Unwrapped: UNDONE Urban Vintage Killy

UNDONE’s Vintage Killy watch is truly a classic. With customisation, engraving, and express shipping is free of charge right now all the way till Valentine’s Day, which makes it an even sweeter deal. https://www.facebook.com/UNDONEWatches/ Visit UNDONE's page: http://bit.ly/38rgUzo #UNDONE #Watch #VintageKilly

Posted by AsiaOne on Tuesday, 21 January 2020

5 reasons why UNDONE watches make classy, customised gifts for someone special (including yourself)

Here at AsiaOne’s Digital Culture department, you’d think that we’re all about the digitisation of every possible thing under the sun. But not everything has to be AI-equipped, 5G-connected, or internet-enabled. Honestly, a voice-activated kitchen faucet is a little overkill, no? 

The march of technology, however, has been quite apparent in the realm of timepieces — smartwatches have effectively overtaken the sales of Swiss watches for years now. Thing is, not everyone wants to have a little vibrating computer strapped to their wrist reminding them that they could use a little jogging this week. Sometimes, all we need is to just an actual watch that actually tells time without being connected to apps, and with hands instead of a screen. 

With that in mind, what can you slap around your wrist? Maybe you’d like something that’s a step up from cheap Casios and Timexes; maybe Patek Phillipes and Rolexes are way beyond your wallet’s reach. 

Or maybe, you could find something bespoke that speaks volumes about your personal taste — and all without breaking the bank. 

That would be a realm that Hong Kong start-up UNDONE is more than capable to perform. It’s a simple idea really: what if people could craft their own custom-made watches online and get it sent to them quickly at non-exorbitant prices? It was the catalyst for UNDONE founder Michael Young to get things going by crowdfunding through Kickstarter in 2016. 

It would be an understatement to say that the project was a success. Watch enthusiasts and casual fans alike fell in love with Young’s pitch and the vintage aesthetics of UNDONE’s timepieces — enough for the campaign to garner HK$1,960,430 (S$339,790), way beyond its HK$150,000 goal. 

Six years since UNDONE was established, the principle behind its tickers remain as firm today as it was before: individuality matters. Every watch is unique, every component is carefully curated, every design is developed in-house, and all products are tailor-made. 

Need more reasons why they make perfect gifts for loved ones (and yourself)? Fine. 


A time-tested team

Since he was a wee lad tinkering with a vintage Rolex, Young has made timepieces a full-time passion. An engineer by training, his obsession led him down a path to start repairing, restoring, and eventually, design high-end watches. It helps to know that Young himself is pretty established, having dealt with a long list of varied clientele that includes the likes of Omega, Hublot, Swatch, Frank Muller, and other big names. 

With a crack team of veterans in the watch industry, UNDONE was established to offer mid-range timepieces with customisation at the forefront of their selling point. 

"Thanks to a diversified team made of watch veterans, product designers and marketers, we are able to create a virtuoso feedback loop to produce our watches," remarked Young.

"We have people that have been working in the watch industry for years, plus content creators and marketers, to turn the watch into a quality product that truly speak for you."

Custom o’clock

In today’s mass-produced era, customisation is king when it comes to standing out from the rest of the cookie-cutter pack. Who needs off-the-shelf thingamajigs when you can have a hand in blueprinting your own personal effects, after all. 

UNDONE’s bespoke experience takes place on their online portal, where customers are offered an immense array of combinations to make their watches really theirs. Choose from a list of ready-made collection pieces (Urban, Basecamp, and Aqua) and start the customisation process — go crazy with the various cases, dials, straps, or even the hour, minute, and second hands. Hell, you want a have your own photo at the back of the case? Done. 

The selection process on the website is made sweeter with animated hands that move in real-time, and you can see how a working customised product actually looks before it arrives in the mail.

Of course, there’s no wrong in picking ready-made watches, and even so, UNDONE has some special options for the discerning individual. Aside from the core collection, the brand has officially collaborated with known pop culture entities like Batman, Ultraman, Peanuts and Monopoly (no, really) to offer some serious swag for your wrists. So yeah, you can absolutely wear a watch that looks like it was fresh off the Wayne Industries assembly line. 

A craftsman’s cadence

PHOTO: Facebook / Undone

Being in the bespoke business means that quality cannot be compromised. Each of the customised timepieces ordered will be personally assembled and tested by UNDONE’s in-house watchmakers to ensure that your unique artefact will tick for a long time. 

Speaking of ticking, UNDONE watches are all about using Seiko movements. I won’t bore you with the mechanics of high-beat calibres and crystal oscillators, but just know that the watch hands will sweep around the dials in a buttery-smooth action. 

Then there are the actual materials themselves, which UNDONE assures maximum durability — from the hardened mineral glass to the vintage single thread finish in fuss-free quick-release straps. 

Ageless aesthetics

PHOTO: AsiaOne

You’ll be hard-pressed to find original UNDONE watches that look terrible, and there’s a reason for that. The company uses data science to figure out what people like and don’t like via their site’s watch customiser, allowing them to be ahead of the curve when it comes to demand for certain designs. 

The clean aesthetics in the watches also help in establishing that it doesn’t conform to gender-specific designs — UNDONE’s spiffy Urban Vintage Killy, for example, found fans among both men and women in our office. It's proven to be a hit outside our office too, considering that it's UNDONE's best selling product in the last five years thanks to the retro but modernized design. 

Even the box the watch comes in isn’t spared from the artisanal experience, really. The linen case and button fastener really hammer in the gifting aspect of the watch, ensuring that anyone who receives it can feel bougie even before putting it on. 

Palatable prices

PHOTO: AsiaOne

After all that talk about personal customisation and premium materials, it would make perfect sense for a watch (or any other product) to be in the high-end range of prices. For UNDONE, however, it doesn’t make sense — the classy, personalised timepieces go for as little as US$249 (S$335). Which is definitely costlier than a nice Swatch, but an insane steal when you consider everything that goes into making your own distinctive watch. 

“With lots of experience working with high-end brands and deep knowledge of watches, we know exactly the price to pay for each and every part,” Young assured about the price points. 

Customisation, engraving, and express shipping is free of charge right now all the way till Valentine’s Day, which makes it an even sweeter deal. 

This article was brought to you by UNDONE. We’ve got an exclusive for AsiaOne readers! Key in the code ASIAONESPECIAL for a 10% discount off your order. Valid until Feb 29, 2020 so tick-tock, people.

ilyas@asiaone.com