G Shock and Jae Tips Reunite for Nostalgic Timepieces
The designer's latest collaboration channels the playful spirit of '90s technology and childhood wonder into a collection of watches that blur the line between functional accessory and wearable art. Bold colour and personal storytelling transform the everyday timepiece into something altogether more soulful.
AI-assisted voice playback. Starts only when you choose Play.
Jae Tips has spent years channelling the exuberant visual language of the 1990s into his designs, drawing inspiration from an era when technology felt fundamentally different. Those early video game consoles, the clunky desktop computers, the headphones that doubled as expressions of personality: each object hummed with character in a way that contemporary devices, for all their sophistication, seem often to lack. His approach trades sleek minimalism for something altogether warmer, a celebration of bold colour, playful proportion and the kind of design that speaks directly to the heart.
This sensibility has shaped his collaborations across the years, from headphone collections to the ongoing partnership with G Shock. Each piece emerges as a meditation on how we express ourselves through the accessories we carry, how a watch or a pair of headphones can become something more than mere utility. It becomes a vessel for memory, a conversation starter, a small rebellion against the anonymous.
The new ‘What Time You On? 2.0’ collection crystallises this philosophy with particular clarity. Jae Tips weaves together his signature approach, those striking colour combinations, the narrative threads that connect each design to personal experience, with the robust, iconic architecture of G Shock’s watches. The result speaks to anyone who has ever felt a pang of longing for the days when electronics possessed genuine personality, when picking out your gear was an act of self definition.
What makes this collaboration resonate is its understanding that nostalgia need not be mere escapism. Rather, Jae Tips invites us to carry forward that spirit of discovery, that sense of joy in objects and design, into the present moment. Each watch functions as a bridge between the self we were and the self we are becoming, rendering the passing of time something not to lament but to celebrate.
The collection demonstrates how a timepiece can transcend its primary function. In merging music, fashion and technology through a distinctly personal lens, Jae Tips has created something that will resonate not only with those who lived through the era that inspired it, but with anyone drawn to design that prioritises heart over hollow trend. Dover Street Market New York holds the collection in store, with pieces equally available through the DSMNY e shop.
Imagery courtesy of G-Shock x Jae Tips (@doverstreetmarketnewyork).
