Aera

Aera began in Geneva in early January 2018, when a small group of watch professionals from different corners of the industry met to answer one question: what defines a good watch? Their answer was that it should be honest, well made, and reasonably priced, and they took their cue from the tool watches of the 1950s and 1960s, not as retro copies but as contemporary, original designs. The name comes from the Latin 'era', a period of time with a distinct character. The brand sells under the line 'Swiss made, British design' and trades as Lone and Tonto Ltd in the UK. It launched with two models, the D-1 Diver and P-1 Pilot, and has since added the M-1 field watch and the C-1 chronograph.

Every Aera is built around 904L stainless steel, a harder-to-machine, more corrosion-resistant alloy than the usual 316L, used for the case, caseback, bezel, crown, and even the strap buckles. The movements are Sellita calibres beating at 28,800 vph, tested in Switzerland and again in the UK. The dials are one-piece, dished, and stamped on a hydraulic press, with recessed markings deep-etched into the surface, under a domed, anti-reflective, flush-fitted sapphire crystal. Lume is Swiss Super-LumiNova, with Globolight XP, a luminous ceramic, on the C-1 and M-1. Each watch ships with two straps, carries a serial number on the caseback and one lug, and has a two-year warranty extended to three on registration, plus free shipping and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

The D-1 Diver is a 44mm dive watch with a ceramic unidirectional bezel, 300 metres of water resistance, and a Sellita SW200-1 Elaboré (38–41 hours), in Diver, Ocean, and Forest at £2,000 and Blackout and Whiteout at £2,300. The P-1 Pilot is a 43mm watch with 100 metres and the same movement, in Pilot, Moon, and Air Force at £1,900. The M-1 is a 39mm field watch inspired by the WWII 'Dirty Dozen' issue, with hand-applied Globolight numerals and the hand-wound Sellita SW216-1 (42 hours), as the Dune and Field at £1,600 and the black PVD Blackbird at £1,750. The C-1 is a 42mm chronograph on the bi-compax Sellita SW510 BH (56 hours, 27 jewels, 100 metres); the C-1 Chrono, in a reverse-panda layout with racing-red hands and an edition of 300, and the Cloud cost £2,200, the Shadow £2,350, and the Rennsport £2,550. Most models are limited editions of 300 pieces.

Aera works with collaborators including Todd Snyder, Firmship, Woolrich, and Rennsport, and its Aeranauts series profiles the adventurers, travellers, and makers who inspire the brand, among them Steve Woods, Yuki Matsuda, Joe Doucet, Kathleen Baird-Murray, and Josh Peskowitz. On sustainability it commits to limited runs to avoid over-production, straps that fit across models, recyclable and biodegradable paper packaging from a UK supplier, and manuals and warranties kept online. Across the range, prices run from £1,600 to £2,550.