Norbert is a gem! My mum who is in her late 60's inherited an Omega watch from her grandfather. None of us had realized how expensive Omegas are and she had been taking it regularly to watchmakers in India who sadly had damaged it the last time. We were initially going to take this to the Omega boutique close by home but upon learning they ship their watches internationally she wanted to find someone local who could handle it. They searched and were fortunate to find Norbert! He fixed the most immediate areas and guided against fixing all the damage but managed to get it back working as it is has never worked so well before. His work is thoughtful and he was extremely honest so well worth the investment in her watch. read more

5 Stars. Excellent Service for watch repair. Very fast. Fair price. Highly recommended.

unimpressed with his knowledge of fixing watches. crown that couldn't move the hands .." I can't fix it" How about just replacing the cannon pinion? read more

I just had Rolex Oyster cleaned by Norbert for the second and I cannot recommend him more highly. Finally had to replace the pin, but can't complain after 48 years of constant usage! One is a bit hesitate to leave a valuable watch anywhere, but rest assured it is lock in his safe and he will do a wonderful job! read more

You simply won't find a better place to take your timepiece in for repair. I have been dealing with Norbert Zerbes (no, he's not German) for many decades. He is a master of his craft, honest and will always treat you fairly. He has over 300 Google reviews and all are five stars. That speaks for itself... read more

The German Watchmaker - Watch Repair Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Norbert saved me 10,000 dollars I took a few Rolexes I bought off eBay to him never met him before saw a few watches on Facebook that people were selling there Rolexes and would meet up with the buyer at the German Watch Maker to verify the authenticity of there watch they advertised so I live in the interior of b.c I drove down to get him to check my purchases he told me one of them was a fake and some Other Places would of not known just like the poor guy who sold it to me was fooled I'm sure . There was a line up outside his door when I got there and well worth the wait .and for me was a six hour drive one way. Thank you Norbert read more

My go to watchmaker! Works quickly and efficiently. Convenient location and hours. I'll be back!

In a world where people want more for less, this German Watchmaker completely knocked my socks off! Went in there with a beautiful watch that had a broken crown and another watch from my wife that wasn't working. The gentleman repaired both watches in less than half an hour. What really impressed us was how nice he was and how his attention to detail did an outstanding job. I will definitely return and recommend him to anyone needing repairs. He's a true professional. I e-Transferred the cost of repair and left him a tip. He was very surprised and called me to say Thank You! Who does that? People don't mind paying if they feel appreciated. That's how we felt! read more

Went to get my date just looked at after it stopped working. After a look see and a quote, turns out the spring coil had snapped and it needed a tune-up since it's never had one. He even buffed out a deep scratch on the side of the face and waterproofed it again. Looked good as new! He said ok to an etransfer since I wasn't comfortable carrying around the cash and offered a three to four year warranty on his servicing. Sweet man. read more

I was contemplating servicing my TAG Heuer Carrera as I haven't worn it for many years and when I asked where I should bring it to, everyone I talked to recommended me to go see The German Watchmaker. He's local, has a great reputation and faster than sending it to TAG. In my mind I was willing to spend $600+ for service, reconditioning and maybe purchase a leather strap. When I arrived I told Norbert what I was looking to do and within 10 mins I left with an Austrian leather strap that he put on for me and recommended not to service and recondition it. He could have easily taken my money but instead was honest and wanted what was best for my intentions. As I mainly wear my Rolex to work and Apple Watch for casual wear, this watch was just going to be used here and there to switch it up. Overall I'm very satisfied with the level of professionalism that he provided and would definitely recommend anyone to see him! One tip, if you plan to see him, he only takes cash or cheque. read more

The German Watchmaker - Watch Repair Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Kind, knowledgeable, trustworthy and convenient. The German watchmaker has all of our future business. Highly recommended!

Friend recommended this shop to me. Owner was fantastic and was able to help me right away with a battery change on a difficult watch that required special tools that I didn't have. In and out in like 5 minutes for a fair price. Will definitely return. (Small businesses like this one should be supported.) read more

a wonderful watchmaker, and a very nice man!!! Did a great job putting a new movement in my wifes watch, and when it failed a year later, provided a replacement at no cost.............nice to see a business man who has high standards. Mike read more

Outstanding! Peace of mind bringing my Rolexes to someone so trustworthy and knowledgeable. What a Vancouver treasure Norbert is!

