Crowdfunding Archives - Page 5 sur 7

02Nov 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

Meshable 003: Well Balanced, Even Better Cased

News

Some brands, even when they are a micro brand, just get it, and Meshable just proved with the 003 that they are among them. Kickstarter has been flooded lately with watches that are being sold under the term of being "minimalist" while in fact, they seemed to be ordered straight from Alibaba in bulk. The cool thing about Meshable is that they don't even use the word "minimalist" or anything related, while they can make a very viable claim to it. https://vimeo.com/181913052 For the 003 they put exactly the focus where it needed to be: the case. The way the bezel curves to the sapphire crystal, the shape of the lugs, and even the case back are all testimony to the fact that this was a labor of love. The…

30Oct 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

MOTION: German Creativity Let Loose

News

Isn't it interesting how creative many microbrands are regarding design? Look at brands like CJR, Pheidippides or SAStek; they really reset the boundaries for affordable watches. Another brand that does that is Manyears, with the Motion. Based in Mannheim, Germany, they applied a refreshing look to the design of this watch. They worked with different discs to indicate the time. This by itself is not something new, since other brands had done it before, but not the way Manyears did it with the Motion. With the hour hand occupying the center disc, a red seconds hand floating above it, the minute hand is actually placed on half a disc. This means that it moves continuously around, revealing half of the movement below. https://vimeo.com/185505339 Exciting is that this movement is Miyota's…

26Oct 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

Bovarro Moon 1969: To The Moon And Back

News

Bovarro is not the first to dedicate a watch to the moon. Yet the fact that they drew inspiration from the Apollo 11 moon landing is actually the least interesting part of this watch, or should we say three watches? Bovarro offers the Moon 1969, as they named the watch, in three different versions. The Lunar series has an image of the moon at six o'clock. It is filled in with luminova, so quite spectacular to see at night. The dial is further quite traditional, but the second's hand with the big arrow is a nice detail. Compared to the other models I am not a fan of the date function in this one. It seems a bit lost on the dial and points it out as well with its…

20Oct 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

Microbrand Marketing: A Few Tips

Opinion

Recently I have seen quite a few very promising watch models by not reaching their crowd funding thresholds. The reason why? Marketing. With the micro brand cosmos filling rapidly up with new stars, you are not automatically the brightest anymore just by being there. You will need to actively pursuit customers, and here are a few tips: Marketing starts before almost anything else Most micro brands treat marketing like an afterthought. When they have received the first prototypes they start thinking of how they are actually going to sell them. You'll be surprised how often that answer is "Kickstarter", but crowdfunding websites are a sales channel, can be part of your marketing but is by no means an all-in-one marketing solution. Marketing starts with analyzing the marketplace, preferably before you…

18Oct 2016 by Martin Green 1 Comment

Retrospect Review: Don Kylne Chaplin

News

Sometimes it is good to let things sink in a bit and then look over them again. We already reported on the Chaplin when it was launched, about a year ago. In that past year not only many people received their Chaplin, but also a lot of new brands and models were launched. Did the Don Kylne Chaplin hold its ground? The cushion shaped case still remains attractive. With all the new micro brands out there I am still surprised how few of them actually utilize this beautiful case shape. The relatively small lugs add a nice vintage detail to the watch, as do the screws. The best part is that they not only look good, but they are actually fully functional. My favorite part of the watch…

06Oct 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

Willis Judd: Raising The Bar

News

In Haute Horlogerie there are many jewelry makers that turned watchmaker. Often this results in watches, with very refined details. In the world of affordable watches this transition is rare, but there is one brand that recently made this step: Willis Judd. Offering a wide variety of different jewelry a reoccurring theme in their jewelry collection is carbon fiber, which they also picked that material as center piece for their very first watch collection. Remember that years ago you had these oversized fashion watches that looked so cool from a distance, but when you came closer you where horrified by the complete lack of quality? Well, these watches by Willis Judd are the complete opposite of that. Lets start with the price to put a few things into perspective.…

04Oct 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

TACS Automatic Vintage Lens: Quality Fun

News

Have you ever had that feeling that you are having too much fun? Because that is how I felt since yesterday afternoon when Fedex delivered the TACS Automatic Vintage Lens automatic for a review. Normally we take our time reviewing watches, but in this case, I could simply not control myself and needed to write about it! The TACS Vintage Lens is inspired by classic photo cameras, but it is the execution of this inspiration that really sets it apart from any other watch. There are details everywhere you look, and they are all of a very high quality. The dial of the watch is as you are looking into the lens of an old-fashioned photo camera, complete with the fish-eye effect. The bezel is turnable, although it has no…

03Oct 2016 by Martin Green 6 Comments

5 Things You Need To Know When Buying A Micro Brand

Opinion

Micro brands have slowly, yet steadily eating up market share in the affordable watch market. They have become a respected alternative to the established brands, but there are a few things that are good to realize before you actually buy a watch from a micro brand. Scams are rare and can be avoided Most micro brands either sell through their own website or through a crowd funding page like of Indiegogo. In either case, you probably end up buying a watch you have never seen before in real life, and you part with the money before it is even being delivered. Although scams happen, they are quite rare, and you can build in a bit safety by doing your due diligence. First of all, most micro brand owners are known…

02Oct 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

Introducing The Hourglass By Pheidippides

News

After The Porthole, which we discuss in depth in the latest issue of Watchisthis?! Magazine, Dutch-based watch brand Pheidippides now launches The Hourglass. A totally different concept, yet designed and crafted with the same painstaking attention to detail. When first seeing The Hourglass it reminded me of "Montre a Tact", a watch created by the godfather of independent watchmaking, and mentor of many great watchmakers, Svend Andersen. Although the concept is the same, the execution is different, and fortunately also the price tag. While Svend Andersen makes his watches completely by hand, Pheidippides uses a clever combination of Swiss parts and German jewelry makers to create his watch. [caption id="attachment_1835" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Svend Andersen Montre a Tact[/caption] This works surprisingly well, with as a result a watch who's…

25Sep 2016 by Martin Green No Comments

The Revival Of Swiss Mechanical Watch Brand Votum

News

When you want to start a watch brand there are two roads that you can take: you can start from scratch, or find a historic brand that is available. That is the route Votum took, and although they start from scratch as well, they have the brands history as inspiration. [caption id="attachment_1791" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Vintage Votum Divimat[/caption] The original Votum did not make it past adolescence. It was founded in 1962, but did not survive the quartz crisis of the 1970's. However, in that short period of time, it did create watches impressive enough to make an impression on Rolf Bodmer, a designer and graphic artist from Zurich, and François Zahnd, a watch manufacturer and industry expert from Biel. The combined forces and revived Votum. I would have said to its…

Étiquette : Crowdfunding