Jacob & Co.’s signature look makes for easy identification on the red carpet or at any soigné event. And over its 25-plus-year history, the company has decked out the wrists of glitterati from Tom Cruise to Madonna, Kris Jenner to Jay-Z, Hulk Hogan to Bono, with countless more in between.
These days, its watches will be seen on yet another famous wrist—that of international soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, who has signed on as ambassador of the American-based watch and jewelry brand. A new worldwide advertising campaign launched this spring features Ronaldo and Jacob & Co.’s Ghost Watch, a pentagonal multi-time-zone object of amazement released earlier this year.
“We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Cristiano Ronaldo, who we feel is the ultimate representation of the brand,” says Founder and Chairman of Jacob & Co. Jacob Arabo. “We have long admired Cristiano’s commitment to excellence, determination, drive and passion to win. These are the core values that we also share.”
The match was a winner all around, since Ronaldo, a collector of Jacob & Co. watches and fine jewelry prior to this association, says he appreciates the craftsmanship, design and attention to detail that goes into each piece.
“I’m excited to be representing Jacob & Co. globally as the first male ambassador,” shares Ronaldo. As for the watch, he says, “I fell in love with the new Ghost watch. It’s the perfect fit for my lifestyle.”
New Watch
The Ghost watch collection, first introduced at BaselWorld in April, is a relative of the Jacob & Co.’s earlier Five Time Zones timepiece. It uses state-of-the-art electronics in the form of a high-precision quartz oscillator, to offer an on-demand display of five different time zones on an LCD screen. Twenty cities around the world offer choices for four of the five windows, while the fifth window may be set to the local time.
But in addition to the 47 mm watch’s timekeeping capabilities, it also offers a choice of display colors, including red, orange, yellow, green, purple, white and a spectral blue that puts the spirit in the Ghost. This light show allows the user to change the look of the watch according to mood or attire. In addition, an interchangeable bezel—including black PVD, carbon fiber or rose gold with diamonds—gives the watch additional flexibility.
There are three distinct ways of setting the watch: manually, via an atomic clock when attached to a Mac or PC with a USB cable, or via its internal GPS receiver that will lock onto the global GPS satellite network and synchronize itself on demand. To keep up with the energy demands of the wild display, the watch’s lithium battery may be recharged via a USB cable. And if that isn’t haunting enough, the Ghost also adjusts for daylight saving time and leap year.
The Company
Jacob & Co. has made fast tracks during its short history, thanks to the vision of its founder, who has a keen eye for fashion with an edge.
Arabo says he finds inspiration everywhere, particularly in his worldwide travels, and as a result, “I would like to design and make jewelry and watches for everyone,” he shares. But these are no ordinary watches and jewelry; they come with an added bonus: “I want to deliver to my clients some excitement…I am here to set trends.”
Arabo emphasizes that the key to the success of the brand is in the team he has built, and one very important member of this team is newly appointed CEO Chris DelGatto, formerly head of Circa. He started in the jewelry business at the age of sixteen as a diamond cutter. DelGatto emphasizes that Jacob & Co. is “uniquely American. We dare to go where a lot of brands will not,” he says, adding that the brand received an “overwhelmingly positive response at BaselWorld.”
Jacob & Co. products are now available in over 200 doors in the U.S. alone, not including the mono-brand boutiques. “What we are trying to do is create something that has not existed before,” says DelGatto.
It appears Jacob & Co. is on the right track. With the United States as one of its strongest markets, “We’ll continue our alliances with Hollywood and dress its stars,” says Arabo.