Norbert provides honest good service. I had a few watches that were not working. One he fixed in the spot (was a minor issue) and the others he called later to give me estimates. He later even recommended that one watch not be fixed as he said it's not worth it unless I had some sentimental attachment to it. That's being honest-something unfortunately hard to find these days. From what I can tell, he is very knowledgeable and experienced in watch repairs. read more

Just had a vintage Air King Date serviced. Again, the results exceeded expectation! For you watchnerds out there (like me), he took care not to devalue the piece with polishing, but instead shined it up enough to get it looking pristine again. It's always a positive experience dealing with Norbert! read more

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Efficient, professional, friendly service! The man who helped me charged on $15 to replace my watch battery and he finished the entire service in maybe 4-5 minutes or less. He also gave me some free advice on watches in general. Will definitely be back again! read more

Repaired a rare Weltkrieg 1 watch family keepsake to working condition that my grandparents had brought with them when they immigrated to Canada. It had been kept in a jewel box and never worked since about 1918. Herzlichen Dank an den German Watchmaker for repairing it. read more

Very quick service, super professional and fast. I came in to get my watch resized and reset, it was all done in less than 15 minutes for $15. I will definitely be coming back! read more

I needed a few things done to my Omega Seamaster, and after hearing good things about The German Watchmaker, I decided to check him out. Norbert is a real professional, and I was very happy with his service and the quality of the work. I have a few more watch projects I need to take care of over the next few months, and I'll be sure to come back to Norbert when I do. read more

I took my vintage 1961 Jaeger LeCoultre watch to get serviced and from the onset Norbert was amazing. He was busy and asked me to leave the watch for a quote. He gave me a quote and stuck to it, through all the surprised he found , he kept me up to date with the findings and replaced parts that were not even in the original quote. He helped me find a new crown for the watch, and the watch is like new. He SMS'ed me and I found him honest and extremely approachable on best approach. The quality of his work was impeccable and I feel like I now have a brand new watch that keeps perfect time Thank you Norbert ! read more

Norbert is honest and skillful. The other quotes I got were easily double his pricing. Highly recommended.

Norbert is a professional watch craftsman. A man of integrity, he is efficient, charges reasonably and excel at his craft. I will definitely be using his services for as long as I live in the city. Highly recommended. read more

Highly recommend his services. He is very knowledgeable and friendly. He was able to replace my watch's broken balance and then tune it to its previous level of accuracy! read more

I received first-class service from Norbert. My vintage 1970s Omega Dynamic failed to work one day last summer, as the mainspring had gone. At the same time, the bracelet separated from the case completely. As the watch has sentimental value to me and I wanted to get it fixed right away, I asked around and many of my collector friends recommended The German Watchmaker. I took some time off at lunch to visit his shop in person, but found that Norbert was on holidays; however, I remembered that he was active on Yelp, and messaged him there. Norbert replied within a day, despite being overseas (!) He advised me of a good day to come in upon his return, and when I went to the shop again, he took a look at the watch, and told me a bit about the model and outlined the service history etched inside. An estimate was clearly written (by hand) with a price, and included the time it would take for repairs. Norbert recommended a full service/clean in addition to the repair, which I readily accepted (as he knew from inside the watch the last time it had had any kind of servicing - and it was too long ago). The watch was fixed earlier than estimated, and looked stunning as he had also polished the crystal and all of the steel. Like many of his counterparts in Europe, he works on a cash/cheque basis, and readily accepted a cheque that I had prepared in advance in the amount estimated. About six months later, my cousin found two rare Marvin watches when cleaning out the house of a relative. Because they didn't work properly, I recommended that she visit Norbert, as he had done such a good job with my own watch. She received the same excellent service as I did, and commented on Norbert's honesty and expertise. The two watches, which are between 60 and 70 years old, now work perfectly. I will definitely be returning to the German Watchmaker with all of my timepiece needs. read more

Great service from a real professional and he's reasonably priced as well. Could not recommend him more highly . read more

Yes, probably doesn't need another 5 star review, but I'll give it anyway. Fast, cheap and competent. It's unusual to find highly skilled repair specialists these days, in any field, and all the more valuable when you do find them. Note: takes cash and personal cheques only, no plastic. Several bank ATMs nearby though. read more

I have been here a few times to fix or replace the battery of my watch. The service was awesome and the owner also taught me how to take care of my watch. I highly recommend the German watchmaker! read more

Had an issue with the bracelet on a Movado, he fixed it and replaced a battery on another watch in 5 mins, all while having a nice chat about the best ski options in bc. $20 price was amazing too, 5 stars all day Will be back read more

Professional, efficient, straightforward and incredibly polite; Norbert is an absolute gem. I needed to have my vintage Tudor authenticated and, upon inspection, he was able to provide a vast amount of information on the watch; from movement specifications to service history. In short, he knows his vintage watches and he knows them well. Another point I wanted make with this post is that, although he is not open for business as usual during the current COVID 19 lockdown, you can still call him up to make an appointment for any and all of your urgent watch needs. The whole operation is incredibly hygienic with only a single customer being allowed in the shop at a time, with respectful social distancing and personal cleanliness rules adhered to by both customers and Norbert himself. So please rest assured, if you need you watch to be attended to, he's still there to help you out. I could not praise and recommend Mr. Norbert Zerbes more. He has most definitely earned a repeat customer. Cheers XW read more

