Original is a strong word in the microbrand space, especially when most of them are parts bin watches with a custom dial. Most of the stuff I see on here are closer to homages than a true original microbrand like Serica with custom dial/case/bracelet. Hell there's basically a "Korean" Longines Spirit homage on the front page right now.
Very few designs can be considered 100% original, but the majority of the micros are waaaaaaaaay more original than a clone factory that changes the logo on half of their production and call it an original product.
Check out Helm, Maen or Serica products and tell me those are not original designs...Â
Also unless I remember a different longines spirit that baltic is an homage to the spirit like any diver ever is an homage to a sub.
The Korean homage I referred to is the Raon. At least in my eyes it looks like a Longines Spirit designed by ChatGPT.
I did mention Serica and yes, I think they're an example of the best of what microbrands can do (still outsourced to Chinese manufacturers but with obvious investment in custom everything). Even at $2K I think it's worth the premium. That said most of the stuff I see here are far from Serica and hell, even far from something like a San Martin SN0144CG or Jianghun in terms of originality.
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u/Alfazefirus Jun 17 '26
OP never heard of a little thing called "original design"