Maybe it’s just me but I find the micro and independent watch world to be utterly fascinating. And it is so for many reasons, one being the sheer variety of options we have for all genres of watches which are available at a wide variety of prices. From GMTs and elegant dressy models to divers and field watches. And there are indeed many options to choose from in all of these categories. One of my favorite things about watch writing is bringing readers stories on the little guys, so I’m therefore pleased to be writing this article to tell you about the just released Zealandic Iceborne. A new brand founded in New Zealand by Derek Chuan whose project I’ve been following for the past two years now, so it’s nice to be able to get my hands on the prototypes.
Derek has been working on this project for longer than I have known him. And his idea of creating a watch which represents New Zealand has been on par with the recent trends of endowing watches with textured and nature-inspired dials. Between you and me, Derek has been working on this long before many other brands probably have. And this is just to say that the Iceborne has been a long time in the making and I believe it shows. Both from a visual perspective as well as from a spec sheet one. The Iceborne has a look of its own and it is made of the right stuff to be a proper field and adventure watch. It will be made available via a Kickstarter campaign at the introductory price of $441 USD.