Since its inception in 2015, the F.P.Journe Young Talent Competition has been committed to recognising the next generation of independent watchmakers. With a focus on technical discipline, mechanical creativity, and classical craft, the award highlights one individual each year whose work reflects both skill and perspective. As the 2025 edition concludes, we revisit the past five winners whose contributions continue to shape the tone of independent watchmaking today.

In 2020, Japanese watchmaker Norifumi Seki was honored with the F.P.Journe Young Talent Competition award for his Spherical Moon and Drum Calendar Pocket Watch. Crafted during his final year at Hiko Mizuno College of Jewelry in Tokyo, this piece showcases Seki’s dedication to traditional horology infused with innovative design. The pocket watch features a prominent 20mm spherical moon phase display, engineered from titanium with sections finished in heated blue and gold plating to represent lunar phases. Complementing this is a vertical calendar display utilizing rotating drums for the date and month, enhancing legibility and mechanical intrigue. Seki’s meticulous craftsmanship and inventive approach underscore his potential in the realm of independent watchmaking

In 2021, Swiss watchmaker Mario Scarpatetti was awarded the F.P.Journe Young Talent Competition prize for his creation, the Kalender Perpeten—a secular perpetual calendar clock. This wristwatch is distinguished by its ability to automatically account for irregular leap years, requiring no manual correction for date adjustments. Scarpatetti developed an innovative 400-year wheel mechanism to achieve this precision, a design for which he secured a patent in 2018. Crafted traditionally by hand, the clock comprises 570 components, reflecting Scarpatetti’s dedication to classical horology and mechanical ingenuity.

In 2022, Polish physicist and self-taught watchmaker Maciej Miśnik was honored with the F.P.Journe Young Talent Competition award for his handcrafted marine chronometer pocket watch. This watch features a tourbillon and pivoted detent escapement, reflecting Miśnik’s commitment to traditional horology and precision. Inspired by his seafaring father and a fascination with brass marine instruments, Miśnik constructed the watch over approximately eight months, dedicating around 1,000 hours without the use of CNC technology. His meticulous craftsmanship and innovative approach underscore his potential in the realm of independent watchmaking.

In 2023, French watchmaking student Alexandre Hazemann was selected as the Young Talent Competition winner for his chiming jumping hour wristwatch, the AH.02 Signature. Developed during his studies at the Lycée Edgar Faure in Morteau, the piece was shaped by a central question: “What do we need to be happy?” Hazemann’s response came in the form of a watch built around simplicity and sound — a clean digital hour display paired with a soft hourly chime. It was a project that reflected both technical control and personal clarity, grounded in classical watchmaking but framed with intention.

In 2024, French watchmaker Thomas Aubert received the Young Talent Competition award for Séléné — a manually wound wristwatch constructed during his final year at the Edgar Faure school in Morteau. The watch references 19th-century French pocket watches through its movement layout and key-wound architecture, with no external crown. On the dial side, a grated motif sits over a frosted plate, punctuated by a mirror-polished balance bridge. A poetic detail appears on the reverse: a shooting star animation that arcs across the caseback, powered by the recoil of the winding mechanism. Séléné blends mechanical inventiveness with personal language, and remains entirely his own work.

This year, the Young Talent Competition was presented during Watches and Wonders 2025 at the F.P.Journe manufacture in Geneva, with past winners in attendance in a rare moment of collective recognition. A full introduction to the winner — including photographs and technical insight — will follow post-Watches & Wonders 2025. Stay tuned.

Together, these past recipients reflect the enduring strength of the Young Talent Competition — not just as a prize, but as a pathway for watchmakers who build from first principles, guided by intent rather than visibility. As the next chapter begins, the focus remains unchanged: to support, not shape; to encourage, not direct — and to provide a stage for ideas still in the process of becoming.