Sealandheirs

This issue marks the fifth anniversary of Sealander, Christopher Ward’s elevated entry-level sports watch that pairs classic mid-century aesthetics with the knowhow of CW’s Trident dive watch series. The result? A go-anywhere, do-anything timepiece that’s defined one side of the Christopher Ward equation as confidently as Bel Canto has another.

Five years on, the second-generation Sealander is here. Available in a GMT and Automatic versions, it builds on the original – and ups the quality of every element: from the new movement to the revitalised case, dial, bracelet and movement.

For a company that’s all about ambition, innovation and value for money, both the radical and the everyday are equally important. But – counter-intuitively – creating a great daily wearer is trickier. Hence the pride across the company at how well the new updated Sealander has turned out. On the surface it’s no radical overhaul, but add them all together and… wow!

“We’ve taken a forensic look at every detail, then elevated each to the max,” says Mike France, company CEO and co-founder. “No one could argue with how successful Sealander’s been – we sell more white-dial GMTs than we do anything else – but that doesn’t mean we hadn’t noticed areas that would benefit from some extra love.”

“As always, going slim is a big win”

The Sealander story began in 2019, with Christopher Ward’s earliest attempts to design an integrated bracelet sports watch. “Maximum effort, some great ideas, but the project was stalling badly for all that,” Mike says. It was depressing, alleviated by something Jörg Bader Jnr, CW’s product director, had said: “Why don’t we park this, and try a different sort of bracelet watch?” He was thinking of the semi-tough, semi-dressy pieces Rolex and Omega are so great at: perfect for the office, great for travelling, an ideal companion to the everyday – or for heading out into the wild.

We all know what a smart idea that was. Pre-Sealander, Christopher Ward relied on the enduring Trident as its standard bearer for everyday wearability; after it, the brand started pushing in different directions all at once. Many people didn’t notice immediately – perhaps blinded by the fireworks of Bel Canto’s simultaneous haute horlogerie charge into parts unknown – but Sealander became the foundation upon which the company stood. “It turned into a huge watch for us,” Mike says. “But never got the credit it deserved. We’re about to change that.”

These new versions are not about reinventing the wheel, but instead about improving each element. “One day we’d be working on proportions or wearability, the next on performance or ease of use,” says designer Will Brackfield. “And with each tiny modification, the watches came into sharper focus. They’re now more polished, both literally and figuratively, and – as we removed the last traces of Trident influence – have become their own, standalone things.”

How so? “Let’s start with the case,” Will says. “The original Sealander used an iteration of the Trident Light-catcher™ with the turning bezel removed, but the new cases are different – and more up-market. We’ve altered the proportions, so now you can see the polished facets from the side profile as you look at the watch head-on.”

“Rarely has a second iteration of a major platform felt like such a giant leap forward”

To accommodate this, bezels on both the GMT and Automatic versions have become slightly smaller, and with the mid-case now more visible you get a layering effect from any angle. The case is thinner, too, the GMT dropping from 11.85mm to 11.30mm, and the Auto from 11.25mm to 10.90mm. “As always, going slim is a big win,” says Will.

There’s also a new in-house rotor design – engraved, skeletonised and influenced by the one used in the Twelve X – which we’ll be seeing across all the collections in time, and a more conical crown, which ties in with redesigned less ‘blocky’ indices. “Tapering everything gives a feeling of motion,” Will says. “Taking cues from the C63 Celest – the dressiest Sealander of the previous incarnation – both hands and indices are now fully polished, rather than brushed and polished, for a more ‘jewellery’ feel. And we’ve removed the three-pronged counterbalance from the seconds hand, one of the most obvious holdovers from Trident.”

Another element that really sings is the new applied date window. “The previous dials always felt a bit empty,” Will says. “They’re more complete now. Oh, and we’ve added the model name above the 6. It’s something we’ve talked about forever and will now apply across much of the range, but Sealander gets it first.”

