From Soviet-Era Sketches To A Georgian Design House with Zviad Tsikolia

A designer’s origin story can smell like acetone, sound like ticking, and feel like a country waking up to its own potential. That’s where we go with Zviad Tsikolia—a friend, an industrial designer, and the creative force turning Georgian identity into watches, jewelry, eyewear and more. He walks us from a Soviet-era workshop stacked with model planes to a modern boutique in Tbilisi, explaining why design isn’t “pretty things,” but a hard marriage of function, engineering, safety and logistics. Then he adds the missing ingredient: emotion. A wristwatch, he says, must carry feeling first or it’s just hardware.

We dig into the aviation roots behind specific Tsikolia pieces—how cockpit altimetry inspired a tilted subdial that Swiss assemblers tried to “correct,” and why references must be lived-in, not pasted on. The brand’s arc stretches from a Red Dot–winning concept to building a design house that celebrates Georgia’s culture: quivery-inspired jewelry honoring ancient wine craft, award-winning eyewear, and a fragrance with surprising staying power. Recognition found its way to unusual wrists too: a CIA officer, Pentagon corridors, and UFC champion Merab Dvalishvili, who wears a custom Seven built to his specs and spirit. These aren’t placements; they’re relationships that turn objects into stories.

We also face the grind behind the glow. Georgia’s limited supply base makes every tool, part and lead time a test. That scarcity shapes a discipline: treat each decision like a precious frame of film, lead with quality, accept slimmer margins and aim for impact that lasts a decade on the wrist. Zviad shares the long game—a first Georgian movement is in motion, with parts manufacturing and caliber modifications building toward independence. And yes, there’s a secret non-watch project slated for next year, a fresh chapter in a design house that refuses to stand still.

If you love watches with meaning, craft with backbone, and design that carries a country’s story, you’ll feel at home here. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves thoughtful design, and leave a review to help more curious listeners find us.

Check out Tsikolia:

https://www.instagram.com/tsikoliawatches

https://tsikolia.com/home/en/usd