he Venezianico brand is single-handedly restoring credibility to watchmaking from a region where many start-ups sought to capitalise on the name during the sector’s “Kickstarter” period, without having the legitimacy or roots to do so. When the brand appeared on the platform in 2017, we must confess that we ourselves were sceptical at first: yet another new brand seeking to capitalise on the aura of Italy – and Venice – in luxury, culture and elegance?

Nearly a decade later, the Morelli brothers’ project has earned its stripes, to the point of positioning itself as one of, if not the most dynamic independent Italian brand, with a turnover of nearly €15 million in 2025 and, above all, the ambition to put Made in Italy back on the map in the watchmaking world. Its new Redentore Utopia II model embodies this ambition, as its calibre is produced in collaboration with the manufacturer Oisa (Orologeria Italiana Società Azionaria), based in neighbouring Lombardy, whose roots date back to 1937 and which is also seeking to rebuild the country’s watchmaking industry – or at least a promising embryo of it.

Originally from the Veneto region, brothers Alessandro and Alberto Morelli founded Venezianico after completing their studies in 2017. “Our friends were more interested in cars, but our great passion since childhood has been watchmaking,” says Alberto Morelli. Like many young people of their generation, they started out collecting vintage watches. Alessandro is director of operations and oversees production, while Alberto is CEO and also handles design.

This second Utopia series follows on from the first model of the same name, launched last year and equipped with the same calibre, of which 100 pieces were sold online in seven minutes to as many customers in some 35 countries. It is distinguished in particular by its guilloché work, created by another traditional Italian company, Atelier Renzetti, using a new pattern called Marea, exclusive to Venezianico, evoking the movement of the waters on the Venetian lagoon.

The Venezianico workshop and boutique is housed in a restored palace, the Palazzo Baradel, in San Donà di Piave (30 km from Venice), the birthplace of the Morelli brothers.

This time, the model will be available for pre-order for 72 hours starting on 28 January 2026: “The first 100 pieces will be delivered immediately, then the rest of the orders will arrive in May,” explains Alberto Morelli, CEO of Venezianico. “In this way, we want to ensure that everyone has access to this piece.”

From manifesto to maturity

With the Redentore Utopia II, Venezianico is not content to capitalise on commercial success. It is further developing a project that began with Utopia I, which was more of a manifesto: proving that a contemporary watch movement could once again be designed and manufactured in Italy. Utopia II marks the phase of maturity, both technically and aesthetically.

The new Redentore Utopia II from Venezianico, Made in Italy.

At the heart of the watch beats the V5001 calibre, a direct evolution of the V5000 presented last May at the launch of the Movimento Made in Italy chapter. Designed by Fausto Berizzi – formerly of Lemania and Vaucher – and Andrea Menegazzo, technical director at Venezianico, this movement retains the same architecture as its predecessor, but with a significant improvement in the level of finish.

At the heart of the project is the V5001 calibre, a natural evolution of the V5000, produced for Venezianico by Oisa and designed, like its predecessor, by Fausto Berizzi and Andrea Menegazzo, technical director of the Venetian company.

The relatively unusual frequency of 25,200 vibrations per hour (3.5 Hz) was chosen as a compromise between precision and power reserve, increased to 60 hours, without compromising chronometric stability. The movement is regulated to ±3 seconds per day and equipped with an Atokalpa variable inertia balance wheel, protected by a KIF Elastor shock protection system.

A proprietary movement, unapologetic and transparent

“We own this movement. We don’t claim that it is manufactured entirely in-house, but we are completely transparent,” insists Alberto Morelli. Oisa manufactures the components, while final assembly and regulation are carried out in the Venezianico workshops, located in the Venice metropolitan area.

The V5001 stands out above all for its aesthetic treatment: main plate and bridges galvanised in 24-carat gold, wheels decorated with a double spiral, radial Côtes de Genève, fine circular graining, and a double-anchored balance bridge with a drawn finish. Each component, including those intended to remain invisible, is designed as an element of aesthetic language in its own right.

