The best businesses often originate from founders addressing a burning pain they themselves are experiencing. This is exactly what happened with Matas and Danielius Jakutis and their startup watch company, Filippo Loreti.
When it came to buying luxury watches, the brothers were frustrated by having to choose between disposable “fast-fashion” and overpriced, luxury timepieces. The searched high and low but were unable to find well-made, well-designed watches at a reasonable price point. So, rather than live with the frustration, they made it their mission to create beautiful, premium- quality timepieces at fair and honest prices.
But no early-stage company can be certain their business idea has legs until the marketplace speaks with their wallets. Did the public want affordable premium watches? Or were they happy with the status quo? This is what Danielius and Matas needed to know. And the answers came quickly…
With their introduction to the mass market, Filippo Loreti set the world record for most- funded timepiece campaign in crowdfunding history. A year later, in 2016, they shattered their own record by raising $5.28 million in 30 days from more than 18,000 backers.
Since that time, Filippo Loreti has continued to develop limited-edition collections of their thoughtfully-designed and expertly-manufactured premium watches. These limited edition timepieces enchant watch collectors for its sophisticated craftsmanship. One will surely take pride even owning a moonphase watch from his or her collections. They employ the same supply chain partners as several leading luxury brands, but — by eliminating unnecessary expenses — they’re able to bring their products to consumers for 1⁄4 of the price of the competition.
Filippo Loreti’s watch series are inspired by iconic Italian cities — Venice, Rome, and Milan. Each city’s architecture, history, and local culture is expressed artfully and subtly in every distinctive design.
“With the Venice series, we tried to capture the city’s extravagant yet sophisticated atmosphere,” says Danielius. “I tried to put as many thoughtful design elements into the watch as possible. At the same time, however, I also tried to maintain clarity in the design so that the product would remain functional and wouldn’t seem too clunky or flashy.”
The Venice series was greatly inspired by the Basilica di San Marco in Venice. With a history dating back to 828 AD, this masterpiece of Byzantine architecture began as a private chapel for the ruler of Venice, the Doge. The luxurious, decadent, and attention-grabbing facade was the primary source of inspiration for the aesthetics of the series.
After seeing hundreds of social media mentions and reading dozens of Filippo Loreti reviews, we couldn’t wait to get one of their handsome watches in our hands.
The Venice Moonphase Blue Gold is one of the more striking pieces in the entire Filippo Loreti collection. With a luxurious deep blue dial and bezel, and bright gold accents, this watch immediately stands out for being both elegant and bold. At the center of its face, three sub-dials at nine, twelve and three o’clock, indicate the day, month, and date respectively. And at the six o’clock position, you’ll find a gorgeous moon phase indicator — a feature that’s almost impossible to find in watches of comparable price.
Now, with a quick glimpse at your wrist, you’re able to track the changing phases of the moon as it ‘waxes’ (increases in size) and ‘wanes’ (decreases) throughout the lunar cycle. Powered by the Japanese Miyota 6P00 movement, the moon phase indicator is, without a doubt, the star feature of this watch.
Another distinguishing detail of the Venice Moonphase Blue Gold, and of all watches in the Venice series, is found on the reverse side of its 40mm case. The caseback features a stunning 3D “bas-relief” engraving of the spectacular Basilica di San Marco in Venice — the original design inspiration for the collection.
In homage to the Basilica’s many interior mosaics, the caseback engraving is dual-finished in polished and satin. This fuses traditional craftsmanship with a touch of design history and ensures your Venice timepiece gives you something beautiful to admire even when it’s not on your wrist.
The Venice Moonphase Blue Gold comes with an elegant Italian leather strap matching its cobalt blue dial. For a more formal or “dressy” look, the model is also available with a gold mesh bracelet. The Filippo Loreti Venice Moonphase Blue Gold is available at Filippo Loreti’s official website for just $249 USD. The Venice Moonphase Blue Gold Mesh (including both the mesh bracelet and a complimentary blue Italian leather strap) is available for only $315 USD. With such an unbelievable quality-to-price ratio, it is easy to understand why Filippo Loreti is shaking up the premium watch industry.