Hamdan Ahmed Al Mehyas was three when he first wore a watch far too big for his wrist. It probably belonged to his father and made him feel older, more grown up, like the cool kid. Twenty one years later, he has designed his own watch, given it a brand and called it deem.
Al Mehyas is an urban planning student at Sorbonne University in Abu Dhabi, fascinated by watches since childhood. His first watch was designed in September 2025, growing out of years of collecting, sketching and learning how watches are actually made.
A childhood spent collecting watches that told stories
For Al Mehyas, watches have never been just about telling the time. They have marked milestones, carried memories and become a canvas for creativity. One piece stands out: a black and orange Swatch he received in the fourth grade.
It was considerably larger than his small wrist, but that did not matter. Wearing it made him feel older and more mature.
Over the years he collected more watches, some for good results at school, some from friends and some passed down in his family. The most important piece is a gold and silver watch his aunt found at his grandfather’s house. It was broken, so he had it repaired in Hong Kong, where its movement dated to 1973.
Why he stopped buying watches and started designing them
Making a brand was not an overnight story. Al Mehyas asked himself a different question: instead of buying watches, why not create his own?
He has always loved architecture, art and watches. He tried painting, and has been part of Abu Dhabi art, now called Frieze Abu Dhabi. But he felt designing watches was his creative outlet.
He developed the watches from scratch, through sketches and repeated revisions, working with manufacturers in China. He visited more than five factories, including in Shenzhen, and attended the Hong Kong Watch and Clock Fair to learn about manufacturers and the market.
Desert sand and sea waves shaped the first deem designs
One early inspiration came from a moment at home in November 2023, when Al Mehyas noticed the patterns formed when the wind moved across the sand. He photographed the scene, unaware it would become the starting point for a watch design. To him, the desert and sea symbolise the two tribes of the UAE, the Bedouin and the seafaring heritage.
The waves on his new watch face point northwest, reflecting the wind direction in the UAE and Gulf countries. He describes them as a tribute to heritage and ancestors. He later drew inspiration from Japanese watchmaker Grand Seiko, known for incorporating elements of nature into its designs, prompting him to consider the landscapes closest to home.
Establishing a watch brand was driven more by passion than by financial prospects. If I wanted to make money from it or just think about the business side, I would open a cafe or something, he says.
I am taking a huge risk, but the passion and the fun are worth it. His message to new collectors is to start with any budget, because everyone begins with one watch.
The name carries that ambition. In Arabic, deem means a gentle, steady rain that falls without a storm, the kind of rain that makes time seem to pause. Al Mehyas wants the brand to put Abu Dhabi among the names that matter in watchmaking, a conversation that has belonged almost entirely to Switzerland and Japan until now.
A military watch for UAE National Day is next
His next collection matches the military watch design, and he plans to release it ahead of UAE National Day. The model has many unique features, including design elements referencing December 2 and the UAE’s 55th anniversary. It also includes a Rotar, styled like a UAV radar that pilots see in flights.
The case back carries Arabic calligraphy by Mohammed Mandi, the Emirati calligrapher, recognised internationally for an individual style combining letters and words. It says the military oath in Arabic, to be dedicated. It is a military watch because Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan always likes military watches, Al Mehyas said.
Al Mehyas is realistic about the ambition ahead. Establishing a watchmaking industry in the UAE will take time, investment, technical expertise and local manufacturing capabilities. His goal is to help position the UAE alongside Switzerland and Japan, which he estimates could take between 10 and 20 years.
What deem means for the UAE’s young makers
Deem is a small brand with a big idea behind it: that a young Emirati can build something rooted in this place, rather than importing a trend from somewhere else. Al Mehyas is not copying a Swiss template or chasing a logo. He is starting with wind patterns on sand, with his family’s pearl diving past, and with a watch his aunt found in his grandfather’s house.
There is also something quietly hopeful about the timing. Analogue watches are coming back because people are tired of screens, and a simple watch that only tells the time feels like a small act of calm. If deem works, it will show other young makers in the Emirates that a homegrown brand can be built slowly, honestly and from the landscapes around them.
