Wren is back with another collaboration, and this one is going to land on a lot of wrists – or at least a lot of wishlists. The brand has just unveiled the Wren Diver One Obsidian, a second limited-edition partnership with Ben Cook, the founder of Ben’s Watches. If you’ve spent any meaningful time on watch-adjacent corners of Instagram or TikTok lately, you almost certainly know who Ben is. The guy has built one of the most genuinely engaged watch communities on social media, and pairing that reach with Wren’s design sensibility makes for a collab worth paying attention to.
The Story Behind the Collab
Wren was founded by Craig Karger, who many of you may know from his Wrist Enthusiast content. Craig has taken that same enthusiasm and translated it into an actual watch brand – one that clearly values community partnerships over just slapping a name on an existing design. This is already the second time Wren and Ben Cook have worked together on the Diver One platform, which says something meaningful: the first collab worked well enough that both sides wanted to do it again. That kind of repeat collaboration in the microbrand world is a good sign. It suggests the first release wasn’t just a quick marketing play, but a genuine creative alignment that resonated with buyers.
Ben’s Watches has become a notable force in how everyday watch fans discover microbrands. Ben’s approach – enthusiastic, accessible, and community-driven – fits naturally with what Wren is trying to do. Having him co-sign a second release gives this drop a built-in audience of people who are already bought into the Ben’s Watches ethos.
Here is what our community r/microbrandwatches thinks about Wren diver watches
The Diver One Obsidian – What We Know So Far
Full specs haven’t been published at the time of writing, so let’s be straight about that. What is confirmed is the name – Diver One Obsidian – which telegraphs a dark, likely blacked-out aesthetic. “Obsidian” as a colorway descriptor in the watch world almost always points toward deep black cases, dials, or both, and it’s a strong visual direction for a diver that wants to look serious on the wrist without leaning on the tired “tactical” tropes that have been done to death.
The Diver One is Wren’s core dive watch platform, so we’re working with an established case architecture here rather than something built from scratch. That’s not a criticism – it’s smart product strategy. A proven case platform with a fresh, personality-driven colorway and a collab story attached is exactly how a small brand keeps momentum between larger launches.
Based on what’s known about the Diver One line, you can reasonably expect:
- Case: Diver One platform – stainless steel construction with dive-ready proportions
- Colorway: Obsidian – heavily black-influenced dial and/or case treatment
- Edition type: Limited, in collaboration with Ben’s Watches
- Brand founder: Craig Karger (Wren / Wrist Enthusiast)
- Collab partner: Ben Cook (Ben’s Watches)
The Wren Diver Obsidian Watch Specs:
- Swiss Made (Sellita SW200, around 38 hours power-reserve)
- Diameter: 41mm
- Lug-to-lug: 47mm
- Thickness: 13.3mm including box crystal
- Case and Bracelet: Black DLC coated stainless steel
- Movement: Sellita SW200 Automatic Movement with 38 hours of power reserve
- Water Resistance: 200m
- Crystal: Sapphire Box Crystal
- Caseback: Hydraulic Press caseback engraving of a Wren
- Bezel: Ceramic unidirectional rotating bezel with lumed scale
- Lume: Swiss Super-LumiNova BGW9 Blue/Green Lume on hour markers, hands and bezel markers.
- Bracelet: Flat link black DLC coated bracelet
- Price: $1,195 (If you live outside the U.S. you will be responsible for any applicable duty/VAT.)
- Shipping: Around December 18.
- Only first 100 pieces are numbered
For confirmed movement, case dimensions, lug-to-lug, crystal spec, and price – head directly to Wren’s website or the source article linked below. Those details matter, and it’s better to get them straight from the source than to speculate.
Why This Collab Makes Sense for the Microbrand World
Here’s the thing about collaborations in the microbrand space: they work best when both parties actually have skin in the game. Big-brand collabs with influencers often feel transactional – a name, a colorway, a press release. But when a founder-led microbrand teams up with someone who has built a genuine community around watch appreciation, the dynamic is different. There’s a shared interest in making something that the audience actually wants to wear, not just photograph.
Craig Karger didn’t come from a corporate watch background. He came from the enthusiast community – the same place most of us live. That origin matters when evaluating whether a collab is sincere or just a growth hack. And Ben Cook’s audience on social media isn’t a passive follower count; it’s a group of people who engage, ask questions, and actually buy watches. That combination – a founder who gets it, a partner with a real community – is genuinely promising for a limited release like this.
The fact that this is their second collaboration also deserves a moment. In a market flooded with one-and-done limited editions, Wren and Ben’s Watches returning to the table together suggests the first Diver One collab earned enough goodwill – from buyers and from both parties – to justify a follow-up. That’s a track record starting to form, and it’s the kind of thing that builds long-term brand credibility.
How to Get One
The Wren Diver One Obsidian is a limited release (only the first 100 pcs are numbered), which means supply won’t be unlimited and waiting around is probably not the move. Your best bet is to check Wren’s official website directly and follow both Wren and Ben’s Watches on Instagram for drop details, pricing, and availability windows. Given Ben Cook’s reach on social media, announcement posts are likely to go wide quickly – but so will the demand.
First reported by Worn & Wound, who broke the announcement with additional detail worth reading if you want the full picture.
The Bottom Line
The Wren Diver One Obsidian is the kind of release that makes the microbrand community interesting right now. Two genuinely community-rooted people – a brand founder who came up through enthusiast content, and a social media personality who has turned watch appreciation into a real platform – making a limited diver together for an audience that actually cares. The Obsidian colorway sounds like it’ll wear well, and the Diver One case gives it a solid foundation.
We’ll be watching for the full spec sheet. Until then, consider this your heads-up to get on Wren’s radar before this one sells through.
What do you think about this new watch model?
What do you think about this kind of collaborations?
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Thanks for reading.