Not every watchmaker can say they once closed multi-million-pound deals before delicately closing the case back on a Rolex. But at Wakefields, we don’t do ordinary, and neither does Mark. One of two in-house watchmakers on the team, Mark’s story is as precise and carefully assembled as the timepieces he now services.

Growing up in a family of lawyers in Ireland, with both parents and siblings in the profession, Mark seemed destined for the courtroom. He studied finance, his first love thanks to a natural affinity for numbers, and travelled the world with his wife, before settling into what many would consider a dream career in finance law. Working for an international firm, he managed multi-million-pound deals across a range of specialities for high-profile clients, routinely joining overnight Zoom calls, across global time zones. But while his peers chased billable hours, Mark was quietly counting down the seconds.

“It was dynamic, fast-paced, but it just wasn’t sustainable,” he recalls. “Long hours, a lack of support.. eventually I realised the juice just wasn’t worth the squeeze. The balance had shifted, and the return on my investment wasn’t there.”

Long before law, watchmaking had quietly captured his attention. With no pathways into the profession available after the closure of the Irish Swiss Institute of Horology in 2004, he considered applying to the newly opened British School of Watchmaking in Manchester. But in its early days, the school only accepted candidates linked to its founding members, and the idea was reluctantly shelved. But the thought continued to tick away in the background. Like many, Mark re-evaluated his priorities in the wake of the pandemic, and it was his wife who encouraged him to revisit his long-held ambition. He began by buying basic watch tools and inexpensive movements online, turning the kitchen table into a makeshift workbench, and relying on YouTube as his first tutor. His first challenge: to disassemble a mechanical movement and reassemble it without catastrophe.

By then, the British School of Watchmaking had revised its admissions policy. External, self-sponsored candidates could now apply for a highly competitive eight places per year. Mark advanced to the next stage: a rigorous assessment day in Manchester involving numerical and reasoning tests, bench tasks, interviews, and presentations. It marked the true beginning of his journey into horology. The following year was a steep learning curve, but a deeply rewarding one. “It’s about precision and process, not ego,” he explains. “And you have to be open to constructive criticism in order to truly understand the standards the industry demands.”

Michael Bellamy, Technical Director at Bremont, awarded Mark for achieving the highest score in the final exam of the 1800-hour WOSTEP (Watchmakers of Switzerland Training and Educational Program) course.

Today, Mark describes his work as therapeutic, calming, and exacting, a far cry from the relentless pressures of finance law. At Wakefields, he sees each watch through from start to finish, taking full responsibility for every detail. “You don’t get that opportunity in many places,” he says. “What I put out there is me. I’m accountable to my training, my standards. Every watch reflects that.”

He finds particular satisfaction in polishing, a moment where form meets function, and restoration becomes personal. He often imagines the joy of someone wearing their newly revitalised timepiece, whether it’s a vintage Rolex or a modern gem-set Datejust. For Mark, the value lies not only in the engineering, but in the emotion. “Each watch has a story,” he says. “And I get to help continue it.”

Still, he’s eager to demystify the profession. Watchmaking isn’t all glamour, he insists, and success depends on an appetite for precision and patience. “It’s not always what people expect. You need to enjoy the technical side. There’s no substitute for just trying, take things apart, see how they work, get your hands on old movements.”

As a Rolex Level 30 accredited watchmaker, Mark now services watches for a range of brands at Wakefields. “Whilst each brand has its own approach, or its own tools, the goal is always the same: excellence.”

At Wakefields, Mark embodies a rare combination of legal precision, horological expertise, and a deep dedication to craftsmanship. Whether he is caring for a cherished heirloom or a newly acquired timepiece, he approaches every watch with the utmost care and respect. The next time you entrust our watch to Wakefields, you can be confident it is in the safest hands, hands that once navigated complex legal contracts and now expertly wield tweezers beneath a loupe.

As Mark would say, that’s time well spent.