Xetum – a Californian independent watch brand

Xetum is a small and independent Californian watch brand, with a collection of self designed Swiss made mechanical watches. And in the Californian way, they do as much as possible in an eco-friendly way.

Well, that was the short introduction or maybe the elevator pitch. In March of 2010 we met Jeff Kuo for the first time during the Baselworld fair, where he told us about his plans to start a watch brand. A bold idea, especially when you consider he’s not located in Switzerland and it was in the middle of the economic crisis. However the results are very impressive… see for yourself.

Xetum has two different models in the collection and both models are available with several dial colors. The Tyndall (photo above) features a small second hand at the 6 o’clock position and Stinson has a central seconds hand, both have a date at the 3 o’clock postion and come in a 40 mm luggless case with a very nice crown.

The photo below, shamelessly borrowed from our friend Hodinkee who did a great review of the Tyndall, shows the black dial version of the Xetum Tyndall.

Since this month Xetum also offers stainless steel bracelets, beside the naturally tanned leather straps with eco-cork lining. The stainless steel bracelets are available for the same price as the straps, so that sounds like an excellent choice Xetum offers their customers!

The stainless steel bracelet has brushed and polished links and these are alternating columns of brushed and polished links. This is the same finish as visible on the side of the case. The bracelet has a pushbutton release butterfly clasp.

Maybe the most remarkable about Xetum watches is that although they’re not located in a low-wage-countries like China but in the USA, their watches are being produced in Switzerland, they make small volumes compared to many other brands and they do a serious effort to reduce their carbon footprint… and prices are still very friendly. Perhaps as friendly as Jeff Kuo, who has just been interviewed by our friends from The Watch Lounge.

Steel bracelet watches are priced the same as their watches with a leather strap watches. The Stinson is available for $995 USD and the Tyndall for $1395 USD.

Both models use a Swiss mechanical/automatic movement; inside the Stinson ticks an ETA 2824 and the Tyndall uses an ETA 2895 with small seconds at 6. Both are very reliable movements and are widely used in many other watches and by many brands.

Both Xetum models has a clean and functional design and we think it’s a huge plus that Xetum shows it’s possible to offer a unique design without overdoing things. The details are great and even at first glance Xetum has a recognisable look. The crown surely adds to this, but also the lugless case is resposible for the typical Xetum design.

Altogether we think Jeff succeeded very much in his endeavour and created a mechanical watch with modern looks and a friendly price. Check out the Xetum website for more information or to order one of their watches. Xetum also has a Facebook page.