Sporting a case reminiscent of 1970s industrial design, and a dial that takes cues from the golden era of motorsport, Vostra’s debut release is the epitome of a fun, summer watch. Albeit for a kind of serious guy. We see the word “homage” fairly frequently in the microbrand space, and all too often, it’s a little bit like a designer’s version of a waiter handing you a plate of canapes, exclaiming that this is their take on pizza, while gesturing toward a sad little flat bread arrangement. Vostra’s Vector chronograph is the antithesis of that, encapsulating what the word should mean; an original concept that acknowledges the tried-and-true design language of its predecessors, and not as a regurgitated classic in micro-form.
Maybe it’s escapism from day-to-day monotony and the 24-hour news cycle, but I’m obsessed with vintage sci-fi schlock, from Roller Ball to Blade Runner. There’s a sense of purposeful, meticulous, and immersive world-building. The Vector is no exception; from the packaging to the colourways, each decision builds a universe around the product. It satiates my appetite for retrofuturism – the technicolour future interpreted by artists, writers, and architects of the mid-to-late 20th century. It’s brimming with child-like optimism and wonder.
Shaping the narrative
The dimensions and form are no happy accident. The Vector’s case is faceted and proportioned to accommodate a short lug-to-lug length without feeling too tall or slab-sided, and this clever way of breaking up the case is straight from the Seiko handbook. If we look at something like the ’70s 6138-0030 Kakume, you can see the kind of sharp lines and funky shapes the Vector pays respectful homage to. Vostra has added even more dimension, though. The scalloped bezel, a direct influence from Singaporean sister company RZE, further breaks up the form and adds to the industrial aesthetic.
The mix of curves and hard, bevelled edges reminds me of something you’d find in the Fallout universe; it’d be right at home strapped to a piece of power armour, ticking its way across the Mojave. The crown guards follow the curve of the case and meet the rectangular pushers with perfect flow. It feels aerodynamic, like some kind of alien gunship. This is just another small detail that drives home how playfully space-aged the case is. Everything about this watch feels so intentional, sucking you into its own sci-fi landscape.
On that note; there’s actually a whole lot of Giorgetto Giugiaro influence here, which makes sense considering the decade’s obsession over what has now become retrofuturism. And that said, no shade on our man Gerald (I like Polerouters, alright?), but a pet peeve of mine is the constant Genta credit when it comes to any and all flavours of angular design. This aesthetic was really the product of an entire zeitgeist of industrial designers transitioning from curvy, classic conventions to what they perceived as the future – shoutout to Taro Tanaka, Marcello Gandini, Mario Bellini, and Dieter Rams.
Rounded corners, sharpened collectability
Where RZE excels in its tooltastic approach to adventure watches, Vostra’s designs take from them as much as they do from pop culture, which extends to their materials and even packaging choices, all while staying as affordable as you’d expect. The case and bracelet are micro-blasted steel, mimicking RZE’s signature finish without the added cost of grade 5 titanium, absorbing light and exaggerating the Vector’s DeLorean-esque form with harsh contrasts.
If you thought the dial gets a break from 1970s influences, you’d naturally be incorrect, where even the most subdued of the three available variants gets bold, turquoise highlights. The blocky hands and indices quietly nod to ’70s racing chrono heavyweights like the Breitling Chrono-Matic and Yema Rallygraf, making it a joy to look at, and really legible at a glance. Perfect when I use the 60-minute timer to keep track of the BBQ. As with the rest of the design, the influences manage to maintain a unique identity, an example being the subtly bevelled corners of the hour batons and hour and minute hands. Even the heavily disregarded Seiko VK 24-hour register doesn’t bother me (as much) in this instance. Rather than being a complete afterthought, Vostra equipped it with a neat little line to make tracking night and day easier – it may be functionally arbitrary but it adds aesthetic value to the watch.
But where this thing really leans into pop culture, and current pop culture at that, is in its marketing. The box could be mistaken for one containing a bobblehead figurine of Loki in a maid suit (this is how far my understanding of FunkoPops goes), with the back hinting at two other releases coming in the future. If the current three colourways are anything to go by – the Electro Yellow model being my favourite, and the one currently sitting on my wrist – there’s no doubt the two new ones will be just as adventurous.
The rest of the box is just tongue-in-cheek cherries on top, whimsical with its “Ages 3 to infinity” rating and action figure blister packaging, but raising an excellent point of value for money and sustainability. How much are we paying for overpresentation? Do we need to pay for an outer shell, a book we’ll never read, and another box for the sock drawer? Personally, at this stage of collecting, I’d rather pay for good design and execution than an attempt at posturing as luxury, and this is coming from a guy whose bread and butter was once print design. The Vector is a non-pretentious, for-collectors-by-collectors offering, bringing fun back to a hobby riddled with an unlimited number of limited releases, scalping and imaginary waitlists. And if you needed any more proof that Vostra likes to have fun with it, the Vesta ring watch should be proof that they aren’t showing any signs of letting up with the servings of collectable – and most importantly – accessible offerings. Thank the stars, someone’s listening and delivering; this hobby is still enjoyable, after all.
WatchPoint is an authorised dealer for Vostra. Find it in the WatchPoint Webstore and our Melbourne Showroom
