Retrospective: Tomas Reveals His Secret And Very Personal Collection Of Kasper Watches

Buying an engagement ring for my now-wife was not a problem at all. That’s because I never intended to do so. I have often had problems with stereotypes and boxed solutions, so it’s no wonder I was looking for something different than an engagement ring. Guess what…

I google a lot. I google watches a lot too. When I think of a gift for someone dear to me, I try to put his or her name into Google. At a certain point, just for the fun of it, I started to google the names or surnames of my friends along with “vintage watches.” Sometimes I get lucky. Following this method, I gifted a tiny diver branded Tara to a childhood friend when I was looking for an original gift for her daughter named Tara. I believe the gift idea truly moved her.

Snapshot from old research on Tara watches for a friend’s daughter named Tara

Kasper the dad

My wife’s maiden name is Kasper. The name resonates with me and everyone in her family since this is what she calls her father. When my wife’s sisters refer to their father, even when my wife’s mother talks about her husband, they seldom call him Dad or Jan; he is just Kasper. It’s strange, funny, and original at the same time. It was new to me; I had never known anyone who called his or her dad by his surname. Just as people used to call all copy machines Xerox, my wife calls her dad Kasper. Kasper is not just a name; rather, it’s a category on its own.

Researching Kasper

I don’t remember at what phase of our relationship I first put “Kasper” and “vintage watches” into Google, but I should not have done that. Tons of interesting watches started to jump out at me. Along with dull time-only pieces, I spotted many funky chronographs and interesting dive watches with creative dials and hands. I didn’t need to be Sherlock to understand that Kasper was no short-lived stunt but an actual manufacturer!

A German history

Kasper & Co. was established in Pforzheim in 1911 by Karl and Christine Kasper, who began producing elastic watch straps. After Karl died in 1916, Christine led the company, which expanded into watch cases and straps by 1927. In 1932, Kasper became the first manufacturer in Pforzheim to develop in-house movements with cylinder escapements. Despite significant setbacks during World War II, including the destruction of its Pforzheim facility in 1945, the company resumed production in 1946.

By 1953, Kasper had moved into a new building and expanded its product line to include movements with both cylinder and Swiss lever escapements, as well as complete wristwatches. The workforce grew from 150 to 300 employees between 1953 and 1955, and exports played an increasingly important role. Innovations continued with the introduction of the company’s first automatic movement in 1955 and a second generation in 1964. In the early 1960s, Kasper co-founded Asika Time Industries in India to assemble German movements. Having faced challenges during the Quartz Crisis, however, the company ceased movement production and was eventually liquidated in 1993. For more information, check out this fascinatingly detailed write-up by Andreas Kelz, which also includes a deep dive into Kasper’s movement timeline.

Image: Mikrolisk

Sidenote

Shortly after I discovered Kasper’s history, I tasked my brother, who is a lawyer, with finding out if the brand or trademark was protected and could be bought. Just for the fun of having it, daydreaming of reviving the Kasper watches again. My brother got back to me quickly, but I never took action. I was too busy building three other companies and a family. When I checked again recently, I discovered some modern Kasper watches with quartz movements had come out. But please, I beg you, do not look them up. They could damage your perception of natural watch evolution. They’re bad…

Back to my wife’s watch

I didn’t want just any Kasper watch. My first Kasper watch was supposed to be a gift for my wife, and I wanted it to be a chronograph. There is maybe one Kasper chronograph to a hundred boring Kasper watches and maybe one decent round chronograph to a handful of chunky, very ’70s chrono mastodons. After months of waiting, nothing popped up. I had to be creative.

eBay gymnastics

I found one on eBay. The problem with the picture you see above is that it was not me who bought the watch. I decided to send a very personal message to the seller, begging him to disclose to whom he sold it. I saw a 2% chance he’d provide that info…but he did! He gave me the eBay name of the buyer, who was the second one to read a heartbreaking message about why I needed his watch. Well, I made his decision easier by offering a multiple of what he paid for the watch. It worked. My wife got her first vintage watch instead of an engagement ring. The rest is history.

Kasper temptation

Checking Kasper watches on all auction sites available became my random night hobby. To keep my spending somewhat sane, I decided not to buy just anything branded Kasper but to focus on chronographs only. This was essential. Otherwise, I would already have 200 Kasper watches. Admittedly, though, I regret not having bought some interesting Kasper divers and time-only models.

Kasper ring watch

What I could not turn down was a Kasper-branded ring that I gifted my wife some other day. I remember I saw ring watches in Seiko catalogs, and they fascinated me. The movement in one is so tiny, and so is the dial and crystal. I bought this Kasper ring watch simply because I found it cute. I’ve never worried about how much finger time it gets.

When I had to photograph it last week, I put it on my finger because I didn’t want to lose it. I had never put it on my finger or even thought about how fragile it was. If you are not careful, you can easily end up washing your hands with it on. It’s not practical to wear, but nothing beats the style.

The next Kasper watch — ahem, watches…

My Kasper story didn’t end with an engagement watch and a ring watch. Since I learned how difficult it is to score Kasper chronographs, I decided to start collecting them. This became another interesting vintage-watch-collecting exercise. Two identical Kasper chronographs hardly ever resurface, so each one is original. Since they don’t pop up often, finding one is a cause for celebration. I don’t expect to wear them often, but I can’t help it. I added another yesterday…