Most individuals own or have owned a watch at some point in their lifetime, even children. Watches are always evolving and as technology advances, so do the features and price tag of a watch. Watches are also a huge hit as wedding and birthday gifts.
It has been shown that the younger generation of watch wearers prefer a digital option. Additionally, young individuals are no longer interested in Korean watch brands, which used to be the most popular option.
Even though the demand for Korean watches has dwindled, there are still some brands on the market. Some companies are small while others still have a massive following. In this article, we will share the top Korean watch brands from all over the globe.
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Here is a quick rundown of the top Korean watch brands:
- Harriot -Best Overall Watch Brand
- Dogfight – Best Military-Inspired Watches
- Romanson – Best Quality Watch Brand
- Foce – Best Sport Luxury Brand
- Amy Eujeny – Most Unique Watch Brand
- Tisell – Biggest Vintage Collection
- Rolens – Best Rolex Homage Collection
- Julius – Best Female Watch
- Mangosteen – Most Elegant Watch Brand
- Valence – Best Sapphire Watch
Top Korean Watch Brands
1.Harriot – Best Overall
Harriot has been named as the best overall watch brand on our list due to their gorgeous hand-crafted timepieces that remain affordable and luxurious.
It’s not immediately known how long the brand has been in business, but their main goal is to create watches that are vintage-inspired, more specifically, the 1970’s era. You will find that the Romanson products are a fine balance between functionality and aesthetics of Swiss and Korean styles.
Harriot is a firm believer that a watch shouldn’t feel awkward while being worn. They have been around since 1988 and their watches have a very neoclassical look to them. They were the first Korean watch company to create a 50 atm dive watch band, which is able to handle 500 meters of water pressure.
One of their most popular watches is the TL245HM sports watch. It’s crafted in stainless steel and features a comfortable leather band. It’s a 45mm watch with a 5 atm water resistance rating. The watch is affordably priced and the internal components are encased in a glass covering.
On the ladies’ end, the EM0B17LL watch is a popular pick. As with the TL245HM, this watch is made from stainless steel with a glass covering and stainless steel band. It has a water resistance of 3 atm and is available with both a black and white watch face.
The Romanson brand itself is overall very affordable. Many of their watches run in the 150,000 Won range, which equals to be around $128 USD. The company is present in almost 100 countries and is always expanding.
2.Dogfight – Best Military Inspired Brand
Runner up on our list is the Dogfight Korean watch brand. Their watches tell a heroic story of the pilots who battled courageously in the sky during the World Wars.
The brand has been in business since 1919 and is known for making World War 2 inspired watches. The brand gets its name from two planes battling in the air, which is known as Dogfight, which is why you may notice that their logo is a fighter plane.
Some of their more fun watches feature a 1940’s pinup girl on the watch face. These are called the Dogfight Lucky Lady and the Dogfight Keep ‘em Flying.
Both watches feature an elegant leather band with a 44mm stainless steel case and 3H date display. Since the company opened its doors in 1919, they only made 1919 of these watches to honor that release date.
If the pinup style isn’t for you, they also have a line of stunning quartz watches such as the popular Wingman DF0035. This is one of their most popular watches and features a beautiful retro-inspired finish in stainless steel and quarts. It’s water-resistant to 50M and features an elegant leather band.
3.Romanson – Best Overall Quality
Romanson is a Korean watchmaker that’s been in business since 1988. They specialize in the neoclassical look and their name is inspired by the mechanical skill that comes from the town of Romanshorn in Switzerland.
Romanson not only has some of the best quality Korean watches known to man, but they also were the first company to produce a dive watch that can handle 50 atm.
It’s able to handle 500 meters of water pressure. If dive watches aren’t what you’re looking for in terms of style, they also create a line of beautiful dress watches and luxe steel watches.
Their overall most popular watch is the Romanson De Arbon CA5A10RM. It features stainless steel metal and a beautiful sapphire watch face. It’s water-resistant up to 5 atm and goes with all suits and dress clothing.
Additionally, they produce a lady’s watch. One of their most beautiful pieces is the RM0B16QL. It’s a 30mm stainless steel watch with a beautiful glass watch face and stainless steel band. It’s water-resistant up to 3 atm.
4.Foce – Best Sport Luxury Watch Bran
Foce, also known as Foce Milano, is known for its luxury sports watches. Their watch collection is inspired by Tottenham Hotspurs. Foce collaborated with the Tottenham team to create the line. Tottenham is one of the most popular British football teams to exist.
Foce appeared in 1997 and focus on creating fashion watches for those who may be on a budget. They also craft their watches to correspond with each specific player.
The best part about these sports watches is that they aren’t tacky in any way. Many sports team watches have their logo or some insane coloring. These watches do not. They maintain their elegance while still representing your favorite player.
A watch that caught our eye was the Foce F812GB. Its elegant black stainless steel finish and band make it both attractive and universal. The watch pairs beautifully with any attire. Additionally, it has a 5 atm rating.
