Andrea Furlan is a Swiss industrial designer and entrepreneur who has gained international recognition as the co-founder of the independent watch brand Furlan Marri. Born into a family with a connection to horological history, Furlan’s career is defined by a blend of classical design education and extensive experience within both the luxury and mass-production sectors of the watch industry.

Furlan’s interest in watchmaking was fostered at an early age, notably influenced by his grandfather, who left him a watchmaker’s cabinet filled with vintage tools and components from the Vallee de Joux. He pursued formal design studies at the Ecole Cantonale d’Art de Lausanne (ECAL) in Switzerland, graduating as an industrial designer. This academic foundation provided him with the technical and aesthetic skills that would later characterize his approach to timepiece development.

Early in his professional journey, Furlan gained experience through internships and roles at several prestigious Swiss watch houses, including Chopard, Hublot, and Sarcar. A pivotal moment in his career occurred when he worked for four years with Dominique Renaud, a renowned master watchmaker and co-founder of Renaud & Papi. This collaboration allowed Furlan to deepen his understanding of high-end complications and the intricacies of movement design.

Following his time in Switzerland, Furlan relocated to Asia and California, where he worked as a watch design consultant. During this period, he gained firsthand insight into the logistics of mass production, e-commerce strategies, and global distribution. This diverse background allowed him to bridge the gap between the exclusive world of haute horlogerie and the efficiencies of modern manufacturing.

In 2020, during the global lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Furlan partnered with his longtime friend and Saudi Arabian watch collector, Hamad Al Marri, to establish Furlan Marri. Working from his bedroom in his parents’ apartment, Furlan handled the design, prototyping, and marketing photography for the brand’s debut collection. The duo’s vision was to democratize fine watchmaking by offering timepieces with high-level finishes and vintage-inspired aesthetics at an accessible price point.

The brand’s inaugural release, a mecha-quartz chronograph inspired by the mid-century Borgel-style cases and the Patek Philippe reference 1463, was launched on Kickstarter in March 2021. The campaign achieved its funding goal in less than a minute and eventually raised over $1 million. The brand’s rapid ascent was further solidified when its “Mr. Grey” model won the Horological Revelation Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Geneve (GPHG) in 2021, just months after the official launch.

Under Furlan’s creative direction, the brand has since expanded into mechanical movements and high-profile collaborations, including a secular perpetual calendar created for the Only Watch auction. Today, Andrea Furlan continues to lead the brand’s design philosophy, emphasizing transparency in manufacturing and a dedication to “emotional watchmaking” that honors the heritage of Swiss horology while remaining inclusive to a new generation of enthusiasts.