Kaduna used to have a special zone where many watch sellers and repairers set up their businesses.
“The place was demolished and now it’s empty,” says Baba Bala mournfully, adding that most of his colleagues have either died or given up on the cause.
One of those who conceded defeat was Issa Sani.
“Going to my workshop every day meant sitting and not getting any work – that’s why I decided to stop going in 2019,” the 65-year-old told the BBC.
“I have land, and my children help me manage it – that’s how I can live now.”
He laments, “I don’t think wristwatches will ever come back.”
The young people who work in the construction shops next to Baba Bala agree with this.
Faisal Abdulkarim and Yusuf Youshaw, both aged 18, have never owned a watch because they never saw the need for one.
“I can check the time on my phone whenever I want and it’s always with me,” said one.
Dr. Umar Abdulmajid, a communications lecturer at the Yusuf Maitama University in Kano, believes things can change.
“Conventional wristwatches are definitely dying, and with them jobs like wristwatch repair, but I think with smartwatches they can make a comeback.
“The fact that a smartwatch can do so much more than just tell you the time means it can continue to attract people.”
He suggests that old watch repairers learn how to deal with this new technology: “If you don’t keep up with the times, you’ll be left behind.”
But Baba Bala, who returned from Abuja to Kaduna to set up his shop about 20 years ago because he wanted to be closer to his growing family, says he is not interested.
“It’s what I love to do, I consider myself a doctor for sick watches – plus I’m not getting any younger.”
