A Timepiece 7 Years In the Making

Overcoming the Odds: The story behine the Iconic Timepieces Redemption Diver.

The Beginning: Building a Name in the Watch Community

Ivan first gained recognition through his YouTube channel, Watch Me Unboxing, where he created watch review and unboxing videos. Over time, he expanded into interviewing watch brand owners and industry insiders, becoming well-known within both the enthusiast community and the microbrand industry.

As his reputation grew, he collaborated on several projects with different companies and eventually worked for a startup in Finland called SOMA Horology Marketplace as a microbrand consultant and expert. After years of experience working closely with various brands, Ivan decided it was finally time to launch his own watch company.

The community was excited. Ivan had built strong support from both watch enthusiasts and industry professionals who respected him and had worked alongside him over the years.

The Manufacturing Partnership

One of the companies Ivan had previously worked with offered manufacturing services, acting as a middleman between watch brands and factories. Because Ivan trusted them and believed they had already done the difficult groundwork, he felt comfortable allowing them to manage the production side of the project.

However, problems began almost immediately.

It took nearly nine months just to receive the prototypes. During that long delay, much of the excitement and momentum surrounding the project began to fade within the community.

Once the prototypes finally arrived, Ivan considered putting the project on hold for a year so he could rebuild hype and regain momentum. But his manufacturing contact strongly advised against waiting, telling him:

“It’s now or never. If you wait, I won’t be able to secure the movements.”

Excited and determined to make the project succeed, Ivan moved forward despite his concerns.

The Kickstarter Launch

Momentum slowly returned. Prototype reviews were positive, enthusiasm in the community grew again, and Ivan launched the Kickstarter campaign on March 1, 2020.

The campaign started incredibly strong.

Within just four hours, the funding goal had already been exceeded, and support continued pouring in. Confident in the project’s success, the manufacturing partner immediately instructed the factory to begin producing 300 watch cases before deposits had even been finalized.

At the time, Ivan supported the decision because he believed it would help deliver watches to backers earlier than expected.

For the first two weeks, everything seemed to be going perfectly.

Then COVID-19 hit.

COVID and the Collapse of the Campaign

As the first wave of the pandemic spread, fear and uncertainty took over. People were worried about their jobs, finances, and the future. Backers began canceling their pledges in large numbers.

Some days, dozens of supporters withdrew. On one particularly devastating day, Ivan lost 80 backers.

Eventually, the campaign dropped to barely above its funding goal — only enough to cover Kickstarter fees and part of the production costs. Meanwhile, Ivan was already financially committed to the 300 watches that had been ordered.

His manufacturing contact reassured him repeatedly:

“There are creative ways we can make this happen. Don’t worry — you’re covered.”

But things were about to get far worse.

Fighting for His Life

During the collapse of the campaign, Ivan was hospitalized with a severe infection in his heart and lungs and spent a long time in the ICU. His condition became critical, and doctors warned his family that he might not survive.

While fighting for his life in a hospital bed, Ivan watched the project unravel.

His plan had been simple: use the available funds to complete the watches for Kickstarter backers first, then figure out the remaining inventory later. According to what he had been told, this should have been possible.

Instead, the manufacturing middleman began blaming the factory, claiming they refused to release anything unless the entire balance was paid in full.

Desperate to save the project, Ivan sold personal belongings, emptied bank accounts, and even sold items belonging to his wife in an attempt to gather more money.

At first, he was told that $2,000 would release the watches. After sending it, the number changed to $5,000. Each time Ivan scraped together more money, new excuses followed.

Eventually, he was told the watches had shipped.

Then he was told they were stuck in customs.

Then stuck in freight.

Finally, he learned the truth. Or was it?

The watches had never shipped at all.

The Truth Comes Out.

Everything Ivan communicated to his backers came from the information he had been given. Throughout the ordeal, he continued updating supporters and promising he would never give up trying to make things right.

The situation left him financially destroyed.

According to Ivan, all the Kickstarter funds — along with the watches themselves — disappeared through the actions of the manufacturing middleman. Although the campaign quests officially reached its funding goal, many backers’ payments later failed or were canceled during the COVID collapse, leaving the project underfunded.

Even so, Ivan has spent the last seven years slowly attempting to repay backers however he could, often through payment arrangements, personal sacrifices, and giving away personal items to help cover losses.

To outsiders, it may have appeared that he disappeared or gave up. But according to Ivan, the situation affected him every single day for years.

Health Struggles and Recovery

After stepping away from the watch community to focus on his health, Ivan faced another devastating challenge.

He developed a severe spinal issue in his neck that compressed his spinal cord, leaving him temporarily paralyzed. Doctors warned he might never walk again.

But after surgery, he slowly regained movement. Just days later, he could wiggle his toes, and from that moment on, he was determined to walk again.

Throughout these years of recovery, the failed Kickstarter remained constantly on his mind.

Returning to the Community

Roughly a year ago, Ivan returned to the watch community. While some people still questioned what happened, many others continued supporting him and believed he had been a victim of unfortunate circumstances, poor timing, and misplaced trust.

As he rebuilt his reputation and reconnected with the community, something completely unexpected happened.

A friend and previous backer (Corey Obermeier) asked Ivan to help source a specific watch model from Alibaba. While contacting several suppliers, one factory representative recognized Ivan’s old project from years earlier.

She revealed something shocking:

The factory still had approximately 120 unfinished watches and components from the original project sitting in storage.

Even more shocking, she explained that the factory had completed and delivered 100 watches back in August 2020 — while Ivan was still hospitalized.

According to her, the manufacturing middleman had received the watches the entire time.

Betrayal and Discovery

Ivan says he eventually learned that the middleman had used Kickstarter funds and backer money to purchase the watches, took possession of them, and kept them hidden for years while continuing to tell Ivan that the factory never released anything.

The watches that Ivan and his backers paid for had apparently been sitting with the middleman all along.

According to Ivan, the middleman later sold those watches independently for only $99 each, severely damaging the perceived value of the project and undermining any future relaunch.

For Ivan, the realization was devastating.

What he believed had been a manufacturing disaster now appeared to be something much more personal: betrayal.

The Redemption Diver

Rather than giving up, Ivan decided to rebuild the project from the ground up.

Working directly with the factory this time, he plans to upgrade and redesign the remaining watches with:

Updated clasps
Completely redesigned dials
Improved finishing and components
Refined overall design details

The result will become a new release called the Iconic Timepieces Redemption Diver.

Only 120 pieces exist, and only around 55–60 watches will be available for sale. The rest will be sent out to the remaining original backers that have been waiting 7 long years. Once they are gone, no more will ever be made.

The project now represents more than just a watch release.

For Ivan, it is the completion of something he started seven years ago — and an opportunity to finally make things right.