Grandes complications are what holologists collectively call the three classic high complications in watchmaking: the perpetual calendar, the tourbillon and the minute repeater.

For Dimitar Mirov, these three complications have long become part of his life and today represent a dream come true that has materialised in his own company: Grande Complication.

And what could be more complicated than a wristwatch with 1700 parts in its mechanism? Listening to Mirov, one gets the feeling that he knows where each of those small parts belongs in a small thing like a wristwatch.

This, according to him, is one of the reasons why he has been trusted with representing two of the most expensive wristwatch brands in the world, Franck Muller and Pierre Kunz.

"Look, it is not just the gold, the silver or the diamonds that makes a watch expensive. My take on watches is to value the complexity and intricacy of their mechanism, not just the material of which they are made. This is what matters to me as someone who has been dealing with watches for the past 27 years," he says.

First watch
When he was six years old, he took apart a Soviet-made Slava alarm clock and has not stopped playing with watches since.

"Dismantling the Slava was easy; it took me several years to put it all back together," he says today, smiling. "But yes, ever since, I have had a dream and it has been to represent and sell high-quality watches in Bulgaria."

His dream seems to have come true. The store that Mirov owns today in the lobby of one of the most luxurious hotels in Sofia, on Vitosha Boulevard, is full of unique custom-made watches worth millions - in any currency. "I wanted the store to look like an exhibition hall where everyone could come in, look around, make a choice, buy or not buy and feel pleased," he tells The Sofia Echo.

It seems to have worked, because during the interview his phone rang several times with clients asking him questions about how a such-and-such a model compares to another and with Mirov going back and forth giving consultations to potential clients in the boutique.

"I have my own clientele that searches me out specifically. And this is based on my long years spent advising people on their watches and the choices they take," he says.

This is why a personal approach is among the things he highly values. At the same time, as someone who values every minute, hour and day, Mirov likes to give his clients the time to make their own choices. "I wait for every client to show interest in one of the models. If the client has a certain idea about what he wants, it is easy. When I see some hesitation, I try to explain the differences between models, but lately I have started seeing more and more people who are knowledgeable about what they want, which is great. It means that Bulgarians are starting to develop a sense not for price itself, but for the quality of what they buy."

On his own
When he became representative of Franck Muller for Bulgaria three years ago, Mirov was on his own. This allowed him to build good relations with the people to whom he was selling. "The business, however, grew quickly and the work became too much for one person. Today I have a staff of eight and shops in Sofia and Varna."

Like most managers in Bulgaria, he shares the view that it is not easy to find qualified staff. "And how could it be, otherwise, when the watches I sell are so complex and different from one another," he says. "That's why my criteria have always been to work with people who have a passion for watches and, most of all, the desire to learn and to be trained. Then I can dedicate myself to training them in what I know about watches." And Mirov knows what he's saying, because he had such a mentor himself.

The teacher
Mirov started dealing with clocks and watches professionally when he was just 16 years old. "I have never been trained professionally in schools," he says, "and I consider myself a self-made professional."

The person who Mirov calls his teacher and great friend is the Geneva-based clock designer and jeweller Edmond Avakian, twice holder of the prize jeweller of Europe title.

"He saw in me the same passion that he had for clocks and was willing to train me. My test was when, at some point, he asked me to look at a thick catalogue with watches that had never been sold in Bulgaria and to decide which of them could be sold in the country. I chose two brands. We ordered the full range and in less than a year and a half, they were all sold."

Passion
Passion is a word that Mirov often uses when talking about his work, which, if nothing else, makes him a passionate boss. "If someone who works for me doesn't feel the passion for clocks in his heart, then s/he is probably in the wrong business," he says, and he means it.

"I am entirely dedicated to timepieces, not just because they show the most expensive thing in the world - time - but because of the rich history they bring with them - they are not just accessories to me."

In this respect, Mirov's store has several classic examples of clocks and watches that can really impress people with a heart for history.

The same applies to the service Mirov provides. "The people we have hired to do our maintenance are third-generation clock makers and I am very proud of this fact. We are unique in this respect in Bulgaria because our after-sales services are of an extremely high level, and can compete with Switzerland and Japan."

Knowing customers
In addition to knowing his watches, Mirov claims that he knows his customers, as well.

"Every client is special and needs special attention. I do have a good team behind me, but the watches we sell come in such a variety of models and they have to be explained to every single customer. That's why I like to be there when the client is looking at them, making his choice. One has to explain in plain words the complexity of the watches and this is a challenge I like to take with every customer."

That's why he never refuses to pay a personal visit to a customer. "I have had clients who like their watches to be custom-made for them. And this is the magic in my work, because I get to have ideas about how a certain watch should look, based on the customer's preferences, and when I see this idea brought to life by a renowned clock designer, the feeling is great. The benefit for clients is that they get something unique."

And clients themselves have started learning how to be unique, too, Mirov says.

"It's not all about money, although I admit that the watches we sell are quite expensive. In this respect, I am pleased with my customers. I see how people have started asking questions not about the money, but about the mechanisms and all the other intricacies and I like this."

He does not share the idea that rich people tend to buy expensive toys just to show how wealthy they are.

"I would not say that people in Bulgaria who have made money like to show it on their wrists. I believe that every watch we sell has been made for the wrist of someone in particular and I don't like to think in the line of `this is a very expensive watch and I have to have it'."

From what Mirov says, it seems that selling watches is not the only thing in which he is interested.

"I like to have people in my boutique who haven't exactly come with the idea of buying, because I like to talk to people about watches. But I can always tell if someone is about to make a purchase, and I can even tell what model he will buy," he says.

There is no secret in this: "I simply have the experience to do that."

From among the seven watches that he owns himself, he cannot name a favourite. "It is not easy, because I like them all. You know, there isn't a watch in the world that is suitable for all occasions of everyday life, so, yes, I change my watches depending on whether I go swimming, hiking or dining. It is way of life," he says.

This life of his has allowed him to develop a sense for judging people's characters based on the watch they wear.

"You might think that it is funny, but one can really tell what a person's character is from looking at his watch. A clock can say a lot about its owner. There are more than 5000 makers of watches in the world, which gives people the chance to be unique. In Switzerland, some universities even have as part of their psychology curriculum courses on how to judge a person's personality by his watch," Mirov says.

And thus come the final pronouncement - on the interviewer and his 10-year-old silver Japanese watch.

"I can say that you want to know the exact time every minute, but the quartz mechanism also tells me that you don't want to pay special attention to your watch, but to simply rely on it," he says, hitting the target as sharply as an expensive Swiss-made clock.

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Snapshot

The Manager: Dimitar Mirov
The Company: Grande Complication
The Job: Executive manager
In Brief: Mirov sells time in the shape of custom-made watches and expensive Swiss timepieces. As of 2003, he is the Bulgaria representative for timepiece brands Franck Muller and Pierre Kunz, among others. A self-made professional, as he describes himself, Mirov today owns two boutiques in Sofia and Varna, and has further expansion in mind.