How One Watch Brand Taught Me to Slow Down

What’s the best way to measure time? As a perpetually late twenty-something with a penchant for crippling nostalgia, I’m rather burdened by this question. The awareness of each minute is etched into my mind; the weight of impermanence hovers over every hour. I’m often left wondering if there’s enough time—or worse, worried that I’m wasting it—but it’s not until recently that I asked why.

In early June, I found myself in Los Angeles with Urban Jürgensen, a centuries-old watch brand celebrating a next-gen relaunch. When it comes to embracing the passage of time, no institution has mastered it quite like this one. Founded in Copenhagen 250 years ago, the family-run company rose to prominence as a leader in horological craftsmanship, garnering a cult following among luxury watch collectors over the centuries. Having weathered significant history and shifts in ownership, it’s now stepping into a new era—one that celebrates each fleeting moment, instead of stressing over it.

Upon checking into my hotel, I was greeted by a welcome note inviting me to “keep time beautifully.” My inner existentialist felt unfamiliar with this concept, but I was certainly in the right place to learn more. The 2025 brand revival comes from renowned American watch collector Andrew M. Rosenfield, who bought the company in 2021, appointing his son Alex Rosenfield and watchmaking legend Kari Voutilainen as co-CEOs. Three and a half years later, they held a days-long event to unveil three new timepieces—UJ-1, UJ-2, and UJ-3—which merged California coolness with Scandi singularity.

The UJ-1 Anniversary Watch is a limited-edition release—there are only 75 in the world—that pays homage to history, with the finish, geometry and complications referencing the brand’s roots as well as Voutilainen’s storied career. The UJ-2 and UJ-3 are more future-facing, coinciding with the brand’s refresh.

All are marvels of mathematical precision. No detail is overlooked, from the ultra-light sculpted hands to the floating rubies on the back, a brilliant measure that keeps each function in perfect balance. “The next generation of Urban Jürgensen is not about repeating the past,” Alex Rosenfield explained when unveiling the watches. “It is about capturing the magic of what [past] all knew: that the way we keep time inspires how we spend it.”

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UJ-1 / Photography courtesy of Urban Jürgensen

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This idea was a theme of the trip, wherein every venue—the Santa Monica Post Office with timepieces on display; the airport’s Barker Hangar where a celebration dinner was held—revolved around time. These are spaces where minutes are tracked: letters are dutifully dated and flights follow strict schedules. But even here, Urban Jürgensen—blending the past with the future—abandons the rigidity of time.

While watch campaigns are usually static and serious, its imagery is delightfully random. The post office walls were plastered with images of its timepieces integrated into still-life art. Think: a watch in a coupe glass, placed next to a plate with cooked fish and clasped around a bouquet of wild flowers.

As part of its campaign, the brand also tapped iconic fashion photographer Ellen von Unwerth for a portrait series with creative figures. These visuals embody the ethos that watches do not just exist as luxury accoutrements, but as an extension of everyday life. In contrast to a glowing, digital screen, the old-timey appeal of a watch lies in its simple purpose: to let the wearer to relish the passage of time.

The final night at dinner, a London-based watch collector seated next to me shared the inspiration behind her personal treasure trove of timepieces. “I’ve realized that time is an illusion,” she told me, adding that what matters is not how much time has gone by, but what you do with the time that you’re given. Wearing watches—especially those as carefully crafted as Urban Jürgensen’s—lets her live with a little more intention.

This, in turn, helped me untangle my looming anxiety. The most meaningful markers of time are not deadlines or deliverables, but the instances in which you lose track of it altogether. In a chorus of uncontrollable laughter or a moment of shared silence. A late night lingering over dessert. Window shopping on a long walk. Some experiences aren’t meant to be quantified, and that’s the beauty of being alive.

In the days following the trip, I kept returning to something that Rosenfield said at the Santa Monica Post Office. “Our core philosophy is that the pursuit of perfection is a joy in itself.” With that, I’ve stopped worrying about how to make sense of time, and focused instead on the best ways to spend it.