Amsterdam, The Netherlands (26 May, 2010) – TW Steel, the Dutch watchmaker specializing in oversized watches, has unveiled the fruits of its collaboration with brand ambassador Dario Franchitti in the form of the ‘TW Steel Dario Franchitti’ execution – set to retail in early July.
Franchitti, two-time IndyCar Series Champion and the 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner, took a personal role in the design and development of the TW607 (45mm) and TW608 (48mm) editions that bare his name and reflect his passion for watches.
Based on TW Steel’s existing TECH style, the ‘Dario Franchitti’ edition is made of high-grade 316L steel featuring black PVD-coated screws on the bezel. The pillars that connect the bezel and the case-back are similarly adorned with black PVD. Franchitti’s famous helmet colours of blue, green and red – based on the Scottish and Italian flags to reflect his heritage, also feature boldly on the watch along with his leading race car numbers.
On the striking black dial the number 10, Dario’s current race car number with Target Chip Ganassi Racing and the one he carried to his 2009 IndyCar Series title success, is highlighted in red, while the numbers 2 and 7 are equally stunning in green – in recognition of the ‘27’ he carried on his race car on the way to his first IndyCar Series title and his ‘Indy 500’ victory in 2007.
‘Franchitti’ appears in blue on the tachymeter ring while Dario’s logo, signature and title successes feature on the case-back recognizing one of the leading talents of the IZOD IndyCar Series.
“It was an absolute pleasure to work with Dario on the design of this execution,” reflected TW Steel’s Chief Design Officer, Ton Cobelens. “There is always a challenge in producing a ‘signature’ edition as you have to carefully blend personal taste with commercial appeal. As a connoisseur of timepieces though, Dario knew the direction he wanted to go in and we worked very well together. Ultimately I think we have created an extremely appealing watch, both for Dario’s fans and the consumer at large, which proudly represents TW Steel and Dario Franchitti.”
“This was a project I took extremely seriously but simply had a lot of fun doing,” Franchitti stated. “I think the end result is amazing and perfectly reflects in its design elements the key associations in my career. The colours and numbers highlighted are easily identifiable to my fans but equally I just think it’s a great looking watch. It was a privilege to work with Ton (Cobelens) and TW Steel as it was fascinating to be involved in the design process – not least for an ardent watch lover like myself. I’m really looking forward to people’s reaction while proudly wearing my own edition!
”Having qualified for this year’s ‘Indy 500’ on the front-row on Saturday (22nd May), Dario then made his way directly from the renowned Indianapolis Motor Speedway to a launch party for his watch, hosted by one of Indianapolis’ premier watch and jewelry outlets, Reis Nichols.
TW Steel, celebrating its fifth anniversary in 2010, continues to develop and lead the oversized watch market. A family-owned company, headed by 27-year-old Chief Executive Officer and co-owner, Jordy Cobelens, ‘The Watch in Steel’, has emerged as an innovative, bold lifestyle brand – now available in over 50 countries worldwide.
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