The American Time Companies

What The American Time Companies does

The American Time Companies is a privately held custom manufacturer founded in 1990 and headquartered at 250 Mile Crossing Blvd, Suite #4, Rochester, NY. The company operates through two wholly-owned subsidiaries: American Time Mfg. Ltd., which designs and produces Union Made custom wristwatches, pocket watches, and 16-inch wall clocks, and has manufactured over 500,000 timepieces since inception; and American Products, Inc., which supplies Union Made promotional merchandise through a catalog of more than 395 SKUs spanning apparel, bags, drinkware, hats, safety equipment, executive gifts, golf accessories, tools, and novelty items. In-house graphic artists handle logo customization, embroidery, and screen printing, while a Watch Hospital service provides battery replacement, ultrasonic cleaning, and watch servicing as aftermarket support.

The company's customer base is concentrated entirely within the U.S. labor union vertical, serving international bodies such as IAMAW, the Teamsters, the United Steelworkers, IBEW, LIUNA, the United Association (UA), the UAW, and BLET, along with their numerous local chapters. Products are sold via a direct enterprise sales force organized by division (timepieces vs. promotional items), with named account executives and a quote-based pricing model; no public pricing or e-commerce self-service checkout is offered. The company employs 11-50 people, is led by President/CEO and owner Clifford W. Charlson and CFO Michelle L. MacKay, has no parent company or external investment, operates only within the United States, and reports no AI/ML capabilities, patents, partnerships, or public funding activity.

Name

The American Time Companies

Legal name

The American Time Companies

Website

https://atc-ny.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The American Time Companies, founded 1990 and headquartered in Rochester, NY, manufactures Union Made custom wristwatches, pocket watches, and wall clocks, and supplies a 395+ SKU catalog of promotional merchandise exclusively to U.S. labor unions and their local chapters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Watches and Promotional Products

NAICS

Cut and Sew Apparel Manufacturing (3152), Apparel Manufacturing (315), Apparel Accessories and Other Apparel Manufacturing (3159)

SIC

Watches, Clocks, Clockwork Operated Devices/Parts (3873), Apparel & Other Finishd Prods Of Fabrics & Similar Matl (2300), Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130)

akta.pro primary industry

Watch Manufacturing (Movements, Cases, Dials, Assembly) (CRAKADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Clocks & Desk/Travel Timepieces (CRAKADAI), Contract / Private Label Cut & Sew Manufacturing (OEM/ODM) (IMAOAEAM), Workwear, Uniform & Protective Apparel Manufacturers (CRAAAAAH), Workwear, Uniforms & Safety Apparel Cut & Sew (IMAOAEAC)

Keywords

• Custom watch manufacturing
• Promotional products
• Union made merchandise
• Custom timepieces
• Branded apparel

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Custom Watch Sales: Sale of custom Union Made watches and clocks. The company has produced over 500,000 high quality and time accurate custom watches for Union workers since 1990. Products include traditional watches, new cool watches, pocket watches, and wall clocks.
2. Promotional Products Sales: Sale of Union Made garments and promotional items including bags, drinkware, apparel, hats, tools, safety equipment, and novelty items for International Unions and their Local unions.
3. Watch Repair Services: Watch Hospital service providing battery changes, ultrasonic cleaning and servicing for watches.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The American Time Companies manufactures and sells Union Made custom watches, clocks, and timepieces through its American Time Mfg. Ltd. subsidiary, and supplies a full line of branded promotional products (apparel, bags, drinkware, hats, pens, pins, etc.) through American Products, Inc. Output is sold primarily to labor unions and related organizations for recognition, membership, retirement, and event needs.

