Industry Watchmaking Products Wristwatches | Founded 2007 | |
Type Wholly Owned Subsidiary Headquarters Boca Raton, Florida
United States of America Key people Dick Sijmons and Kees de Bruïne (founders and co-owners)
Marc Bell and Joseph Roos(co-owners) | ||
Kyboe! ( [kiboo]) is a Dutch upscale fashion watch brand founded in 2007 by Dutch natives Dick Sijmons and Kees de Bruïne. KYBOE! Watches are known for their oversized dials and bright colors. In 2015 the company set up a U.S. office in Boca Raton, Florida, when American partners Marc Bell and Joseph Roos acquired a stake in the company.
Contents
History
Dick Sijmons and Kees de Bruïne began making bright, fashionable plastic watches in 2007. After seeing a positive response within the Netherlands, the team expanded their offerings to include more durable stainless steel cases. These steel watches were a huge success, and in 2008, the plastic watches were phased out entirely.
KYBOE! Beginnings
KYBOE! quickly gained a strong following in its home country of the Netherlands. To grow their customer base, Sijmons and de Bruïne brought KYBOE! to St. Tropez in the South of France, as well as the Spanish island of Ibiza. The pair signed agreements with individual retailers in each location to start selling KYBOE!, and soon had reached over 200,000 watches sold in the Netherlands, St. Tropez and Ibiza alone.
New Partnership
New York-born entrepreneur Marc Bell discovered KYBOE! in 2008 while vacationing in St. Tropez. He purchased six watches and returned home to the U.S., where his friends and business partners complimented the watches often. Every year, Bell returned to St. Tropez and purchased more KYBOE! Watches. In 2014, after having a difficult time importing KYBOE! to the U.S., Bell decided he would become a distributor for the company. He reached out to founders Sijmons and de Bruïne, who were unsure that KYBOE! was ready for the American market. Ultimately, the founders denied Bell’s request to become a local distributor. As a successful businessman, Bell recognized the brand’s potential and, in 2015, approached Sijmons and de Bruïne with an offer to purchase a portion of the company and become partners. The offer was accepted and the deal was signed in the Spring of 2015. As part of the transaction, Bell brought business partner Joseph Roos, an expert in retail and finance, in to the partnership.
Today, the company is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, with additional operations in The Netherlands and Hong Kong.
Retail Locations
KYBOE! is sold by more than 2000 independent retailers around the world. In addition, KYBOE! is sold by major retailers including Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom and Lord and Taylor, with new partnerships frequently being announced. Marc Bell, president and CEO of KYBOE! wants to expand the line to include bracelets and other accessories over the next 12 months.
Ambassadors
KYBOE!’s first brand ambassador, DJ Vinny Vinsane, joined the team on March 3, 2016. Vinsane DJs for well-known venues throughout West Palm Beach, Florida, and is known for his role on ABC’s The Bachelorette.
Separate from KYBOE!’s growing list of ambassadors, a number of celebrities have been spotted wearing KYBOE! including supermodel Kim Kötter; soccer player Jasper Cillessen; DJ Tiësto; Steve Aoki; Armin van Buuren; Quintino; and rapper Sean Paul;.George Takei;, Brad Takei, Coco Austin; and Ice-T; were spotted on NYFW wearing KYBOE as they attended the SS17 show September 10, 2016.