“With our incredible duo watch combining digital technology and a mechanical movement, we want to create a link between the past symbolized by the classic luxury watch and the future represented by the connected watch like the new Apple watch”, said Bernard Yasse. This Belgian former gendarme, committed to the protection of late King Baudouin Ier of Belgium, became an entrepreneur in Luxembourg a few years ago. In 2010, he decided to buy the brand Benrus and to give it a new impulse.

“I always was fascinated by watches, and especially by Benrus watches”, commented Bernard. “These watches were part of the American history. They were worn by the Armed Force during the World War II and the Vietnam War. Since the beginning in the 1920s, Benrus has been very innovative. The company was the first American watch manufacturer to use the Swiss movement. Benrus produced a lot of interesting and unusual features at that time like their infamous calendar watch in the late 1940s, the most mass produced “complicated” watch of all time. They were also the first to use the ads in a modern way.”

Stay tuned, support our upcoming campaign and help us restore this American legend as a creative watch manufacturer always seeking innovation and excellence.

To reflect this re-generation of Belforte, we have updated the original logo and launched a new visual identity (see the old and new versions on the left). “We changed the font for a composition of graphic elements highlighting the technological side of our watch”, said Julien Duckers, our marketing manager. “At the same time, we rolled out a streamlined monochrome look in order to suggest elegance and luxury. We also transformed the form of the letter O of the word Belforte as a symbol of a watch dial.”

Julien is fond of design, branding, photography and… watches. He worked a few years in the well-kwown watch company Ice-Watch before joining our team. Take a look at his fantastic photography portfolios at www.duckers.be.

Stay tuned, support our upcoming crowdfunding campaign and help us revive a true American legend!

“We will follow the same logic during our crowdfunding campaign by offering original perks in limited editions in exchange for different amounts contributed. Every dollar helps us and we want to reward every contributor. From 10 USD, everyone will receive something unique and specifically devoted to this project. Even our Belforte duo watch will be offered at a special price.”

With our crowdfunding campaign, our team wants to restore this brand to its former glory by reestablishing its role as a creative watch manufacturer always seeking innovation and excellence, as it was in the 1960s when Jerry Lewis was doing ads for Belforte. “Belforte watches are the perfect gifts for my friends around the world”, said the comedian in the ad on the left. We hope that we will be able to repeat this slogan in a few months, at the end of our crowdfunding campaign.

Stay tuned, support our upcoming crowdfunding campaign and help us revive a true American legend!

For now, we have to keep our watch top secret. The only thing we can do is show you some sketches of the hands on the mechanical side of our revolutionary watch (see top). These drawings, by our designer Yannick Thiel, will form part of an e-book, one of our upcoming perks, describing the design and manufacturing processes for the re-invented Belforte watch, built by the Benrus Watch Co. A fantastic story, beautifully illustrated by our talented designer.

Born in 1984 in Verviers (Belgium), Yannick has always been fascinated by medieval legend, forests and wildlife. He illustrates books for kids, is involved in several comic strip projects and works part time as a special tutor for children with family problems. Where he helps them to express themselves through drawings. More info on Yannick’s artwork (in French) at www.ythiel.be.

With a revolutionary concept combining digital technology and a mechanical movement, our Benrus Watch team intends to restore an American watch company to its former glory as a creative watch manufacturer always seeking innovation and excellence. But, for this, we need funding. Follow our project blog, support our upcoming crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo and help us revive a true American legend.

Our campaign offers perks in exchange for different contribution amounts. You can select our incredible watch, an attractive resellers’ package, a “thank you” mail with exclusive wallpaper, an exclusive ebook and other stuff like the fantastic vintage poster on the left! Stay tuned and don’t waste time when our crowdfunding campaign is launched. Most of all our perks will be available in limited numbers…

Our Benrus Watch team is composed of 5 watch enthusiasts: Bernard Yasse (CEO), Julien Duckers (marketing manager), Yannick Thiel (designer), Jean Vanzo (3D animation expert) and Stéphane Etienne (communication and community manager). Discover our expertise and our passion for watches by following our project blog, support our upcoming crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo (www.indiegogo.com) and help us revive a true American legend!

In the early 1920s, a Jewish Romanian opened a watch shop in New York City. First of all, he was an importer and a wholesaler but a few years later he started producing his own watches. The personality of these watches, their style and the Swiss movement inside rapidly helped the company to pull away from all the competition and to stand out from the crowd.

After the World War II, the American company produced some of its best and most innovative watches. Quickly developing, it went from being just another ordinary watch company to one that was continually introducing more and more complex “state of the art” watches. The company became so significant in the 1950s that it sought to buy out one of the leaders of the luxury watch manufacturers at that time, the Hamilton Watch Company.

The success story of the company came to an end in the 1970s with the competition created by cheap quartz watches. It quickly faded into the background, just becoming a watch brand and being no longer a manufacturer..

Is it the end of the story? Not yet.

Our team located in a small country in Europe, the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, intends to bring this legendary company back into the limelight. With a revolutionary concept combining digital technology and a mechanical movement, we want to restore this American legend as a creative watch manufacturer always seeking innovation and excellence.

But, for this, we need funding. Follow our project blog, support our upcoming crowdfunding campaign and help us revive a true American legend!