Britain’s historic Royal Observatory Greenwich – home of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and the Prime Meridian line – has awarded an exclusive worldwide licence to supply and distribute watches bearing its famous name to Yarto, the company owned by well-known gift industry businessman Michael Grant.

The brand-new range is destined for department stores, jewellery and duty free shops and mail order companies in the UK and overseas.

The prestigious watches – set to retail at between £85 and £300 – are expected to be with stockists in spring 2012.

The Meridian timeline will be engraved on the buckle of each timepiece, which will carry on the reverse, ‘Officially endorsed by the Royal Observatory Greenwich – Home of Time and GMT’, as well as a reference to the Yarto brand, ‘By Grant of London’.

The extensive range will include chronographs; classic, dual time and GMT watches, slim and fashion models, as well as limited editions – all made of either titanium or stainless steel and with high quality mechanical and quartz movements.

Michael Grant, a former chairman of The Giftware Association, is now seeking distributors – and stockists – in Britain and around the world. Those interested are invited to meet him on the Yarto stand at Spring Fair international (Hall 5 Stand L01).

He said: “As a British company Yarto is both honoured and delighted to be associated with the Royal Observatory Greenwich. This unique range of watches is an exciting addition to our portfolio.”

Caroline Brown, Head of Commerce for The Royal Observatory Greenwich, said: “We are delighted to be working with a British company with expertise in this area. Bespoke watches have proved to be extremely popular in our own shops and we look forward to seeing watches from the Home of Time selling across the world.”

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Notes to editors: Designed by Christopher Wren, the Royal Observatory Greenwich is the home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Prime Meridian and one of the most important historic scientific sites in the world. Since its founding in 1675, Greenwich has been at the centre of the measurement of time and space. Visitors can stand in both the eastern and western hemispheres simultaneously by placing their feet either side of the Prime Meridian line. Today the galleries describe the achievements of the early astronomers, explain the history of the search for longitude at sea and tell the story of precision timekeeping.

Further information from Yarto Europe Limited, Premier House, 112 Station Road, Edgware HA8 7BJ, UK. Tel: 0208 954 2661; fax 0208 954 2667; email info@yarto.com; web www.yarto.com

Media enquiries: Alan Monahan. Tel 01785 824901; 07710 437789(m); email ajmonahan@aol.com

December 2011