The Real Time Show: Cornelius Huber Maps Out Circula's New Direction

Hosted by Rob Nudds & Alon Ben Joseph
Guest: Cornelius Huber (Circula Watches)
Release Date: October 12, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Rob Nudds welcomes Cornelius Huber, owner and driving force behind Circula Watches, for an in-depth conversation about the evolution of the German watch brand. They explore the transformation of Circula from a successful but localized German company into a globally recognized microbrand, emphasizing design innovation, production challenges, and the brand’s future direction. The discussion dives into Circula’s history, unique product development stories, successful collaborations, and how refreshing focus on quality, robustness, and design details is setting the company apart.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Circula Story: From Regional Player to International Brand

• Family Legacy: Circula traces its roots to 1926 (as a wholesale watch house) and officially to 1955 when Cornelius’s grandfather founded the Circula brand in Pforzheim, Germany ([01:01]).
  • “My grandfather… started Circula in Pforzheim where we are from and where this brand is still based.” — Cornelius Huber
• Transition to Leadership: Cornelius describes inheriting the business from his father and his motivations for modernizing and expanding the brand ([03:50]).
• Early Entrepreneurial Spirit: Cornelius reflects on early attempts at online watch sales in 1998—ahead of their time but stymied by nascent tech and consumer trust ([04:43]).
  • Quote: “The website was built… You could put it into the cart and then the checkout was… wire the money to us. But… nobody would just wire money in 1998 in the hope you get shipped a watch afterwards.” — Cornelius, [05:07]

2. Growing Circula: From Local to International Awareness

• Regional Roots: Circula was a regional brand with deep penetration in southwest and southeast Germany up to the late 2010s ([08:11]-[09:55]).
  • “Before I took it over six years ago, it was a regional brand which was continuously operating from 1955 to now.” — Cornelius, [07:14]
• Building National Presence: The first goal was to achieve national recognition in Germany through events, media, and expanding retail networks ([10:09]).
• International Expansion: The brand leveraged relationships with global watch communities, forums, and influential blogs. The U.S. has since become a strong market.

3. Product Innovation: Vintage Movements and Modern Collections

• Launching the Modern Collection: Cornelius discusses how Circula’s relaunch began by assembling watches from New Old Stock (NOS) 1970s movements ([11:03]).
  • Quote: “We had to sort thousands of the parts of a mechanical movement… With these movements we built our first collection.” — Cornelius, [12:06]
• Design Language: The brand strives for distinct, cohesive visual identity by revisiting design cues from the 1970s era ([12:33]).

4. Evolution of the Circula Collection

• Focus on Tool Watches: Circula has a strong heritage in tool watches (divers, field, and pilot watches) but has expanded into more versatile steel sport watches ('GADA'—Go Anywhere, Do Anything) ([13:23]).
• Collaboration with Designer Guy Gu: Introduction of the Facet, a robust steel sports watch designed with Guy Gu ([13:23]-[19:10]).
  • Memorable Moment: The story of how every part of the Facet (bracelet, crown, bezel, hands, even the dial) is “faceted” for visual effect and durability ([18:04]).

5. Technical Accomplishments & Differentiators

• Real-World Testing: Anecdote about the Pro Trail watch surviving four times its rated water resistance—60 bars with zero failure ([15:48]).
  • “Our watch is so well constructed, every component is so solid that it can really resist a lot.” — Cornelius, [16:21]
• Emphasis on Robustness: Pro Series watches are positioned as “true adventure watches”: antimagnetic, scratch-resistant, screw-down crowns.

6. Design Trends & Market Feedback

• Integrated vs. Flexible Bracelet Designs: Discussion on industry trends towards integrated bracelet designs, but Cornelius prefers flexibility for customers ([21:42]-[23:53]).
  • “I don’t want to be the hundredth guy who makes this fully integrated bracelet…” — Cornelius, [22:43]
• Market Preferences: Noted divergence in size preferences between German and international markets—drive to offer Facet models in both 38mm and 41mm ([23:53]-[24:57]).

