Zelos Watches: From Kickstarter to successful microbrand
In 2014, Elshan Tang launched Zelos Watches via a successful Kickstarter campaign. We take a look at how it has since emerged as a successful microbrand among watch enthusiasts.
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Meet Elshan Tang, the Singaporean behind Zelos Watches
In 2014, Elshan Tang, Founder of Zelos Watches, decided to hone in on his passion and launched his very own brand on Kickstarter.
Driven by his love for analogue timepieces that started as early as his high school days, the young entrepreneur’s first campaign was a success. How much does it cost to start a watch brand? The platform allowed him to raise funds of SGD 80K - that he didn’t have at the time - as well as helped him to quickly reach a worldwide target audience.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Zelos Watches today sits at the top of many local and global watch enthusiasts’ lists, especially among those who are looking to get acquainted with regional microbrands.
Drawing inspiration from his passions
Zelos watch, Starfighter Chronograph, with the caseback being removed
To Elshan, great timepiece designs should not be confined to luxury brands - and the same goes for his customers. It’s about the best components, quality as well as unique materials. This helps them better compare and decide across bigger brands and Zelos, which is a better investment.
With that, Elshan draws inspiration from his other passions such as knifemaking, using exotic metals and composites like scratch-proof sapphire glass, and the use of diamond cutters, to tailor harder materials like tantalum or timascus, to create parts for his watches.
“My design approach sees my pieces having their own distinctive attributes. I want my watches to have a unique story and historical significance behind them, so collectors can share when they wear these watches on their wrist. For example, some timepieces are created from materials that are rarely used in luxury watches. like the SR-71 Blackbird reconnaissance plane, a former nuclear submarine, bronze and metal.”
Zelos Watches today sits at the top of many local and global watch enthusiasts’ lists, especially among those who are looking to get acquainted with regional microbrands.
You’re only as strong as your support network
According to Elshan, “Running a business can be an extremely challenging process, with its fair share of highs and lows. We, as founders, have to deal with a host of operational hurdles in our business plans such as product-market-fit, customer service, marketing, customer satisfaction and logistics”.
But he believes that starting your business with the right logistics provider can make the difference between success and failure. Small and medium enterprises can thrive better on the global stage through a strong business network/support system to partner them on this journey.
When sourcing for logistics solutions, Elshan decided on working with FedEx as he says, "They offer reliable and fast worldwide shipping, which is important for our watches as it costs a few hundred dollars. Our target customers do prefer quicker shipping options, so it’s great to be able to deliver in that aspect!”
He adds, “We’ve also just started using the Shopify Ship, Rate and Track app for generating FedEx labels. This has cut down processing time by 25% or so”.
Elshan checking technical dimensions and drawings of timepieces
Budding entrepreneurs should follow their dreams
When asked what advice he would give budding entrepreneurs who want to start their own business, Elshan says, “I would say just go ahead and take the first step with building your business plan. Many are afraid of failure or the effort required to start out, which means they will spend their life regretting or thinking, ‘what if?’”
And for Elshan, this is only the beginning. In the next five to ten years, he aims to grow his brand’s recognition amongst collectors and the general public, and to continue making unique and striking timepieces. He maintains that his guiding vision will remain to be that great timepiece designs should not be confined to luxury brands.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Zelos Watches today sits at the top of many local and global watch enthusiasts’ lists, especially among those who are looking to get acquainted with regional microbrands.
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