Ikepod Megapod again: Seriously?

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Source: TimeWerke Videos on YouTube.

Ikepod went silent in 2012 but this watch brand has been resuscitated and brought back to life by Christian-Louis Col who bought the brand in 2017.

Following its revival, the brand is now attempting to sustain itself on one-tenth of its previous “oxygen” intake.

Seriously?

First of all, a new version of Ikepod was launched on Kickstarter in 2018 and more than US$385,000 from over 750 supporters was generated from pre-orders within a few months. The first Ikepod revival was designed by Emmanuel Gueit, credited for creating the Royal Oak Offshore and redesigning the Rolex Cellini. The 2018 Ikepod was a quartz watch.

In March 2020, two years after the new generation debut piece, the second iteration Ikepod, the Megapod, was launched, again on Kickstarter. It is a remake or re-edition of the 1997 model that is said to have made the brand a success then. Former Baume & Mercier artistic director, Alexandre Peraldi, was behind the design of the re-edition Megapod equipped with a self-winding movement.

The 2020 Megapod is housed in a 316L stainless steel case, features the hour, minute and seconds hand and a silicone bracelet “in the spirit of the first Ikepod”. It has a power reserve of 42 hours and the watch is water-resistant to 5 atm (50 metres).

What do we mean when we said that Ikepod is attempting to survive on one-tenth of its previous oxygen intake?

Well, the new Ikepod Megapod costs CHF1,250 as compared to the original of 2008 that was priced at CHF12,500. That represents a mere 10% of the original price of 12 years ago!

How is such costing possible?

The Megapod, with the Japanese Miyota 9039 automatic movement, is being assembled in Hong Kong “at one of the leading watch subcontractors of major European watch brands”, the dials and hands are made in Taiwan

The Ikepod brand was launched by Marc Newson and Oliver Ike in 1994. However, it was “in suspension of payment in 2006” and resuscitated in 2008. Unfortunately, it went dormant in 2012. In 2017, Ikepod was brought back to life when Christian-Louis Col acquired the brand. It is said that Col was looking for an Ikepod in 2016 when he discovered that the brand was up for sale. The rest, as they always say, is history.

Now for those who may be sitting on the fence with the Ikepod Megapod, take note that early adopters (the “first contributors”, according to the brand) will be offered the special price of CHF740 as opposed to CHF1,250, representing a discount of 41%! This is a single-digit percentage or just 5.9% of the original price in 2008!

This truly explains Ikepod’s tagline: “Same quality, same design, new prices”. Yes, seriously.

More information on https://ikepodwatches.com/landing/

Video: Ikepod.

The story behind the Chopard Alpine Eagle

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Source: TimeWerke Videos on YouTube.

Is the Chopard Alpine Eagle a copy of another watch? Does it look like another watch?

Firstly, the word “copy” might be a harsh word depending on the context of its use. Secondly, we fully agree that Chopard’s Alpine Eagle does indeed look like another watch – the Chopard St Moritz that made its debut in 1980.

The St Moritz of 1980 was the first watch creation of Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, currently co-president of Chopard. He was then 22 years of age and had to convince his father, Karl Scheufele, to accept the idea. The St Moritz was the first sports watch from Chopard made of steel. Back then, Chopard was focused more on gold and diamond-set gold timepieces. According to the brand, the St Moritz was one of Chopard’s bestsellers over a decade.

In 2019 or close to 40 years later, Chopard’s history has repeated itself. This time, Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s son, Karl-Fritz, was the driving force behind the Alpine Eagle.

“When I walked into the office of my father one day and I saw this watch, he explained that it was the St Moritz,” recalls Karl-Fritz. Intrigued, Karl-Fritz decided that the St Moritz had the potential to be resurrected in a modern form.

Though his father was initially reluctant, he was secretly supported by his grandfather and his determination led to the acceptance of a new collection – the Alpine Eagle. The Alpine Eagle represents a relaunch of the St Moritz or perhaps a better term to use is the re-edition of a Chopard sports watch forty years on. “I must admit the [Alpine Eagle] fits into its time today,” says Karl-Friedrich Scheufele.

Looking at vintage pieces of the St Moritz, we observed that the strong feature of its design was the eight screws securing the bezel onto the case and it had an integrated metal bracelet.

While the bezel of the Alpine Eagle is rounded unlike the St Moritz that had a particular shape, it seems like certain design aspects have been retained. This is in the form of the crown protector, the protrusion surrounding the crown and it is balanced by similar protrusions on the case at 9 o’clock.

The prominent eight screws feature is retained and the screws are functional in the sense that it helps in the water-resistance of the watchcase.

The Chopard Alpine Eagle is not a copy of the St Moritz, neither is it an exact re-make. It is a modern-day version of the St Moritz – an evolution of the St Moritz.

“So the story continues,” says Karl-Fritz Scheufele.