Press release: "Gotham's Vigilante"
Heroes come in different forms. You get the ones in capes like Batman and Superman, and you get the real life ones that actually make a difference in the real world. You rarely get a combination of the two…. But now you can… in a watch.
Introducing “Gotham’s Vigilate”, the first watch from UK mircobrand Detrash. It’s obviously named in honour one of our favourite superheroes, and unlike the Rolex “Batman”, it’s made in the colours that anyone born after the 70’s actually associates with this hero; Black with a small hint of yellow. However, this hero is not just a pretty face, it’s here to do some good too.
Detrash is one of the first European watch brands to sign up to 1% For The Planet, an organisation created by Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard. By signing up Detrash has committed to give 1% of turnover to planetary causes and have this independently audited by 1%FTP. Detrash aims to far exceed this 1% commitment. As Detrash founder, Guy Blaskey, puts it, “Rolex makes about 1m watches a year. They pay Roger Feder, who’s retired from tennis, a reported $8m a year, that’s $8 per watch. Our plan is to give “Roger’s cut” to charity instead of a someone worth half a billion”.
Detrash watches, as the name suggests, are “made with trash”. The first models have an 80% recycled steel case and a strap made from #tide ocean plastic. One of the goals of the brand is to “Make trash desirable”, something that Guy is very passionate about, he says, “we’re all getting more and more diligent about doing our recycling properly, but what’s the point if we don’t make great things out of the materials that we recycle. We need people to value things ‘made from recycled’ instead of things made by unnecessarily using the earth’s resources. That creates demand, which means more gets recycled, which means less gets wasted, and which ultimately helps the planet remain a place humans can live in”.
The watches are powered by human action, via the super-reliable Seiko NH35 movement, so there is no need for a battery. With this movement in a solid metal case, with a black PVD treatment you get a watch that is going to last and last, and you get this for £380, just a touch more than a plastic Swatch Fifty Fathoms.
Detrash watches are sold in limited release drops and are all individually numbered. There are other designs set to drop after “Gotham’s Vigilante” with inspirations ranging from vintage Lemania watches to retro arcade games. To make sure that you don’t miss a drop date, sign up to the mailing list at www.detrash.com and follow @detrash.the.planet on Instagram.
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