Leveling up the Most Fashionable Alarm Clock
Braun’s BC02 alarm clock is an entirely simple, plain, and uncomplicated design: A compact square box encasing a round clock face, one small circular button on the front and a bigger one on the top. And it is genius.
As with all of Braun’s pioneering products, it’s the sleek simplicity of the design that makes it so influential.
The BC02 alarm clock is a slightly modernized version of Braun’s AB1 from 1987, a design so influential it’s part of the permanent collection of MoMA (the modern art museum in New York that also houses work like Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night).
The clock’s legend has long been solidified. However, fashion brands are adding to its status.
Most recently, NEIGHBORHOOD has linked up with Braun to release its take on the clock.
The Japanese streetwear label’s biggest alteration to the design is the color of the second hand, offered in a dusty maroon on the white clock and teal blue on the black version. There’s also a small NEIGHBORHOOD logo on the dial, the only obvious hint that this is part of a collaboration.
This very magazine took a similarly reserved approach when creating its own take on the classic Braun alarm clock, as did Supreme.
However, Off-White™ did the opposite. The American label's late founder, Virgil Abloh, was a well-documented Braun enthusiast and when taking on the BC02, it drenched the simple clocks in bold orange and pale blue colors.
Through Off-White™'s dash of color, the simple clock was suddenly a statement piece.
Only ever conceived to be a practical alarm clock, Braun’s design has become so much more. It's become a design icon with a roster of stylish collaborators unmatched by any other alarm clock. It has become fashion’s favorite alarm clock.
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