Olivia Burton

Lesa Bennett and Jemma Fennings started Olivia Burton in London in 2012, coming from fashion rather than watchmaking and treating the watch as an accessory to be designed rather than a instrument to be engineered.

That showed in the product: illustrated dials, floral and bee motifs, applied three-dimensional details, mesh and leather straps in soft colours. The bee became the signature, and the brand found a large audience among buyers who wanted something with a point of view at under £200.

Movado Group acquired the company in 2017, placing it alongside Movado, Ebel, Concord and MVMT. Production and distribution run through Movado; the design identity has stayed recognisably its own.

The watches are quartz and the appeal is the artwork, not the movement — which is a fair description of what the brand set out to do in the first place.

Olivia Burton holds 78 models, from £55 to £199. Half cost less than £129, and a quarter less than £109. 1 of 78 is automatic. 16 are stocked by more than one retailer, giving 94 offers in total. Prices are checked nightly against the retailers’ own feeds.

2012

Founded in London by Lesa Bennett and Jemma Fennings.

2015

The bee motif becomes the brand signature.

2017

Acquired by Movado Group.

2019

Range expands into jewellery and gifting.

2024

Distribution runs through Movado's international network.