“With Utopia II, we wanted the movement to be more than just a technical heart, but also the visual protagonist of the watch,” sums up the CEO.

The Redentore Utopia II comes in a 38 mm diameter 316L stainless steel case, with a thickness of 8.9 mm.

Oisa, Italian industrial memory rediscovered

A key partner in the project, Oisa embodies this attempt to rebuild Italy’s watchmaking industry. Founded in 1937 by Domenico Morezzi, the company disappeared during the quartz crisis before being relaunched five years ago. Today, it mainly manufactures bridges and plates for Swiss brands, while also developing complete movements under its own name.

The V5001 retains the technical characteristics that made the V5000 a turning point for the brand: a slim profile of 3.5 mm, a power reserve of 60 hours and an accuracy of ±3 seconds per day.

The collaboration with Venezianico is part of this shared desire to restore industrial credibility to Italian watchmaking, even if volumes remain modest and Oisa’s structure is still very small. It is a gradual, realistic approach, far removed from grandiose rhetoric.

Marea: the lagoon engraved in metal

The dial is undoubtedly the most immediately distinctive feature of this Redentore Utopia II. The Marea motif was developed specifically for this model in collaboration with Atelier Renzetti, one of the very few workshops in the world to perpetuate the art of traditional hand guilloché engraving.

The Marea motif was developed specifically for this model in collaboration with Atelier Renzetti, one of the very few workshops in the world still dedicated to the art of traditional guilloché engraving. Now run by Linda Renzetti, the fourth generation of the family, the workshop engraves each dial entirely by hand on antique 19th-century guilloché lathes, without any electrical assistance.

Now run by Linda Renzetti, the fourth generation of the family, the workshop engraves each dial on 19th-century guilloché lathes, without any electrical assistance. Line after line, micron after micron, the metal is sculpted at a slow and controlled pace, producing a living, layered surface in constant dialogue with the light.

Marea is the new hand-engraved dial motif, reflecting the rhythm of water, inspired by the Venetian lagoon.

The inspiration is clearly Venetian: that of the lagoon, its movements, its changing reflections, which transform the material over the hours.

Two interpretations, one vision

The Redentore Utopia II is housed in a 38 mm diameter 316L steel case that is only 8.9 mm thick, a clear homage to the Palladian neoclassicism of the Basilica of the Redeemer. Under the anti-reflective sapphire crystal, the Marea dial comes in two interpretations.

The Alpha version features a gold galvanic finish, evoking the luminous Venice of mosaics, facades and Byzantine gold, paired with a black calfskin leather strap with a natural grain.

The more contemporary Beta version features a deep graphite finish, inspired by the city’s structural elements – wrought iron, mooring bollards, railings – and is complemented by a handcrafted Saffiano leather strap.

Controlled growth, clear ambition

Founded by Alberto and Alessandro Morelli, CEO and COO respectively, Venezianico remains a young company, having grown from five employees in 2025 to around twenty today. Design, engineering, marketing and communication are all handled in-house, while the brand ultimately dreams of integrating some of the decoration, as well as more industrial stages, particularly machining.

With tens of thousands of watches produced in 2025, an average price of between €800 and €1,000, and a Utopia collection priced at €4,500, Venezianico now identifies a key strategic focus between €2,000 and €2,500, a segment where Swiss competition is less intense and where the Italian value proposition can be fully expressed.

Distributed through around 200 retailers, while still generating 65% of its sales directly and online, the brand favours organic growth and close control of its image, without excessive pressure on volumes or stocks.

Venezianico is also an official sponsor of the Regata Storica, Venice’s most iconic boat race, which attracts thousands of spectators every year.

Born in the Kickstarter era, with three campaigns raising nearly $800,000, Venezianico is one of the few survivors of this generation. The difference undoubtedly lies in an approach that is more cultural than purely opportunistic, based on a coherent narrative, a strong identity and a gradually built industrial ambition.

With Redentore Utopia II, utopia is no longer a slogan. It becomes a direction, a method, almost a discipline. That of contemporary Italian watchmaking, aware of its limitations but determined to build, piece by piece, lasting credibility on the international stage.