Have You Heard Of Aevum Watches?

I've recently made a very good friend, his name is Bryan. He is the owner of Canadian micro brand Aevum Watches. He has a brand that is worth talking about! Not only does he make his watches, he makes bespoke leather straps, watch cases, and even wallets. I am honoured to be able to introduce Aevum to you. He was gracious enough to let me interview him and allow me to share it. Enjoy!

Q: Who are you?

A: I'm Bryan, I'm the creator of Aevum Timepieces.

Q: What do you do at Aevum?

A: Everything, lol. There's no other staff at Aevum, it's just me. Occasionally if I'm lucky, my wife will drop an outgoing package at JP Post for me, but that's about it.

Q: How long has Aevum been around?

A: Aevum has been around since 2011 so a bit over a decade now.

Q: Describe your company in three words.

A: Unique, automotive, passion.

Q: Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your brand and the story of how it came to be?

A: Well, Aevum started out as a leather watch strap business after I moved to Japan the first time and couldn't get a car right away. My license had to be translated and the paperwork needed was hours away in Hiroshima, so it was a few months before we got around to it. Since I'm a big car guy, I was getting frustrated with not having a car to enjoy, so I decided to take up a hobby. I picked up a book on leatherwork and got started making straps. Every business increase from here was the result of supplier issues, lol.. At first I just did the leather and bought buckles. The supplier was a big strap and buckle company in the States who, more often than anyone would like, sent the wrong buckle size. I asked if they could be a bit more careful to which they replied "We do our best, also you make straps and so do we so you're basically competition." So, after that I stopped ordering from them and had my own Aevum buckles produced. Since I was now making the straps and the buckles, I thought why not make the watch, too? I love watches and as a licensed mechanic I often saw racing team/league watches, but not a whole lot of 'for everyone' racing or technician watches that caught my eye. First I made the Apex and Apex GT, but the supplier was always late by months and you had to fight to get customer service, so I switched. The Advance, Advance Carbon Limited and Track Tech as well as the Carbon Limited version of that were with a new company that was super nice, but on the carbon limited model, they lacked quality control. Out of 100 dials, only 30 or so had no blemishes. I asked for them to be fixed and they said it would cost them profit to fix them so I should just order another set lol.. Now I have my own lathe, NC CNC, drill press and milling machine in my little office where I hand make what I need. I get to make watches in a 1 of 1 rather than 1 of 300 now as well and get to do cool things like experiment with case shapes and materials on a much easier to manage level.

Q: What sets your watches apart from others in the market, especially considering the competitive landscape of micro brands?

A: I would say being more mechanic oriented originally set us apart. Lots of automotive brands out there, but they're sort of genetically racing. Models like my Advance have fun connections like a lumed line up mark over a camshaft design crown just like you'd find on an engine (minus the lume of course, lol) or the Track Tech's crossed wrenches case back and tire tread/wheel crown. Now I would say what sets us apart is that and the fact Aevum is moving into being hand made.

Q: Could you walk us through the design process for your watches?

A: My design process is less of a process and more of a "oh that would be cool, I need to write this down" type of chaos, lol. I like to hear what people in our Aevum community want and also what I want to try, then give it a shot. With the lathe it's now more "what will my current tools do and how can I push them to do something else?" Trial and error, but the results so far have been quite cool. How do you ensure that each piece reflects your brand's vision and ethos? The vision is pretty lax to be honest. I want to make watches that reflect an automotive passion, but I want it to be for everyone. I want my friend who has a billion cars (can't remember how many, lol, it's definitely more than 5) he hand builds for daily and track racing to enjoy a connection to Aevum, but I also want the individual who maybe has a Corolla with an exhaust system because he likes sound - people who maybe love the idea of a Martini Racing watch but aren't going to ever have a connection to the Martini race team. I want people to be able to form their own connection to Aevum through their automotive passion.

Q: Can you share any behind-the-scenes stories or challenges you faced during the development of a particular watch model, and how you overcame them?

A: I think most of that is covered vaguely with how I switched to handmade, but absolutely! The Aevum Advance was ion plated, but that supplier forgot about the tolerances of threads and accidentally coated the crown tubes as well. This resulted in it no longer being an M-whatever size thread and the crown couldn't screw down properly. For that one, I hand replaced every single crown tube before releasing the watch. I'm a firm believer that if it's a problem, you need to fix it before it goes to your guests, not after. Next was the Track Tech case backs. The same company accidentally spilled some degreaser on the case backs after they were milled and sandblasted. Since I'm working as an engineer in a CNC / cold forge lab in Japan, I immediately noticed what that chemical was - it turns stainless brown.. so, 90% of the case backs had a few brown dots on them that will never come off. I replaced them all like the crown tubes before shipping out. The final item was those carbon fiber dials that had poor finishing, that was the last straw for that company as they didn't want to fix their own mistake. Now it's just me, lol, so if there's an issue with your watch, I'm sorry, lol, it was me.. I'll fix it :p

Q: Can you share any insights into the manufacturing process of your watches?

A: I would love to except I'm not entirely sure yet, lol, I'm mostly experimenting since I'm hand making them now, but I can tell you I'm building my watches with a titanium core and a stainless steel outer case for aesthetics and design configuration reasons.

Q: Do you utilize any unique techniques, materials, or technologies?

