Watchmaker inspired by WWII aircraft

A Chinese watchmaker who is a graduate from Birmingham City University has taken inspiration from an iconic British World War II airplane for his latest design.

The watch's design is drawn from the iconic Blenheim bomber.

After a successful crowd funding campaign, 27-year-old Dennis Chen from China's Hainan province, designed the watch to echo the flight instruments found in the cockpit of the Blenheim bomber.

Chen said: "The cockpit of the Blenheim bomber contained flight instruments on an easy-to-read panel with various functions that enabled the pilot to fl y the aircraft. These dials inspired the creation of the military watch, which is powered by Swiss-made movements."

Chen moved to the UK in August 2010 to study marketing at Birmingham City University and went on to graduate with a master's degree in visual communication in 2014, after starting his business, Blenheim Watch.

"I am an antique watch lover and active collector," Chen said. "After doing some market research of the watch industry, I decided that I wanted to combine my interest in watches with my knowledge of design, as well as my passion for entrepreneurship, and Blenheim Watch was born."

His Chronomaster Pilot Watch was designed in Birmingham. He has already received orders from the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Germany and Denmark.

Chen used 3D printing to create a prototype for his first watch. Last year, he launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds. The watch was made possible after funds surpassed his target of 4,000 pounds - by more than 11,000 pounds on the Kickstarter website.

The funding from the campaign was used to support production of the watch and pay for advertising and marketing.

The 27-year-old now plans to open an assembly studio in Birmingham to cut down the time it takes to create his watches. He also believes it will enhance the quality of the finished product.

Chen is also looking at launching two more crowd funding campaigns to create a diver's watch with in-built smart technology.

Richard Leighton, Birmingham City University's enterprise adviser, said: "Dennis is a creative and passionate individual who has inspired other international students at Birmingham City University by highlighting that, on completing academic studies, you can remain in the UK to set up and run an enterprise. He has worked extremely hard to establish his business over the two years on the Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) visa program and we are delighted for him in gaining the Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa to remain in the UK to continue to run his business successfully for another three years."