Kerbedanz watches: what does its owner think?

Kerbedanz, founded in 2011, is an independent high-watchmaking house based in Neuchâtel by Aram Petrosyan and Kalust Zorik; it speaks to collectors drawn to spectacular mechanical creations, central tourbillons, demonstrative chronographs, bespoke unique pieces and a highly assertive symbolic approach to luxury watchmaking.

Neuchâtel, singularity and watchmaking symbolism

Kerbedanz first built itself around a rare idea: not simply producing collector watches, but translating a personal story, a symbol or a vision into a watchmaking object. The house claims a high-watchmaking form of dialogue, in which creation often begins with a conversation with the client, then becomes sketch, mechanical architecture, material choice, dial, decoration and complication. This notion of singularity lies at the heart of the Kerbedanz identity, well before the pursuit of technical performance alone.

The Kerbedanz name is presented by the house as carrying the idea of “Forerunners”. This intention explains the place given to watches with very strong presence, monumental cases, visible tourbillons, antique or spiritual references, and dials that do not seek neutrality. The brand does not cultivate the classical discretion of a Swiss dress watch; on the contrary, it embraces a more theatrical, more symbolic and more ceremonial register. A Kerbedanz watch should therefore be read as a personal manifesto as much as a mechanical instrument.

Maximus: the large central tourbillon as signature

The Maximus model largely defined Kerbedanz’s international image. The brand presents it as a wristwatch equipped with the world’s largest central flying tourbillon, with a cage measuring twenty-seven millimeters in diameter and completing one rotation in six minutes. The mechanical architecture is based on the KRB-08 calibre, manually wound through the back of the watch, with four independent and coplanar barrels working in parallel, a power-reserve indicator on the back and several patented solutions. Maximus embodies Kerbedanz’s desire to turn micromechanics into a frontal spectacle.

• Kerbedanz Maximus — Forty-nine-millimeter watch, six-minute central tourbillon, twenty-seven-millimeter cage, KRB-08 calibre, stated power reserve of fifty-four hours and highly demonstrative construction.
• Kerbedanz Maximus Titanium — Titanium version, more technical in spirit, emphasizing the size of the tourbillon and the architectural presence of the watch.
• Kerbedanz Maximus Black DLC Titanium — Black version, more contemporary and more contrasted, reinforcing the spectacular effect of the central tourbillon.
• Kerbedanz Maximus 5N Rose Gold — Rose gold version, more precious, combining mechanical monumentality with a more luxurious reading.
• Kerbedanz Maximus White Gold Royal with Baguette Diamonds — Highly exclusive jewellery piece, listed by the brand at eight hundred eighty thousand Swiss francs excluding tax and limited to one numbered piece.

This watch is not designed to disappear under a sleeve. With its forty-nine-millimeter diameter, strongly present sapphire crystal, winding through the back and display centred on the tourbillon, it belongs more to the manifesto object than to the daily watch. Its appeal lies in the visual achievement, the symbol of greatness and the demonstration of mechanical integration. The collector must accept a radical, massive and deliberately extraordinary watch.

Maximus GR8, Maxima GR8 and new tourbillon architecture

The GR8 family shows how Kerbedanz seeks to evolve its language without abandoning mechanical spectacle. The Maximus GR8 keeps the idea of the large central tourbillon, but in a fully rethought version built around a two-minute rotation and a forty-six-millimeter case. The Maxima GR8 pushes the exercise toward a more contained thirty-nine-millimeter format, with a one-minute central tourbillon, KRB-13 automatic calibre, two barrels in parallel and a stated power reserve of sixty-five hours. The brand thus moves from pure monumentality toward propositions that remain spectacular, but are more structured as collections.

• Kerbedanz Maximus GR8 Titanium Royal Blue — Forty-six-millimeter version with two-minute central tourbillon, conceived as a faster and more contemporary reinterpretation of Maximus.
• Kerbedanz Maximus GR8 Incolor Sapphire Royal Blue — Colourless sapphire version, emphasizing transparency and the sculptural dimension of the movement.
• Kerbedanz Maximus GR8 Blue Sapphire Royal Blue — Blue sapphire version, even more demonstrative, combining central tourbillon and spectacular material work.
• Kerbedanz Maxima GR8 White Ceramic — Thirty-nine-millimeter watch, one-minute central tourbillon, white ceramic case, KRB-13 automatic calibre and official price of one hundred thirty thousand Swiss francs excluding tax.
• Kerbedanz Maxima GR8 Black Ceramic — Black ceramic version, limited to twenty-eight pieces like the white version, built on a symbolic opposition close to yin and yang.