Norbert takes his craft seriously. He's been so accommodating and responsive to my Yelp messages because I have a Withings Activité smartwatch. On the outside looks like an analog watch, but on the inside it tracks my steps, my sleep and uses a normal watch battery. I've been having problems with it for a while since I got the battery changed at The Bay (don't go to The Bay to get your smartwatch fixed), so I decided to go to Norbert after seeing all the good reviews. Although smartwatches are not his specialty, he still agreed to check mine out to see how it operated. He checked the watch to make sure that its waterproofness was still okay and that its parts were still functioning. He replaced the battery, but said that if it still doesn't work to come by and see him again; so he didn't charge me for it ("come back and pay for it if it works" was our deal). Turns out, a couple of days after, the watch stopped working again. So I contacted the manufacturer about the issues and went back to Norbert. He gave me another new battery even though the other one was in perfect condition and it's working now! I owe him $15, but it just goes to show that he's willing to take on any watch problem, and he's willing to trust you as long as you trust him. Going to him from now on for all my watch issues and will gladly recommend him to anyone. read more

I have been here many times over the years to change batteries, buy straps and fix mechanical watches, and I agree with the other reviews. The owner Norbert is a competent, honest and reliable person. He tells me what can and cannot be done and what is worth and not worth fixing. I came to accept his advice at face value. read more

I've been a regular customer of Norbert since he sat working in the window on Richards at Hastings. (20 years ago?) I've always found him to be efficient, reasonable, and extremely pleasant. Watch not behaving? Need a battery replaced? Call Norbert, first. read more

I visited Norbert again 2 weeks ago to change a battery. When I walked in, he was already working on another customer's watch and told me the wait time was going to be at least 30 minutes. However, Norbert was different this time. The customer had to step out for a moment and Norbert switched over to my watch and quickly changed the battery and did a cleaning on my watch too which really surprised me! I was impressed with his ability to prioritize and even more impressed with his ability to provide quality service under such time pressure. I gave a $6 tip in appreciation and gratitude for getting my watch serviced in 3 minutes rather than waiting around for 30 minutes. Thank You! I highly recommend Norbert! read more

Norbert is an artisan and a font of knowledge about watches. We are so lucky to have him. He is trustworthy, very articulate and has a selection of hard- to- find Hirsch watchbands in interesting colours and textures. If you have a question about your watch - antique or not- he is the one to ask. I don't go anywhere else. read more

I went here as I live very close to take out a few links in my watch & also to fix a watch strap. The shop is conveniently located in a nice little Yaletown mall. He was so friendly and helpful. Will definitely go back for any watch needs! read more

Norbert is a very knowledgeable watchmaker and a gentleman. As a hobbyist watchmaker myself, he's my go-to guy when I.... let's say screw things up. It's always a pleasure doing business with him. read more

A tiny shop nestled in Yaletown Shops at Homer and Davie, Norbert has taken great care to make the space very organized and welcoming. I brought in a 40 year old Seiko watch to see if it could be repaired. Norbert took a look at it, but first advised me to retire the watch and not invest money into it any further because other parts could fail in the future and not be replaced. I very much appreciated his honesty and expertise, because I know nothing about watches. Any other shop could've taken my watch and charged me $100+ for repairs and I wouldn't have had a clue! I will be back for any other watch issues! read more

I haven't found a better, more dedicated, more detailed watchmaker in town. My friend and I brought in two vintage Tudor watches, both in questionable shape. One was rusty and scratched up. The other had a missing hand, another one bent to what I thought was beyond repair, a worn out dial, cracked and dislocated crystal, rusted movement, to the point where I questioned if it was worth trying to salvage. Over nearly two months, Norbert gave them a new life. Cleaned up the dial (without removing the vintage look), un-bent the bent hand, matched and replaced the missing hand, cleaned up the rust in the movement, and polished the crystal. The Tudors were re-calibrated and run more accurately than a new Rolex! Norbert is truly dedicated to his craft. Very helpful with questions and concerns, and will let you know up front if a watch is not worth fixing. He is my go-to man for anything to do with watches. I highly recommend the German Watchmaker to anyone who is in need of a watch servicing, especially if you have a vintage Rolex or Tudor that you want to keep looking vintage. The official service centres will replace all the old parts with new ones and remove any signs of "vintage" from the watch, which is great if that's what you're looking for, but Norbert will restore your watch without damaging its history. read more

Have not done any business with Norbert yet. He did give me the advice to where I can get help. A very honest and helpful person!