About KNIS

KNIS is a Japanese watch brand founded in Kyoto in 2021, inspired by the city’s rich tradition of craftsmanship and refined manufacturing.

With a mission to deliver high-quality, Japanese-made watches from Kyoto to people around the world, KNIS blends classic techniques with modern sophistication.

Our designs aim to surprise with subtle, distinctive details, while maintaining a timeless appeal that can be enjoyed by people of all ages for years to come.

Keisuke Niii, the founder of the brand, began working for an online watch retailer at the age of 23, right after graduating from university.
At 26, he became independent and founded LIME Co., Ltd., where he has been selling various watch brands for over 15 years.

During this time, he realized that Japanese-made watches offer superior quality compared to overseas-made watches in the same price range. Not only do they have a lower rate of initial defects, but requests for repairs are also significantly less frequent. Moreover, many people continue to use even inexpensive Japanese watches for over 10 years.

This reaffirmed his belief in the excellence of Japanese products, and now he hopes to share this quality with more people.

Connecting Japan’s traditional craftsmanship and manufacturing to the future

The watch market has been shrinking, largely due to the rise of mobile phones and smartphones since the 2000s. The industry faced even greater challenges with the spread of smartwatches around 2015. In a time when the market is flooded with overseas-made products, we launched KNIS with the hope that Japanese consumers would rediscover the value of meticulous, precise, Japanese-made craftsmanship.

Our goal is to share the beauty of Japan's traditional techniques and manufacturing with people all over the world. We firmly believe that the Japanese watch industry will not disappear, but instead continue to thrive for many years to come.