The rocket that flew to the ISS is now a coveted jewelry item | Third crowdfunding campaign is expected to start on September 17 | Fans voted for new collection | Soyuz 01 and Soyuz 01 Superlative models exclusively available with mechanical movements.
Crowdfunding "Soyuz 01" Collection
Zurich, September 8, 2020. Zurich-based watch atelier Werenbach, which is famous for its unconventional watch collections made from space rockets, is expected launching its third crowdfunding project on September 17, 2020. Fans of these cool, sought-after, high-end timepieces can now look forward to another unconventional item of designer wristwear with its own unique character. The design for the new collection was chosen in a survey that 6,000 fans participated in.
This time company founder Patrick Hohmann has upcycled aluminum from a booster on the Soyuz rocket that flew Sergei Valeriyevich Prokopyev, Alexander Gerst and Serena Auñón- Chancellor up to the ISS on June 6, 2018. The dial is made from rocket material that has been to the edge of space at an altitude of 45 km before being recovered from the Kazakh desert steppe, cleaned, and elaborately engineered.
Each watch comes with a certificate confirming that it contains real rocket parts, which adds to its unique appeal.
One collection – two movements – six dial designs
The new watch will be available in two models, Soyuz 01 and Soyuz 01 Superlative, with the visual highlight of a 3D-effect dial. Two mechanical movements have been built as the result of a survey in which more than 6,000 Werenbach fans participated. The majority of them voted in favor of high-quality movements.
Although the basic collection incorporates the most established Swiss movement of all time – the Sellita SW200 (known as ETA 2824) – the Superlative models have a mechanical Soprod movement. It is distinguished by excellent precision and a cross-through bridge over the balance. Bridges like these are generally only found in luxury brands that are manufactured to the highest standards of Swiss ‘haute-horlogerie’. The dial is made from original processed aluminum in black or white, polished or unpolished. The watches satisfy the most stringent of quality criteria and come with a 5-year warranty.
Eagerly awaited crowdfunding campaign
The crowdfunding campaign is expected to start on September 10, preperations are in full swing. Current information can be found on the Werenbach website: archive.werenbach.ch. This day is likely to see interest in the timepieces ‘skyrocket’ again because the watch manufacturer is offering a maximum early bird discount in the first 24 hours of the crowdfunding campaign, with watch prices in the range of EUR 500 and 1,000, which is far lower than comparable watch models and corresponds to almost half of the normal retail price. The background: the Werenbach studio has perfected its production and logistics operations over the past eight years and only markets its timepieces directly via the Werenbach web shop.
The first one hundred supporters will also receive an iconic steel astronaut key band figure worth EUR 49 – made exclusively for Werenbach by a Zurich artist.
The company’s fan base has now expanded to more than 35,000 people, mainly from Germany and Switzerland.
All of the crowdfunding campaigns to date have been extraordinarily successful, which is a reflection of the company’s product quality and brand philosophy. The most recent financing project set a Swiss record on the international crowdfunding platform kickstarter.com, when the target of 40,000 francs was achieved within just 20 minutes.