Start a watch brand by designing the look and buying the movement, not by making watches: most new brands put an established movement, such as one from Citizen's Miyota, into cases, dials and straps made to their design by a contract assembler. If the watches are made abroad, you need an Import Export Code from the DGFT (Rs 500, issued online against your PAN and updated every year), Legal Metrology registration as an importer of packaged goods (Rs 500) with the required declarations on every box, and GST. Order a small first batch, photograph it well, and sell to a clear niche (a style, a price point, a community) online before approaching retailers, and file your trademark early. What kills most watch brands is trust: buyers know the established names, so a new brand has to earn credibility with a clear story, honest specifications and a warranty it actually honours before it can sell at scale.
An August 2026 guide to the Import Export Code: Rs 500 one-time, issued online on the DGFT portal against your PAN, valid for life with a mandatory annual update between April and June.
An August 2026 guide to the Legal Metrology rules every packed product meets: the Rs 500 one-time registration for manufacturers, packers and importers within 90 days of starting, the mandatory label declarations (MRP inclusive of taxes, net quantity, unit sale price, consumer care), and the stamping of trade scales.
A tighter second read that makes the "register early" case concrete: it lists 12 scenarios that force registration regardless of turnover and states plainly that below-threshold businesses register voluntarily to unlock input tax credit and to look credible. It also names the documents you need (PAN, ID proof, digital signature) so you know what to gather before you start.
A state Legal Metrology department's own FAQ: who counts as a packer, the declarations every pre-packed commodity must carry, and registration of manufacturers, packers and importers under Rule 27 of the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011, with a Rs 500 fee for new registration. Registration is with your own state's Controller of Legal Metrology.
The catalogue of Miyota, Citizen's movement-making business, whose quartz and mechanical movements sit inside many small and new watch brands. Shows the specifications you choose from before briefing a case maker.