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, there’s the new iLink™ ‘no tool’ bracelet system, which comes in Bader™ and Consort™ versions. Alternatively, wear yours on camel-coloured leather, or try the new black integrated rubber strap, which shares a pattern with the C12 Loco and C63 True GMT strap and is shaped so it butts right up against the case.

C63 Sealander GMT

Part of the impetus for the updated Sealanders was to put clear water between the best-selling outdoorsy GMT and the dressier Automatic, so the best way to think about the new GMT is that it’s the same as before, just more so.

The reshaped GMT case now comes in more sizes – the existing 36mm and 39mm versions joined by 42mm – while the crown guards are retained, “leaning right into its tool-watch nature”, says Mike. And there are further improvements it might take you a while to spot, like a darker, more contrasting coating on the indices of the white dial versions, which help them ‘pop’.

“We’ve also removed the numbered outer minute track on the GMT to give everything room to breathe,” says Will. “Our new, bolder bezel holds punchier numbers and eats into the dial opening’s real estate a little, which gives a more compact, robust aspect.”

C63 Sealander Automatic

Meanwhile, it’s the Automatic that has many of the new Sealander’s headline changes. “This is where the rethink feels most radical,” Mike says. “The new Auto is more refined than the old one – and much more handsome.” It now has a fully polished bezel, where the GMT retains the old circular brush effect, while the crown guards have been dropped to allow the new conical crown to shine. Its slimmer case comes in the established 36 and 39mm sizes, while the old spots of colour on the dial furniture are gone, creating a monochrome look. Combine that with a polished lacquer finish to the dial (“We’re losing the sun-ray options,” Will says) and you get a more put-together, glittering whole. It feels a little smaller than the old version, too – “the new bezel helps with that,” Will says, “especially at 39mm”.

“They’re refined, dressy and handsome”

But the biggest change lies behind the rotor, where you’ll find Sellita’s new SW200-2 Power+ movement, now boasting a 65-hour power reserve, a giant leap on from the standard SW200’s 38. “We’re one of the first anywhere to use it,” says Jörg.

When the familiar SW200 was first designed, most owners wore the same watch daily, and so prioritised torque (for accuracy) and stability over power reserve. But now watches are often worn in rotation, making the idea that it will still be running accurately after a weekend away from the wrist more important. “Though the new SW200-2 may look familiar, internally it’s largely new,” says Dr. Sébastien Chaulmontet, Sellita’s marketing and innovation director. “Extending power reserve is not simply a technological upgrade – it requires trade-offs. Lower frequencies can boost it, but often compromise accuracy, so we’ve chosen a middle path: maintain a high 4Hz frequency and strong balance inertia, while delivering a 65-hour power reserve. We could have gone to 80 hours, but this way we preserve chronometer- level performance.”

Small changes, big differences. “Though we’re constantly refining and modernising across all our collections, rarely has a second iteration of a major platform felt like such a giant leap forward,” Jörg says. And Mike is, if anything, even keener. “This is a watch I’m incredibly proud of, not least as it’s bound to become the starting point for so many watch journeys. I like to think of it as our ‘Porsche 911’ moment. There’s been no need for an in-your-face revolution, because the starting point’s so strong – but that doesn’t mean we can’t make things better across the board.”

Just one decision still to be made, then. What colour do you prefer? “We still have White and Black,” Will says. “But now there’s a Glacier Blue and Pistachio Green: they’re all versions of colours we’ve used before, though the White, for instance, is warmer than the old one.” The 36mm GMT comes in Blue or White; you can have both those colours or Black at 42mm; and there’s the full range at 39mm. With the Automatic, all four colours come in both sizes.

That’s the updated Sealander, then: more refined, more premium, elevated in every detail – yet true as ever to its strong, functional silhouette and purposeful DNA. “Both the new Automatic and new GMT are brilliant everyday pieces,” Mike says. “One for city-into-country exploration, and the other with travel and the great outdoors in mind.”

C63 Sealander Automatic - £850 / $1150
C63 Sealander GMT - £1025 / $1395