Product overview

The American Time Companies operates as a dual-brand custom merchandise company consisting of American Time (watches and clocks) and American Products (promotional items and apparel). American Time produces Union Made custom wristwatches, pocket watches, and wall clocks, having manufactured over 500,000 timepieces since 1990. American Products provides a comprehensive catalog of over 395 promotional items including bags, drinkware, apparel (polos, T-shirts, jackets, safety wear), writing instruments, tools, golf items, and novelty products—all Union Made. The company serves International Unions and their Local affiliates, offering custom design services through in-house graphic artists. Watch repair and warranty services are available through the Watch Hospital.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Custom Watches & Clocks (American Time) Custom-manufactured Union Made in America watches, clocks, pocket watches, and timepieces sold primarily to labor unions and their local chapters for recognition, retirement, service awards, and membership use. The line includes traditional watches, the New Cool Watches, 42XL, pocket watches, and wall clocks, all custom decorated with union logos and artwork.
• Promotional Products (American Products, Inc.) A full catalog of branded promotional merchandise sold to labor unions and their members, including bags & coolers, decals & stickers, drinkware, executive gifts, golf items, hats & headwear, jackets & hoodies, novelty items, pens & pencils, pins & buttons & patches, polos & dress shirts, portfolios & planners & journals, safety items, T-shirts, and tools & knives. Items are custom decorated in-house with embroidery, screen printing, and UV printing.
• Watch Repair Service (Watch Hospital) Repair and maintenance service for American Time watches, offered as a long-term service relationship to union customers who have received custom timepieces.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 500,000 custom watches produced for Union workers since 1990

Named customers8 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• 4imprint: Large publicly traded promotional products distributor selling branded merchandise (apparel, drinkware, bags, pens, safety gear) to organizations of all types. Directly comparable to ATC's American Products division in product categories and target buyers (organizational / membership accounts), though 4imprint is far broader in customer base and lacks the 'Union Made' specialization.
• Bulova: Established American watch manufacturer producing branded and private-label timepieces across price points. Comparable to ATC's American Time division in core watch manufacturing, though Bulova serves mass-market retail rather than the union / organizational recognition niche.
• HALO Branded Solutions: Large US promotional products distributor offering apparel, accessories, drinkware, and recognition gifts to corporate and organizational buyers. Comparable to ATC's American Products line in product breadth and recognition-gift use cases, though HALO operates across all verticals rather than specializing in unions.
• Timex: Heritage American watch brand with private-label and custom-program capabilities for organizations, schools, and corporate buyers. Comparable to ATC's American Time in custom watch manufacturing and brand-led positioning, but at much larger scale and broader distribution.
• National Pen (npower): Large promotional products company specializing in custom writing instruments, apparel, drinkware, and recognition gifts for SMBs and organizations. Comparable to American Products across pen and writing instrument SKUs and promotional merchandise broadly, with overlap in union, corporate, and association accounts.

Direct peers

• Quality Logo Products: Mid-sized promotional products distributor selling custom-branded apparel, drinkware, bags, and recognition items to organizations. Most directly comparable to ATC's American Products division in product mix, customization model, and mid-market B2B sales motion, though Quality Logo serves all verticals.

Emerging players

• Marathon Watch Company: Specialty watch manufacturer focused on military, government, and institutional buyers with custom-branded timepieces. Closely comparable to ATC's niche of supplying custom, organization-branded watches, though Marathon focuses on tactical/military rather than union customers.
• Cleveland Time Company: Custom promotional watch and clock supplier producing private-label and logo-branded timepieces for organizations, events, and recognition programs. Closely comparable to ATC's American Time in custom watch production for recognition and corporate gifting, though without the union-specific brand.
• Speidel: Heritage American maker of watch bands, bracelets, and watch-related accessories sold through retail and wholesale channels. Comparable to ATC's watch-adjacent product line in watch personalization components and brand heritage, though Speidel focuses on bands/straps rather than full watch manufacturing.

Regional players

• Paramount Apparel International: US-headquartered apparel manufacturer producing headwear, casualwear, and decorated apparel for brands and organizations. Comparable to ATC's hat and apparel categories in cut-and-sew / decorated apparel manufacturing, though Paramount focuses on licensed and private-label brands rather than union promotional distribution.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/americantimeco
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-american-time-companies

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The American Time Companies