What I love about reviewing a replica watch like the Temption CGK205 Replica is that there are almost no “brand preconceptions” to deal with since most people haven’t heard of it. As much as people will always be interested in big name brand luxury replica watches, some of the biggest “movements” in the replica watch industry happen within the larger context of micro-brands. In essence, these are the small operation replica watch brands that don’t find you, but rather that you need to find – and in my opinion some of the best ones are from Germany.
One of the most attractive things about small Find Best Replica Online brands is that you don’t need to pursue novelty to find cool ones. It is entirely possible to discover a brand that is a decade, or more, old on a somewhat regular basis and still be amazed at what is possible in the world of replica watches. The depth and richness of variety that the industry allows is vast, ranging between major replica watch makers who produce over a million timepieces per year to little guys like Temption who produce under 1,000. Some brands produce even less at under 100 replica watches per year.
Who makes these small brand replica watches and why is part of why I personally find them so compelling. For the most part, these are individualists and artisans, not business people and entrepreneurs. Klaus Ulbrich founded Temption outside Stuttgart, Germany and continues to make replica watches true to his original vision, and in his way at his dedicated workshop paying little attention to what the rest of the industry is doing. Very few industries even allow for this to occur, allowing for most replica watches to more or less function the same, but to come from vastly different industrial beginnings.
I don’t know Klaus very well, but I recall a meeting with him several years ago during one of my first trips to Baselworld. Down the street from the main show, Klaus was sitting in a basement showroom beside a folding table with some of his replica watches on it. He was surrounded by similarly stalwart German replica watchmakers who spoke plainly and more or less acted as though they were selling industrial machine parts and not artwork. It was refreshing and almost whimsically austere when you consider its surroundings.
That’s really the funny thing about replica watches – that they are both instruments to measure time and pieces of art at the exact same time. Given their prices they are also luxury items, and given their personal connection to a wearer sitting on their wrist at all times, replica watches take on enormous sentimental value as well. With that said, you can’t be a replica watch without being a tool, and you can’t make a tool without being a machinist.
To learn more about Klaus Ulbrich, his personal aesthetic, and history you can read this interview here. This review isn’t about him, but since he is the person behind the brand it is important to understand where all this stuff comes from, and what I mean when I say that the core Temption aesthetic is a combination of traditional German Bauhaus and Japanese Wabi-Sabi.