How did you discover Artisans de Genève?

"I had a friend who was also into watches. He sent me a link to Artisans de Genève on one of their Instagram stories. I was looking through, and I was like, “Oh, this is an interesting watch. I’ve never seen this before.” I was going through the Instagram page. I think it was the watch they did for Adam Levine. The yellow gold and green Daytona. I remember seeing that and thinking, ^{“Oh, this is interesting.”} So I went to the website and started researching."

Why did you choose Artisans de Genève for your project?

"The craftsmanship, the artistic work, the way that they approach these projects, these watches… to me, it really drew me in. I had been following them for a while. It wasn’t until I decided to write my story, why I wanted to work with them.
I wrote it up on the spur of the moment because I felt compelled. I submitted it and thought, “Yeah, they’re probably not going to get back to me." Then Raphaël reached out to me not too long after."

Are you more of an enthusiast or a collector?

"Both. I collect, but I’m also very passionate about watches. I don’t collect high-end watches just because they’re high-end. I collect watches that are interesting to me, that speak to me, that mean something to me.
I don’t buy them to sell. I buy them to actually enjoy. When I buy these watches, I usually attribute them to something in my life. They mean something to me."

What does personalization mean to you?

"The personalization is being able to bring my vision to life... I want to bring what I feel is important to me to life on a watch, because a watch is something I wear all the time."

Tell us about your creation.

"The project I’m doing is actually dedicated to my daughter. I’ve always wanted a daughter first. It’s something special for her from dad. Because I travel a lot, and she loves the ocean and the beach since she was young, I crafted a watch with a special dial to mimic the ocean, the waves and the sand. It’s something I will pass on to her once she’s of age. It’ll be a special gift for her."

How is it different from your other watches?

"Every one of my watches has a story. My first watch was from my father. It was a Seiko. Unfortunately, it got lost. There is another watch that my grandfather left for me. Once my dad passes, he wants to give it to me. It’s something I plan to leave for my son also. Every watch means something."

A memory you’d like to share?

"I wear mechanical watches not to tell time, but to tell how much my time is worth. My time is valuable to me. I worked hard to get where I’m at. To be able to afford certain timepieces. To me, they are milestones of my life. I was able to achieve this level through hard work and work ethic. To be able to share that with my family and my children."