieth century paintings of artists like Kandinsky, Malevich, or Lissitzky - such as this, this, or this one). It features unusual retro-styling and a textured red leather strap.
These watches are both among my nicest timepieces and I expect them to make frequent appearances on my wrist for decades to come.
Raketa watches were quite popular in Russia in the 1960s-1980s. They have recently re-positioned themselves at a higher price point in the market, and compete with mid-range offerings from some of the top brands in Switzerland and Japan. In fact, it now exports watch components for use by other European watchmakers in Switzerland and beyond. The factory now produces two brands: Pobeda ("victory", inspired by the end of the Great Patriotic War beginning in 1945) and Raketa ("rocket", inspired by cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin beginning in 1961). However, I don't think these watches are generally available in the United States.
The company is one of just four manufacturers in the world that produce hairsprings for timepieces (the most delicate component, now a closely-guarded proprietary process), as well as one of the only brands that produces its entire watch mechanism completely in-house. So, this factory is watch-geek heaven, and it offers an unprecedented level of access to anyone who is interested in learning more about how automatic watch mechanisms are made.
The factory includes a small museum and offers tours of the shop floor, but it could not be further off the tourist trail. Although it's a short walk from one of St. Petersburg's top tourist destinations (Peterhof Palace), very few people make the effort to visit here or are even aware of it. One of the first things the staff asked me when we arrived was how we had heard about the museum and factory tour because they really don't put any effort into marketing themselves as a tourist attraction.
The factory (located in a St. Petersburg suburb) was hard to find. I knew the basic location of where we were going after some internet research, but the cab driver couldn't find an entrance so he let us out on the street. After walking in circles for 10 minutes, I asked some nearby landscapers (in broken Russian) for help and they delivered us to a nearby watch repair shop (not where we wanted to be). I then called the factory and they sent me an annotated map, which provided enough information to find exactly where we needed to go. There were no signs anywhere and we ended up at a basically unmarked building, hidden by several other unmarked buildings, behind a gate and through an unmanned security checkpoint. Once we were buzzed in through the entrance (which does have a sign, but it is hard to see unless you're standing right in front of it), we climbed to the third floor (still not seeing any signs to confirm that we were in fact in the correct place). It was definitely the most challenging place I've tried to find in Russia.
The museum manager was fluent in English, and as we were the only visitors for most of our time there, she gave us a private tour. She first discussed the history of the factory, showed us pictures of some of their 18th century work, let us inspect all the watch models that have been made during the last 60 years, reviewed the different components that go into a modern mechanical wristwatch, and then took us onto the shop floor to see the component manufacturing and assembly process at work. This wasn't an American-style factory tour where you peer through a window or stand behind a rope; we were in the middle of things standing right next to busy employees hard at work. It was amazing to see the range of equipment (some modern and state-of-the-art, others decades old) that is used to produce tiny metal springs, gears, and plates with such precision. Some steps in the manufacturing process are computerized but many components are still created by hand.
In the last five years or so I have become a watch enthusiast and collector, and my favorite timepieces are ones that are a bit unusual or have some kind of story. Our adventure to find the factory and then walk around on the production floor is hard to beat. It was awesome to see in great detail how the watches are made. So, at the end of the tour we purchased three watches: a quartz Pobeda for my wife and two mechanical Raketa watches for me. These are the first souvenirs I've purchased in Russia.
Instead of a "12" (or "24") at the top of the dial, both Raketa watches show "0" - a unique design element of many Raketa models throughout the decades. The Pobeda watch has a "12" at the top position but it is the color red (in contrast to the other numbers), a common design element of this brand.
The first watch I selected is the "Polar" model - inspired by timepieces the factory made for Russian Arctic and Antarctic expeditions beginning in 1969 (which were not available for sale to the general public at the time). This mechanical automatic watch features a 24-hour dial - which is very helpful in the polar regions (or in St. Petersburg!) when it is light or dark for most of the day at certain times of the year and it can be hard to know whether it's AM or PM.
The second watch I chose was designed by Emir Kusturica (a Serbian filmmaker) in honor of the 100th anniversary of Russian avant-garde art (and inspired by the early twentieth century paintings of artists like Kandinsky, Malevich, or Lissitzky - such as this, this, or this one). It features unusual retro-styling and a textured red leather strap.
These watches are both among my nicest timepieces and I expect them to make frequent appearances on my wrist for decades to come.
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