A: Yes, I'm using techniques used to ironically make die casings for automotive parts (brand tie-in again, lol). The tech is basic - hand lathes and hand milling, but the materials are pretty cool. Currently I'm using 316L stainless and Grade 5 titanium that I torch anodize.

Q: How do you source materials for your watches, and what considerations do you take into account when selecting them?

A: Material-wise, I get everything from our suppliers at the cold forge lab. It's super convenient as I can get it all dropped off at work and just take it home from there. Also, since we supply big automotive manufactures we often get fast delivery on high end materials and the supplier will cut it to any shape, diameter and length needed without any extra charge. My biggest considerations are 'is this safe for people?' and, it is, lol. But I would say that's priority one. Number two is hardness; can the lathe turn this without massive effort, etc.

Q: What is your vision for the future of your brand?

A: I think the future of Aevum is handmade and eventually some bespoke work as well, though the plan is to keep it affordable. I'd like to continue using movements like the NH series as well as Miyota and sprinkle in some high end movements to keep Aevum affordable for everyone.

Q: Are there any upcoming projects or developments that you're particularly excited about?

A: Yes, absolutely! All of them, lol. But if I'm going to pick one it's the Type Zero. The Type Zero is my first handmade model that'll use the Aevum Titan-Core architecture (titanium core in a stainless steel outer case) and will boast a lot of cool things like torched titanium accenting, thick sapphire crystal with antireflective coating, 3 and 4 hand GMT models, shifted and standard dial positions, carbon fiber case back art with sapphire crystal cover, a carbon fiber dial - a lot is going on with this one.

Q: What's your favorite model you do, or have produced?

A: Although it wasn't wildly successful, I would say the Track Tech Carbon Limited. I love th colours on it and how the overall layout came to be.

Q: Do you have a Grail watch? What is it? One you could see yourself spending the money on, as well as wearing to enjoy.

A: Oh.. well, this one sounds conceited, but I promise it isn't, lol.. My grail watch is an NE88 powered Aevum Shift automatic chronograph. I love everything about the design of it and I can absolutely build the basic case for it, but.. that NE88 movement is a substantial investment that I'm not ready to dive into in case I mess it up, lol. But.. it's absolutely on the list of things to complete in my lifetime.

Q: Can you share any anecdotes or memorable experiences from your journey as a microbrand owner thus far?

A: I think connecting with Aevum clients are my fondest memories. One time I had a watch going to Ottawa from Kitchener, but Canada Post kept messing it up (easily one of the worst postal services in the world, lol). Eventually I told my client, who was super nice about it all, that if Canada Post couldn't get it there on time, I would. Sure enough, Canada Post failed and so I drove the 900km round trip after my mechanic night shift and got to see their very cool vintage Camaro - all in all it was a fun experience. Another time I had a client visiting Japan and we were able to meet up here in Osaka. I'm still trying to find them the perfect leather for a second strap.. the leather I want to use is apparently much harder to come by in Japan for that, need to search harder it seems.

Q: Can you discuss any specific design elements or features of your watches that might go unnoticed by the casual observer but hold significant meaning or significance to you as the creator?

A: Every Aevum has some automotive tie-in but I think the one with the most that would go unnoticed is the Aevum Advance. Advance stands for advancing engine timing and here's the Easter eggs in that one: 1) The chapter ring is a cam position degree wheel. 2) The case has an engine to cam line up triangle. 3) The triangle lines up over a cam gear designed crown. 4) The crown grip is half crescent cut like a cam gear. 5) The strap keeper has what looks like two "C" marks on it; it's an exhaust/intake overlap diagram.

Q: In a market saturated with established brands, how do you approach carving out a distinct identity for your microbrand, and what strategies do you employ to connect with your audience on a deeper level?

A: I should probably think more about that, lol, but for the most part I just make what I like and try my best to listen and make what the Aevum community likes.

Q: What do you believe is the most common misconception about microbrands in the watch industry, and how do you work to dispel it through your own brand's practices?

A: Most common one I see is usually outside of the microbrand groups in which people instantly assume that your stuff is all cheap Chinese drop shipped stuff. I just show a photo of me hand making components on the lathe if I feel bothered enough to correct them, lol, but usually I just avoid those types of people if I can.

Q: Can you discuss any sustainability initiatives, ethical, or charitable practices that your brand prioritizes in its company ethos, and how these values align with your overall brand philosophy?

A: I've recently been providing items to Garagemahal, a car show event in Elora, Ontario that shows off amazing cars, has great food and charitable auctions for people in need.

Q: Looking ahead, what do you envision as the next big trend or shift in the watch industry, and how do you anticipate your brand adapting to or influencing this change?

A: I think a lot of brands do a great job at following the trend, you sort of see them all doing the same but different, lol. But I think Aevum will be Aevum and I'll just keep plugging away at my own designs as well as taking suggestions from the Aevum community. It's probably not the ideal 'make a ton of money' plan, but it makes me happy and hopefully makes the great people wearing Aevum watches happy, lol, so I think that's what's most important for me currently.

As I'm sure you can tell, Bryan is an amazing guy! His hard work and dedication to making sure his brand stays true to his dream is admirable. I am happy to call him a friend, and support his dream in any way that I can. I can't wait to see what's up his sleeve next!

Thank you Bryan!