Gruen

Gruen traces its origins to Dietrich Gruen, who patented an improved safety pinion in 1874 and later helped introduce lighter 16-size stem-wind watches as an alternative to larger American designs. After leaving the Columbus Watch Company in the 1890s, Dietrich and his son Fred established D. Gruen & Son, building a reputation through refined construction and a direct-to-jeweler sales model that avoided traditional wholesalers.