5.Amy Eujeny – Most Unique Watch Brand
Amy Eujeny is known for its luxury Korean watches and jewelry. You can only find their watches on the actual Amy Eujeny website and you can only purchase them in their stores. There are no prices available online either.
Price aside, their watches are absolutely gorgeous. All of them use mechanical movements, which allows you to choose between hand-wound or self-winding movement for each watch.
Additionally, their line of skeleton watches is stunning, such as the AE TN002 . If you aren’t sure what a skeleton watch is, it’s a watch that allows you to see all the moving parts within it through the front or back of the watch.
The AE AT001 is probably one of the most elegant watches we have seen on this website. It features a stainless steel bezel, middle case, case back, and crown. The dial is made from Mother of pearl and has a mirror finish. The glass is made from sapphire crystal and there are beautiful stones around the watch face.
6.Tisell – Biggest Vintage Collection
Tisell is new to the Korean watch brand market. The brand was created by Oh Changdo, a Korean watchmaker. You will find that the watches are both affordable and retro or classic-styled.
Tisell offers high-quality, timeless elegance, and contemporary designs in a variety of styles. All of their watches come with a 2-year warranty and a full after-warranty service. Additionally, they create diver, pilot, and classic pieces to fit every style.
One of our personal favorites is the Tisell Automatic Diver Watch. It’s fitted with an automatic Miyota 9015 movement and date display.
It’s a water-resistant watch up to 200 meters and is suitable for deep-sea diving. It has a classic diver design with a sapphire crystal and anti-reflective coating. The band and case are both constructed of stainless steel and can fit a wrist between 14-23 cm.
7.Rolens – Best Rolex Homage Collection
Rolens has been creating watches since 1950. They are best known for creating watches with a Rolex likeness to them. You may notice that their name is similar to the Rolex name as well. Most of their timepieces are quarts, mechanical, and custom.
Fun fact, the Rolens company is known for creating two presidential watches, one for President Roh Moo-Hyun and the other was for Lee Myung-Bak. Today, most of their watches are gold-colored Rolex clones that may not be to everybody’s liking.
On the plus side, they’re generally affordable. Most watches range from 180,000 to 200,000 Won, which comes to around $154 USD.
We aren’t going to lie, their most recent gold Rolex clones are a tad gaudy. However, their other creations are very vintage-looking and stylish.
One such watch is the GA1974N. This classic piece has a stainless steel case paired with an elegant leather band. It is water-resistant up to 3 atm and has a beautiful quartz movement.
8.Julius – Best Ladies Watch
Don’t forget, women like to wear watches, too! Julius was created in 2001 in Seoul, Korea. Their main focus is on their female customers. This brand is known for creating some of the most youthful designs at affordable prices. They offer high-quality pieces with modern technology.
This company wasn’t quite born in a country that specializes in watches. However, they did start-up in a country that has a well-developed fashion industry. This is why they were so quick to fly to the top.
You will find that most of their watches are decorated with precious stones and eye-catching crystals made from glass.
One of their most affordable and elegant pieces it’s the JA-1305. This piece has a beautiful rose gold case with a leather band. Its square shape makes it seem more elegant when on the wrist.
9.Mangosteen – Most Elegant Watch Brand
This brand is one of the newest on the market. Some may not know this, but their name is based on the famous mangosteen icon. Since this brand has only evolved over the past few years, they are pretty well familiar with the latest styles and have the ideal fashion sense for today’s market.
Now, even though the watch brand is fairly new, you can still recognize their watches as their designs are so special and unique.
They have aimed to produce a watch that is both elegant and beautiful when worn upon a lady’s wrist. Additionally, these watches have been recognized by multiple Korean stars.
One watch that really stands out to us is from the Leepi collection. It’s the Leepi MS518E. This gorgeous watch is set in rose gold and is elegantly paired with a mesh band. It’s water-resistant to 3 atm and the dial is a nice rose color.
10.Valence – Best Sapphire Watch
Last, but not least, is Valence. This company was created in 2001 in Seoul, Korea. Ths name comes from the city in France, which is the place in which contributed to the history of King Napoleon.
This company is known for crafting one-of-a-kind combinations utilizing sapphire and solid stainless steel. Even though the watches are so elegant, they are target specifically towards men with their slogan being “the first watch of men”.
The watches all cost around 100,000 Won, so they are very affordable. They are suitable for all men and even students. The small details in each watch make them even more stunning. It’s been said that it’s like having a miniature Valence city in your hand.
The VC-079D is our favorite watch from this maker. It features the beautiful sapphire glass material and Swiss movement. The function is made from quartz and the band is 20.0 mm dark stainless steel. It’s water-resistant up to 5 atm and contains the date on the 3 position of the watch face.
The Takeaway
As you can see, there are plenty of Korean watch brands on the market, some more affordable than others. Our top choice was Harriet due to its luxuriousness and affordability.