Jacob Arabo, Founder & Benjamin Arabov, CEO

2 minutes read
Listen now
Three things to know about Jacob Arabo & Benjamin Arabov

Jacob Arabo, Founder

From the very beginning, Jacob Arabo wanted to do things differently. He started making his own jewellery in 1986, when the brand was born, with bespoke pieces crafted for celebrities, musicians and actors. His first high-watchmaking timepiece, the Quenttin, had a 31-day power reserve, difficult to achieve even now and unheard of when it was introduced in 2006. The Quenttin put the entire vertical tourbillon on display, a move that has become a hallmark of Jacob & Co. and was a gamechanger at the time.

Jacob Arabo, Founder & Benjamin Arabov, CEO

Though his brand has a relatively short history compared to more established Swiss brands, Arabo sees this as an advantage because there is no weight of history to contend with – he has the absolute freedom to create whatever he wants. This freedom has resulted in some of the most ground-breaking watches the industry has ever seen.

“I want to be remembered as a trailblazer,” says Arabo. “I am not a watchmaker, I’m not an engineer. I am a creator and I am willing to take a risk. Luckily, the risks I have taken have proven successful, and I promise I will continue to create extraordinary timepieces and jewellery.”

About his favourite watch: Blue Chiron Titanium 

Sleek, light, technical and with a distinctive design, the Bugatti Chiron Blue Titanium is an impressive vessel of creativity.

Jacob Arabo, Founder & Benjamin Arabov, CEO

Benjamin Arabov CEO

Ben started out working in the family business back when he was in school, over summer break. When he went to college and had classes three days a week, he would work two days a week. 

Jacob Arabo, Founder & Benjamin Arabov, CEO

“At 19, I left the family business to explore digital advertising, but I left telling my father that I’d be back with all this knowledge, strategies, experience that I could bring to Jacob & Co. That was always the goal. My father is old-school; he believes in keeping the business in the family, so it was hard for me to leave – my older brother was doing his own thing and my other brother was too young… I was the only one involved in the company, and I told him I’d be back in a few months to soften the blow. Well, a few months turned into 10 years, but now my father really sees the value of my experience outside of the company, because of what I’m bringing back to it.”

“I’m personally extremely excited about our partnerships and collaborations. It’s helped us tremendously as a brand to collaborate with other creatives, be it individuals or companies. We love what we’ve done with Bugatti and Paramount, or Supreme. When you share the same vision of innovation and pushing boundaries, that’s extremely rewarding for us creatively.”

Jacob Arabo, Founder & Benjamin Arabov, CEO

On an everyday basis, Benjamin Arabov wears an Epic X Tourbillon, a titanium, skeleton limited series Jacob & Co edited for MMA legend Khabib Nurmagomedov.

 

As a WorldTempus reader, we are delighted to offer you the latest digital version of this GMT magazine that you can download here. Happy reading!

Focus on Watchmaking Fairs 2022

Featured brand