Two Students, One Microbrand: The Montera story

By Sachin Velmurugan & Noah Wilson

We didn't set out to build a watch brand. We set out to wear one we actually wanted.

It was December 2025. We were 20 years old, both studying full time at Sheffield Hallam University and working part time jobs. We were sitting in the university library, assignments open and ignored, scrolling through watches we couldn't afford. Everything either cost too much or wasn't worth it.

That's when it clicked. We both study business and marketing. We knew how to set up a company, handle the legal side, manage logistics, build a brand. So why were we sitting here wishing someone else would make the watch we wanted?

We decided to make it ourselves.

The first months were spent figuring out the unglamorous stuff: company registration, supplier contracts, import regulations. Nights and weekends, on top of full time studies and part time jobs. But we kept going.

The Bluewater GMT Collection

Our recent release. Two variants: the Great White and the Bull Shark, named after the Mediterranean's most formidable predators.

Automatic movement. GMT complication. Sapphire crystal. 100m water resistance. Custom shark engraved caseback. Seiko NH34 movement.

Batch 1 sold out in 48 hours.

Trying to describe how that felt is difficult. Surreal is the closest word. We were 20 year olds who'd built this from a library table, funded by part time jobs, and in 48 hours it was gone. What made it hit even harder was knowing it wasn't luck: it was the community. People on Reddit, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook who had followed along from the beginning, given us feedback, shaped the watches with us. When it launched, they showed up. We are genuinely, deeply grateful for that. We were in complete awe.

How We Got Here

We built this with our community. People who found us, gave us advice, told others. That's how Montera works: no big marketing budget. Just people who like what they see and believe in what we're building.

What's Next

Batch 2 is sold out. We're always working on what comes next: new colourways, better movements, stronger designs. Every release will be an improvement on the last. We're not slowing down.

Follow along to be the first to know.