Jacob & Co opens in Singapore: Where technical and sculptural beauty in timepieces converge

Bold ideas occasionally reset the luxury landscape – and in Singapore, the latest name doing just that is American watchmaker-high jeweller Jacob & Co, now at Takashimaya Shopping Centre.

Known for its daring designs and audacious spirit, the brand now boasts a flagship boutique adjacent to the newly refurbished Sincere Fine Watches multi-brand boutique. 

The opening marks a milestone for Sincere, but more so, it sets a benchmark for South-east Asia’s appetite for the spectacular. 

Chairman of Sincere Fine Watches Raymond Lim says: “Our partnership with Jacob & Co reflects a shared vision of excellence, innovation and passion for the extraordinary.

 “This new chapter reinforces Sincere’s role as a curator of the world’s most remarkable brands, while bringing fresh energy to our collective pursuit of redefining luxury in Asia.” 

A space designed for discovery

Step into the boutique and you enter Jacob & Co’s world of mechanical imagination – a space where ideas are pushed past the familiar limits of watchmaking.

The brand’s penchant for high drama is immediately apparent: Overhead, you will spot a celestial star-motif ceiling defined by gloss-lacquered surfaces, black metal accents and integrated LEDs. 

Along the perimeter of the space, diamond-quilted white panels add a counterpoint, evoking precision and brilliance. A curated celebrity wall serves as a reminder of the brand’s undeniable cultural pull as well as its origins as a jeweller to hip-hop royalty. 

Jacob Arabo, the brand’s chairman and founder, says: “The opening of the Singapore boutique gives us the ideal platform to showcase the full breadth of our creativity. High watchmaking, high jewellery and frequently, both in a single piece, we love to push the boundaries. 

The brand that redefined imagination

“That’s what our motto, ‘Inspired by the Impossible’, truly means – and we know it resonates with the mindset of Singapore’s clientele.”

Established in 1986 by Arabo – better known as Jacob the Jeweler – Jacob & Co quickly became a fixture in hip-hop culture, worn by icons such as Jay-Z, Biggie and Naomi Campbell.

When the maison turned to watchmaking, its pieces – not just Swiss-made but also bold, sculptural and often extravagant – began appearing on the wrists of moguls and mavericks alike.

Among the impressive highlights available in the Singapore flagship is the Bugatti Chiron Tourbillon Baguette Rose Gold.  

The horological equivalent of a hypercar on one’s wrist, the 52-piece limited-edition stunner sports a conversation-starting automaton as its centrepiece. 

Jacob & Co’s master watchmakers have miniaturised the Bugatti Chiron hypercar’s W16 engine and made it fully functional – complete with moving pistons and a spinning crankshaft. All this is fitted into a rose gold case, gem-set with baguette diamonds. 

Next, the Astronomia Regulator takes the traditional regulator-watch principle – separate hours, minutes and seconds displays – and launches it into a three-dimensional carousel. 

On a vertical rotating platform mounted under domed sapphire, the watch displays the hours and minutes on two separate sub-dials and features a double-axis flying tourbillon. Its entire movement rotates once every 60 seconds, making it the fastest in the Astronomia collection. 

A slim gold hand at 6 o’clock extends from the movement’s base to indicate the seconds, as the ring-shaped seconds scale spins counter-clockwise in one minute. Only 99 pieces are available worldwide.  

Finally, poetically, The World Is Yours Dual Time Zone features a domed sapphire crystal, engraved continents rising above lacquered oceans, a compass rose seconds display, and twin independent time zones. 

Inspired by a dual-time watch that Arabo’s father gave him as a teenager, the watch makes an ideal companion for global citizens – as a travel timepiece, as well as an everyday companion for collectors who navigate the world with curiosity and purpose. It is individually numbered.

Alongside its timepieces, the boutique will present Jacob & Co’s jewellery collections – their first appearance in Singapore and a reflection of Sincere Fine Watches’ expanding luxury universe.

Jacob & Co by Sincere Fine Watches is at #02-12D Takashimaya S.C.