American Watch Brand: NIALL
I’m thrilled to announce NIALL as our fourth brand in our American Watch Brand series. NIALL—based in America’s Heartland, Kansas—produces classic, yet modern watches for both men and women. This luxury watch brand appeals to many watch collectors and it deserves the attention it’s been receiving the past few years.
Michael Wilson founded NIALL in 2012, and although it’s a relatively new brand, NIALL has made a name for itself in the watch industry. According to Wilson, they invested in technology to create their own in-house dials, and their AML (Additive Micro Layering) process has allowed NIALL to manufacture unique dial designs that cannot otherwise be achieved.
This innovative process helped inspire the design for NIALL’s Fieldhouse Blue GMT Limited Edition watch, which was a tribute to the game of basketball with the 13 Rules of Basketball micro-inscribed on the dial. The Fieldhouse Blue watch was released in February 2017, and it sold out in less than nine months. And this was just the beginning for NIALL. Their in-house AML process has given them the ability to personalize their watches in ways that they were previously unable to do.
Last year was also a big year for the ladies. NIALL launched their first collection of ladies’ timepieces, the Cairenn. The Cairenn was designed to give ladies a luxury watch that they can’t find anywhere else, and according to Wilson, they “are currently, the only brand in America producing a ladies timepiece with the same USA Made Swiss Movement standards as all [their] men's watches.”
The Cairenn is 36mm in diameter, making it a more modern watch in comparison to more traditional smaller watches. It also features a classic design that is feminine but not overly so. The ivory white dial is embellished with a guilloche pattern paired with a repeating microscopic ring that reads “My strength runs deep.” This ladies watch is available in stainless steel, with the option of adding .72 VS1 diamonds to the bezel.
So, you may be wondering how much of these watches are actually made in America? As you know from our previous articles, many American watch brands source their movements and parts from countries such as Switzerland or Japan. At this time, the United States simply does not have the established watch industry necessary for 100 percent American-made watches.
As we mentioned above, NIALL designs and manufactures their dials in-house with their AML process. As for the rest of the watch, Wilson said that “all other components, except for the movements, are source-verified manufactured in the USA,” and NIALL has “a vast supply chain, in the United States, that manufactures everything from midcases, to gaskets, to sapphire crystals.” As for their movements, they're Swiss-made, which gives many buyers peace of mind since Swiss-made movements are known for their reliability and accuracy.
All-in-all, there’s a reason why NIALL was named the #1 Watchmaker in America by The Good Trade and Wrist Review in 2017. As for the future, Wilson says that we should expect to see them mastering their current product line and going above and beyond with precious materials and refined designs. But NIALL’s promising future isn’t the only thing that Wilson is excited about. He is thrilled to see the success of other American watch brands, such as RGM, Vortic, Vero, and Monta, and he believes that we’re at “the beginning of a rebirth of the American watchmaking industry.” According to Wilson, “NIALL will be here for a long time” and will help "build a small piece of Switzerland, right here in America.”