Interesting Facts about Arbutus
The name comes from a town name in Canada
One of the common questions that we always get is what does the name ‘Arbutus’ mean. Nope, it is not the scientific term of a plant nor is it a place in New York. In fact, the brand’s name originated from a small town in Canada and it is the hometown of Arbutus founder, Albert Reed. It is a beautiful place where Reed grew up which inspired him to name his business after it.
Arbutus used to make quartz watches
When Arbutus founder, Albert Reed, first founded Arbutus in New York, the focus of the company was fashion quartz watches. This may be due to the large demand for quartz watches in the American market after the Quartz revolution of the 1970s. The fashion watches were a large success in America which prompted Reed to continue producing only quartz watches.
It was only after the brand was taken over by Bomass International that Arbutus started to be a brand dedicated in providing affordable quality mechanical watches. Society has changed and people are more appreciative of the craftsmanship that goes into a mechanical watch. With luxury brands leading the perception of a mechanical watch being a symbol of status, the desire to own a mechanical watch became greater than before.
Today, Arbutus watches feature mechanical movements meticulously assembled by highly skilled watch-makers, with sophisticated designs inspired by the best in the international watch industry.
P.S. If you have still got a quartz watch from Arbutus in the 1970s, be sure to know that it is a really rare antique!
The types of movement in Arbutus watches
The precision and accuracy of a watch will always be at the heart of every mechanical watch centric brand. The type of movement will determine the quality of a watch and there is no denying that the Swiss have been the leaders in this aspect for centuries. In order to provide affordable and quality watches, Arbutus decided to modify the Asian movement with a Swiss barrel to increase accuracy.
Arbutus has also created its very own Arbutus exclusive movement which consists of a big date display and power reserve indicator. You can read all about the movement here. Some of the Arbutus watches also use Japanese Miyota movement to provide better performance for different complications.
Well, you can be assured that Arbutus will always be advancing to provide watches with quality movements.
It has been worn by celebrities
If you do not know yet, Arbutus watches had been featured in Korean dramas and worn by exceptionally good looking actors before. Remember your favourite ‘oppa’ Lee Seung Gi? Here’s a screen capture of him donning one of our watches!
And who else remembers this popular Korean drama that once pulled at our heartstrings?
Featuring a beautiful automatic skeleton watch from Arbutus.
And this drama which screened on our local television just early this year?
Bet you didn’t know these 4 interesting facts about Arbutus! We once said that having a mechanical watch is like being in a relationship so it’s best to know everything about the watch before you bring it home.
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