Why isn't there a bigger watch industry in the Nordics?

Scandinavian style brings to mind many things: sensibly engineered cars, minimalist wooden furniture, chunky knit jumpers. But probably not watches, and there is a good reason for that.

In the early 1800s, much of central Europe was industrialising fast, meaning a growing market for cutting edge tech like watches. But Sweden, Norway and Denmark were still pretty poor and agricultural, and so missed out on the watchmaking boom.

Scandinavia is still scant when it comes to watch brands. The closest you get is Sweden’s Sjöö Sandström, which has been around since the 1980s and has experimented with making its own watches, but still relies on Swiss movements.

In recent years a few interesting indie companies have sprung up. The Danish brand Arcanaut is under 10 years old and makes strikingly designed watches with clean, uncluttered dials and Swiss automatic movements. Fellow Danish newcomers, Nordgreen, also offers understated chic, but lower down the price range, and mostly powered by Japanese quartz.

Another entry-level brand, Triwa, was founded by a group of designers and sells handsome quartz powered watches. So while the Nordics may not be big watchmakers, there is still enough out there to choose from. And with prices starting around the level of an IKEA bathroom cabinet, the door to Scandinavian style is wide open.

Here are four Scandi style watches you need to check out

Pro tip: Know your Nordics

Scandi design begins with function, as designers ask what an object actually needs to do, then remove anything distracting from that aim. So on watches we see clear markings, restrained colours and lots of negative space. Wearing a Nordic watch should give a calm, peaceful feeling, like driving a Volvo beside a quiet Swedish lake.