7. Brand Evolution: Logos, Fonts, and Customization

• New Logo and Typeface: Circula’s collaboration with Guy Gu resulted in a distinctive new logo and proprietary font for dials, including on the TRTS Special Edition ([25:55]).
• Community Involvement: The TRTS x Circula Pro Trail Special Edition’s development process, including playful back-and-forth about numeral legibility and whether the Explorer layout qualifies as a field or pilot watch ([27:38]-[29:29]).
  • “I remember when we were going through the design process… and I was like, make them bigger… and we kept adding like 10% to the numerals until we got to a point where I was like, yes, yes, I can read them.” — Rob, [28:09]

8. Bracelet Engineering and User Experience Improvements

• New Bracelet Designs: Introduction of female end links for improved fit and comfort on smaller wrists, and micro-adjust ("on-the-fly extension") clasp—highlighted as modern essentials ([32:35]-[36:07]).
  • Quote: “More and more people—‘I cannot buy a bracelet anymore without on-the-fly extension’.” — Cornelius, [36:07]
• Educational Moment: Cornelius explains the difference between male and female end links, enlightening Rob in the process ([33:47]-[35:13]).

9. Date Discs and Attention to Detail

• Color-Matched Date Wheels: A nuanced discussion of the labor and value behind color-matching date wheels and creating custom date fonts ([37:18]-[45:17]).
  • “For every dial color, you need to have date wheels… and they are not inexpensive, at least to print. But—there’s a lot also with white dates, which I really don’t like and which I would kind of not buy...”—Cornelius, [38:37]
  • Design Insight: The complexity increases exponentially with color-matched and custom-font date wheels due to minimum order quantities, alignment, and legibility requirements.

10. Why Customers Choose Circula

• Value Proposition: Circula as an alternative to larger brands—emphasizing robustness, historical legacy, thoughtful design, and competitive pricing ([48:40]):
  • “When you buy a Circula, you buy mostly a combination of… historic brand, German brand, very good design, very good quality, robust for a good price.”
• Personal Touch: While Cornelius doesn’t want the brand to revolve solely around his persona, he recognizes the growing importance of authenticity and community in collecting circles.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Early e-commerce: “You could put it into the cart and then the checkout was… wire the money to us. But… nobody would just wire money in 1998 in the hope you get shipped a watch afterwards.” — Cornelius, [05:07]
• On Facet Design: “He faceted everything: bracelet, crown, bezel, hands, indexes, the dial itself. Right. Everything is faceted.” — Cornelius, [18:04]
• On Robustness: “Our watch is so well constructed, every component is so solid that it can really resist a lot.” — Cornelius, [16:21]
• On Customization: “For every dial color, you need to have a date wheel… and they are not inexpensive.” — Cornelius, [38:37]
• On Date Font Complexity: “I talked to Guy… I want to have all 31 numbers… in our own fonts. And he said, yeah, but this is a lot of work… because every [number] you also need to make so they can be visible in this little tiny window.” — Cornelius, [39:19]

Important Timestamps & Segments

• [01:01] — Cornelius’s introduction and Circula’s heritage
• [04:43] — Attempting e-commerce in the late ’90s
• [08:11]-[09:55] — Circula’s local to national journey
• [11:03] — Building watches from NOS 1970s movements
• [13:23]-[19:10] — Product evolution; Facet development
• [15:48] — Pro Trail water resistance test story
• [21:42]-[23:53] — Industry bracelet design trends
• [25:55] — Logo and font redesigns
• [27:38]-[29:29] — TRTS Special Edition Pro Trail design stories
• [32:35]-[36:07] — Bracelet engineering; micro-adjust explanations
• [37:18]-[45:17] — The intricacies of color-matched date wheels and custom fonts
• [48:40] — What makes Circula’s value proposition stand out

Tone & Language

The conversation is technical yet friendly, frequently punctuated by humor and moments of camaraderie. Rob’s curiosity and open questioning elicit rich, candid explanations from Cornelius, offering both insider anecdotes and practical insights. There’s a strong enthusiasm for horology, transparent about challenges and committed to honesty about design and business choices.

Final Thoughts

This episode is a comprehensive masterclass on growing a family-owned, enthusiast-facing watch brand in the 21st century. Listeners gain unique insight into the interplay between heritage, innovation, market feedback, and uncompromising attention to detail that define Circula’s new direction—making it essential listening for watch collectors and entrepreneurs alike.