The Maxima GR8 is important because it makes the Kerbedanz language more wearable without making it ordinary. The diameter remains assertive, the price remains that of high watchmaking, and the central tourbillon still acts as a mechanical stage. But the reduction to thirty-nine millimeters, the use of ceramic and the automatic movement give the proposition a different modernity. This collection may attract a collector who loves Kerbedanz exuberance but wants a watch less gigantic than the original Maximus.

Maxspor GR8 and 65'27'': sport, chronograph and mathematical poetry

With Maxspor GR8 and 65'27'', Kerbedanz clearly broadens its territory. Maxspor GR8 is a monopusher chronograph that stages an inverted and raised balance wheel, visible on the dial side, with a balance spring made of Optimox alloy protected by several patents according to the official communication. The collection exists in forty-six millimeters and forty-one millimeters, with versions in titanium, anthracite DLC titanium, black DLC titanium and rose gold. The chronograph here becomes a spectacle of performance rather than a simple sporting measuring tool.

• Kerbedanz Maxspor GR8 46 Black DLC Titanium Moonlight Blue — Forty-six-millimeter monopusher chronograph, manually wound Concepto calibre, inverted and raised balance wheel, limited to fifteen pieces.
• Kerbedanz Maxspor GR8 46 Anthracite DLC Titanium Aruba — Anthracite DLC titanium version, listed by the brand at thirty-three thousand five hundred Swiss francs excluding tax and limited to twenty-five pieces.
• Kerbedanz Maxspor GR8 41 Polished Titanium Outre Mer Blue — More recent forty-one-millimeter version, more compact and better suited to a contemporary sporting reading.
• Kerbedanz 65'27'' Titanium Jet Black — Thirty-eight-millimeter watch with single minute hand and hour disc marked by a diamond.
• Kerbedanz 65'27'' Titanium Celadon Green — Titanium version with celadon green dial, built around the alignment between diamond and hand every sixty-five minutes and twenty-seven seconds.
• Kerbedanz 65'27'' 4N Gold Celestial Blue Dial — 4N gold version with blue dial, more precious, placing the collection within a more elegant and more artisanal reading.

The 65'27'' collection marks an interesting change of tone. It remains symbolic, but becomes more poetic than monumental. Its display is based on an hour disc carrying a diamond and a minute hand whose shape allows a visual meeting every sixty-five minutes and twenty-seven seconds. These numbers also refer to the birth date of Aram Petrosyan, co-founder and Chief Design Officer. This watch shows that Kerbedanz can express its universe through the finesse of an idea as much as through the size of a tourbillon.

Bespoke creation, high prices and buyer profile

Bespoke creation remains one of Kerbedanz’s most important pillars. The house speaks of pieces conceived for a single wearer, where the initial dialogue with Aram Petrosyan makes it possible to transform an intention into a unique watch. The case, crystal, dial, materials, gem-setting, crafts and sometimes the complication can be imagined around an individual story. This approach brings Kerbedanz closer to narrative, almost private high watchmaking than to a standardized collection brand.

Price positioning is naturally very high. Current models range from several tens of thousands of Swiss francs for certain chronographs or 65'27'' creations, to one hundred thirty thousand Swiss francs for ceramic Maxima GR8 models, then to much higher levels for jewellery Maximus watches or unique pieces. This range corresponds to the intended market: high-watchmaking collectors, clients sensitive to exclusivity, enthusiasts of highly visible watches and buyers looking for a piece that tells a personal story. The purchase must therefore be evaluated with the criteria of independent high watchmaking: rarity, service, durability, creative coherence and real emotion.

The appointment of Vahé Vartzbed as Chief Executive Officer at the end of 2025 seems to accompany a phase of structuring and more international opening. The announced presence at shows, clarification of collections and highlighting of three pillars show a desire to make the brand more legible without abandoning its eccentricity. For the buyer, this can be reassuring, but the sales channel, warranty conditions, timelines, service possibility and the very particular liquidity of such pieces should always be checked. Kerbedanz remains a house for insiders, where purchase depends more on personal conviction than on a rational market choice.

Conclusion

Kerbedanz is aimed at collectors who want independent high watchmaking that is spectacular, symbolic and highly customizable. The brand stands out through its Neuchâtel roots, taste for unique pieces, giant central tourbillons, demonstrative chronographs, 65'27'' display and desire to turn time into a personal narrative. The choice should be made according to size, visibility, symbol and budget: Maximus for mechanical excess, Maxima GR8 for a more contemporary expression, Maxspor GR8 for spectacular sport, or 65'27'' for more contained poetry.

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(Updated September 2026)