Ida Lee is a Sydney collector whose fascination with watches began at an early age and led ultimately to her, at one point, working in the industry. Her progression from dalliance to daily employment would come as no surprise to die-hard aficionados.

Lee was born in Hong Kong and came to Australia with her family when she was seven. Now aged 35, she tells Fin Magazine, “I did the usual Asian things – excelled at school academically but not sports-wise, didn’t have any interests, studied law and accounting after which I took a job.”