When it comes to repairing timepieces – whether they be a family heirloom or a watch you might have received as a graduation present or retirement gift – you can never undervalue experience.

Vantage Jeweler owner and master repairman Gamal Mansour, has been repairing watches and clocks for more than 45 years.

He learned his craft while working for his father back in his native Egypt. When his father died suddenly in 1988, Mansour took over the business at just 29 years of age.

He immigrated to Canada in 2001 in search of a better life for himself and his young family. He and his wife chose to settle in Ottawa, or more specifically Orléans, which they’ve called home for the last 20 years.

After arriving in Canada, Mansour got a job repairing watches at Eaton’s, where he remained for five years. He later worked for a high-end watch company in Ottawa until one day he slipped on some ice and broke his femur.

Although he spent a month in the hospital and wasn’t able to work for nearly a year, the accident turned out to be blessing in disguise and completely changed the course of Mansour’s life. Because the company he had been working for had their office on the second floor, his injury prevented him from walking up the stairs.

With few options to choose from, Mansour decided to open his own watch repair busi-ness on St. Joseph Boulevard.

“It was nothing at the time, just an empty space,” explains Mansour. “I had to do all the work, making the walls and the ceiling, and I only had three showcases for the jewellery.”

The first year wasn’t easy. He didn’t have much of a budget to advertise and he didn’t have any sort of customer base. Instead, he built the business one client at a time.

What Mansour was lacking in these other areas he made for with an unparalleled work ethic. (He worked six days a week for the better part of seven years until his grandson was born last spring. Since then he’s cut down to five days a week.) He also had a wealth of experience and the desire to make sure his clients were 100 per cent satisfied

Mansour offers a one-year warranty on all his repairs, but it’s rarely ever needed.

“This is the most important thing. We don’t send anything out to get repaired by someone else. I do all the work so the buck stops with me,” says Mansour. “I am responsible and I stand behind everything I do. If you have a problem I am here.”

Because of Mansour’s focus on customer service – along with competitive prices – the business has grown leaps and bounds, largely through repeat customers and referrals.

Mansour specializes in repairing older watches, including family heirlooms, but he can repair any make or model of watch or clock, usually in just a few days. He can also resize jewellery and he carries a complete line of watch batteries.

If you have a watch, clock or jewellery in need of repair, then your first and last stop should be to Vantage Jewellers located at 2866 St. Joseph Blvd., beside the Service Ontario office. They are open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday (closed Sunday and Monday) and there is always a free parking space in front of the store.