News: Celebrating 15 Years of RAW
, by RAW Singapore, 4 min reading time
Red Army Watches (RAW) celebrates 15 years of watch retail in Singapore.
Mission and Vision
Established in 2004, RAW has dedicated itself to sharing stories of independent watchmakers. RAW has since expanded beyond a single store in Singapore, and beyond the shores of Singapore with a presence in Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. But as founder Sugiharto Kusumadi shares, “RAW’s mission remains the same: to offer watch lovers – both new and seasoned alike – a welcoming and fun environment to learn about, and shop for unique mechanical watches and watch accessories.”
RAW’s Concepts
In Singapore, RAW’s concepts include RAW at ION Orchard and Suntec City; Watch Wonderland at Suntec City; and SEVENFRIDAY Space at Raffles City. Each store has been carefully developed to provide shoppers with a different experience when they visit. If you find yourself taking a step back and asking yourself: “Wait a minute… have I really walked into a watch store?” – then, we’re off to a good start!
Growing Brand Portfolio
Brands in RAW’s portfolio include but are not limited to SEVENFRIDAY, Laco, Gorilla, Grand Seiko, REC Watches, Alexander Shorokhoff, Itay Noy, Sturmanskie, Vostok Europe, March LA.B, MAT Watches, Hirsch, Erika’s Originals and so on. Being homegrown, naturally RAW has been proudly bearing the banner of local horology heroes. These include Azimuth, Zelos, Boldr, Gruppo Gamma, Orodeus, to name but a few.
A New Look
To commemorate RAW’s 15th anniversary, RAW embarked on a brand refresh – with a total remake of the company’s logo including new corporate hues. RAW’s makeover extended to a new look for its stores. RAW ION Orchard exudes a vibrant yet intimate café-style vibe with warm rattan highlights complementing cool blue and green colours. The look is carried over to RAW Suntec City which shares premises with its sister concept, Watch Wonderland aka WW.
RAW/WW at Suntec City is seen as a haven of sorts for watch lovers. Not only can you find the widest collection of microbrands and independent watch brands under one roof in a physical store, RAW/WW also is the only watch retailer having its very own in-house leather craftsman, trained by local leather artisan, The J.Myers Company, offering bespoke/custom watch straps services. RAW/WW runs watchmaking and watch strap making courses on-premise as well. Events, including get-togethers (GTGs), also happen regularly at RAW/WW where watch lovers get to interact with each other and engage with brand owners.
Celebratory Editions
Other than a fresh look, RAW launched the RAW15 Celebratory Edition collection. The collection comprises a series of limited editions borne in collaboration with a selection of the independent watch brands in RAW’s portfolio. Each Celebratory Edition is:
- Exclusively designed for RAW
- A collectible with each design being a limited edition
- Injected with a dose of fun and the unconventional – to make it distinctly RAW
These included the Alexander Shorokhoff x RAW Jubilee; Azimuth x RAW Darth Predator; Gorilla x RAW Fastback; STOWA x RAW Darth Pilot; Undone x WW Snoopy Exclusive Edition; and Gruppo Gamma x WW Brazen Serpent.
Paying It Forward
Additionally, RAW launched its very own 10PC Watch Case. Designed to hold 10 watches, the case is splash-resistant; has a pressure equalizer valve; and comes with high density, molded foam slots with protective sponge layer as well as PU-wrapped, flexible metal C-rings. A special one-day promotion was held on 22 Sep 2019 where the first 30 watch cases were sold at special prices at RAW ION Orchard and RAW Suntec City. All proceeds from these 60 watch cases sold went to the Singapore Children’s Society, which RAW has been contributing to yearly for more than a decade.
What Lies Ahead
Looking ahead, RAW continues to work on staying relevant while remaining a champion for independent watch brands in Singapore and beyond. A revamp of RAW’s website is in the works as part of this constant yen for renewal and to continue to stoke the passion for quality yet affordable mechanical timepieces with a story behind them.
Perhaps what sums up RAW best is still to go back to its name. Why “Red Army”, many have asked. In the beginning, RAW did start with bringing in the Reds to Singapore – many of the brands RAW started with, and still carry, are Russian or have Russian roots. More importantly, and still relevant to this day is the revolutionary spirit that “Red Army” represents. This is what continues to drive the team behind RAW in what they do every day. This is the spirit of RAW.
