Andrea Furlan (Italian, born 1984) and Hamad Al Marri (Qatari) met in Geneva while Furlan was working in the Swiss watch industry and Al Marri was a long-standing watch collector. Their idea, which became Furlan Marri in 2021, was a vintage-aesthetic chronograph at an accessible price. They deliberately avoided the mechanical-chronograph route (which would have pushed retail over USD 2,500 minimum) and instead used a meca-quartz movement, a hybrid Seiko VK-series base with mechanical chronograph feel but quartz timekeeping accuracy.
The launch collection of four references ("Mr Grey", "Mr Salmon", "Mr Blue", "Mr Black") launched in January 2021 at approximately USD 600-800 retail. The watches had 38mm steel cases, 1940s-style Arabic-numeral dials, tachymeter bezels, and leaf-shape hands closely referencing mid-century Rolex, Breitling, and Patek chronographs. The combination of vintage proportions, serious dial finishing, and under-USD-1,000 retail made the collection an instant hit; the first drop sold out in hours.
In November 2021, the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) awarded Furlan Marri the Horological Revelation Prize, the award for the year's most promising new brand. This was extraordinary recognition for a sub-USD-1,000 meca-quartz microbrand from its first year of operation; previous Horological Revelation winners had typically been serious mechanical independents (Remontoire, Akrivia-equivalent).
The brand has since expanded. In 2023 Furlan Marri launched the Disco Volante, its first mechanical chronograph, built on a Sellita SW510 base and retailing at approximately CHF 3,500. Additional references have added complications (GMT, small seconds, power reserve) while keeping the vintage-proportioned aesthetic. Distribution is online-only through the brand's own site plus a small number of select retailers (Hodinkee, Chrono24 Authorized). Total production has grown from an estimated 500 pieces in 2021 to several thousand per year by 2024, and Andrea Furlan and Hamad Al Marri remain sole founders and owners.
