Origin Story

Founder:

This is a personal project.
It is a project started out of both enthusiasm and frustration.

It began from my encounters with different types of minimalist watches worn by other students on my college campus. I was intrigued by how versatile and adaptable they seemed for both casual and formal occasions, and I decided to get one for myself. The most notable among them was Daniel Wellington. However, I was perplexed by the absurd prices they were placing on timepieces that had mineral crystal and were running on generic Japanese quartz movements. For the hefty price tag they were demanding, there was just no excuse for them to not at least include sapphire crystal into their product line.

Inevitably, I found myself looking for lower-priced alternatives with the same two-handed, thin, and minimalist design only to find cheaper copies that were either the same or had cut even more corners. At first, I pondered with the idea of an aftermarket crystal replacement, then the idea of just ordering an identical timepiece directly from a manufacturer customized to my satisfaction. While at it, I suspected that I might not be the only one with this issue, and decided to work with the manufacturer to produce a small batch of a specific model to offer the market a better alternative. It was also at that time when I came across Hamilton's Jazzmaster Thinline and was allured by how its red sunburst dial played with the light. After reviewing multiple colors, I decided on a darker color that resembled the ruby gem that I personally have and so decided to name this project of mine - RUBINO.