Introducing the Kruger chronograph
When I started Draken 5 years ago, I set out to create a brand of watches that would be durable, reliable and unique. Our first watch - the Tugela - drew inspiration from the rugged terrain of the Drakensberg mountains of South Africa. Since then the...
The next model from Draken
Over the past couple of weeks, I have been working hard on the design of the Kruger pilot chronograph. Design is a part of this job I absolutely love, so it wasn't that hard to find the motivation to work till 12AM most nights. Chronograph design is particularly...
Draken Origins – Episode 3: King Shaka
For the 2021 launch of the Tugela, we've added an exclusive version called the 'Shaka'. No, we didn't name it after the surfer gesture of appreciation 🤙 , but in fact after the legendary Zulu warrior king - Shaka. Who was Shaka? The story of how Shaka came to power...
Making of the Benguela – The Prototypes
I’ve spent the past few weeks testing out the Benguela prototypes and getting feedback from fellow watch enthusiasts. With three different band options (bracelet, rubber and leather), it was important to get a feel for each and make sure they worked with the watch...
Making of the Benguela – The Case Back
The Tugela case back I really wanted to make a splash (figuratively and literally) with the case back of the Benguela, but being a deep dive watch, it would need to be at least 2.2mm thick. That means solid—no crystal display of the movement within. For our...
Making of the Benguela – The Bands
To give you the freedom to customise your Benguela for different styles and activities, we're going to include at least two different band options with your new watch. Bracelet The bead-blasted bracelet on the Tugela 2.0 was popular, so we'll be using the same 22mm...
Making of the Benguela – The Movements
We have some exciting news to share about the movement(s) for the Benguela. (Notice the hint there?) But first, let’s talk movements. If you walk into a watch shop at your local mall, 90 percent of the watches will have quartz movements. This means a battery...
Making of the Benguela – The Dial
In 'Part One' we talked about the case of the watch, with its original hooded lugs. The dial of the Benguela adds another unique element. Understandably, the dial of a watch is it's most recognisable feature. Think about some of the most popular dive...
Making of the Benguela – The Story
In the second part of our 'Making of the Benguela' series, we talk about the name and theme of the watch. As many of you know, our brand takes a lot of inspiration from South Africa, but there were a number of events that led up to the formation of the Republic. The...
Making of the Benguela – The Case
Thanks for signing up to receive exclusive updates for our new watch - the Benguela. This is the first of our 'Making of the Benguela' series which will give you some insights into the creative process for our super-deep dive watch. We'll be sharing interesting...
Introducing the Benguela dive watch
For the past 6 months we've been working on the design of a new dive watch. With the success of the Tugela, we wanted to give fans something that was in the same realm but with slightly different objectives. The Benguela builds on the design language from our previous...
Partnership with photographer Alex Nail
We’re very excited to announce that we are the official watch sponsor for renowned landscape photographer and adventurer – Alex Nail! We first came across Alex when he captured this incredible time-lapse of the Drakensburg mountains: https://vimeo.com/161198199 Since...