The watchmaking world is, to some, a confusing, expensive, and secretive place but one forward-thinking company might have cracked the “code” through their innovative business model that democratizes the watchmaking experience while still making extremely high-quality Swiss watches.
Swiss watchmaker CODE41 is the first community watchmaking brand and their watches are equal parts stunning, high-quality and affordable, and perfect for the watch enthusiast, business traveler or modern executive.
Claudio D’Amore wasn’t satisfied with the watchmaking industry. After leaving design school the watch designer immediately got to work designing watches for various traditional watch manufacturers – places like TAG Heuer, Montblanc. However, He quickly found that the industry left quite a bit to be desired. Notably, the lack of involvement from the community, transparency about materials and cost, and a general air of snootiness.
- This is a sponsored post, working in collaboration with our partners at CODE41. We may receive a commission off of any purchase you make.
D’Amore knew something better could be built and in 2016 he established the watchmaking industry’s first fully transparent, community-driven Swiss watchmaking company: CODE41.
His mission? Deliver meticulously handcrafted Swiss watches at an affordable and transparent price to a community of loyal watch enthusiasts who actively participated in the design the entire way.
The CODE41 digital community is a key part of the company’s success. This community of watch enthusiasts has grown to over 500,000 members and each one gets a vote on the esthetic and technical elements that comprise these magnificent watches.
This unique approach to community interaction pulls the curtain back on the entire watchmaking process, giving the consumer a front-row seat to actively participate in a crowdsourced design. This approach has yielded several innovative collections of watches that stand apart from the traditional watches on the market.
For example, the X41 Collection features stunning designs, finely crafted materials and watchmaking quality that Swiss watches are known around the world for.
D’Amore’s other big idea was transparency. His team set out to build Swiss watches made from the finest materials with a radical idea: let’s show the cost, origin and markup of all the components used to build a CODE41 watch. The result? A rabid community of fans that appreciate this modern approach to a company.
Finally, D’Amore’s CODE41 uses its community a little differently than other companies. In addition to democratizing watch design, the average consumer cannot just purchase a CODE41 watch without registering and participating in the design process.
Potential customers can join the CODE41 community, contribute to the watch design and pre-order watches as part of their periodic releases. Registration in the CODE41 community is free of charge and gives you access to the watchmaking journey and also a chance to purchase one of the limited volume builds they release each year.
CODE41’s unique approach to the market has flipped it on its head and although the company is still only a few years old, it has uniquely differentiated itself inside a stodgy and mysterious market. Their approach is both simple and profound and it’s resonating with a new breed of consumers, business travelers and modern executives. They are here to stay.
Register for a CODE41 Account Here (Affiliate Link)
