Dezeen View Retailer: London brand Uniform Wares is returning to Dezeen View Retailer with an fully Swiss-made collection. Dezeen spoke to co-founder Patrick Bek about how “plagiarism” of the brand’s minimum watch patterns led to its recent change in course (+ slideshow).
Uniform Wares founders Patrick Bek and Oliver Fowles created a decision to concentrate on the good quality of their watches, right after the market grew to become saturated with products giving a comparable pared-back look.
“Some of it is outright plagiarism and it really is tough,” Bek told Dezeen. “It was a reason to critically assess our brand final yr and to decide what it is that we wished to do with it.”
“So in the previous twelve to 18 months we have modified the brand very significantly,” he said.
The brand redesigned its collection, moved production to Switzerland – house to some of the world’s greatest and most costly watch companies – and relaunched in November 2014. It also opened new offices and a showroom in Shoreditch. Its watches are now accessible for wholesale, and Dezeen View Shop is one of a small selection of stockists.
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Bek and Fowles set up Uniform Wares in east London 6 many years ago. Their line of watches, which began with the a hundred series, was devoid of logos and excessive decoration.
“This was one thing new in watches, it was a new style,” stated Bek. “It really is not about creating a minimal observe for minimum sake, it really is thinking about the kinds of people that dress in the solution, what type of clothing they put on.”
“We never set out to be minimal,” he added. “There is simplicity and Minimalism there, but we call it simplicity and character in equal measure.”
Uniform Wares’ London showroom and offices, designed by Feilden Fowles, gives guests a glimpse at the watchmaking process
“If we were to go 100 per cent minimal and Germanic it would finish up searching like a Braun observe, and that is not what we’re about.”
Uniform Wares’ aesthetic became especially popular with architects and designers, but its achievement sparked a string of related startup view manufacturers.
“They are a handful of copycats,” explained Bek. “But also it is a compliment that it really is inspired some organizations to pop up, and I am all in favour of men and women generating a living out of style.”
The furnishings and fittings of the brand’s showroom and workplace were chosen to complement the clean and minimum aesthetic of the brand
To keep ahead of the game, the designers made a decision to concentrate on the manufacturing good quality of their watches, moving manufacturing to Switzerland and sourcing components from across Europe.
“When we made the decision to make that transition to Swiss-made it meant that our cost factors elevated, a small more at the entry level than at the best end,” mentioned Bek. “That meant truly hunting at the brand and the communication.”
Uniform Wares at the moment gives two households of watches, tweaked and updated with the new components by a team led by design director Michael Carr. The M-line stands for “modern”, and the C-line is named soon after “classic”.
Each line involves 3 sizes, with extra characteristics moving up the variety. Dezeen Observe Store is stocking the C35, a “traditional” watch available with both a gold, rose-coloured of all-natural brushed steel case and black or brown strap. The keep is also stocking three watches from the “modern” variety: the M37 with a rubber or leather strap, the more substantial M40 and the M42 chronograph. See our assortment, or find out more about the brand on the Uniform Wares site.
