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The end of the 1990s marked the most recent stage of evolution at Alessi. At the end of a process of development and evolution lasting approximately thirty years, the “Dream Factory” has turned from a more or less traditional industrial company into a “research laboratory in the field of applied arts”. The millennium has witnessed extensive new developments at Alessi. Collaborations have been formed with other companies in manufacturing contexts very different from Alessi’s original dedication to small objects for the home and kitchen. The company offers its skills in design management and its vision of design as a global creative discipline to companies operating in product spheres unconnected with its original domestic field. Alessi’s is to give life to new objects characterised by that mix of eccentricity and style, playfulness and culture, irony and elegance which has become synonymous with the Alessi name. One of the first licensing projects run by Alessi was “Alessi Watches”, with a launch that took place with the 2002 collection. But this part of the company history goes further back, to the 1980s, when two of the most famous architects who had already designed successful products for the Crusinallo-based factory were invited to work on the wristwatch theme: Achille Castiglioni and Aldo Rossi. The latter created “Momento”, a new version of which is presently included in the catalogue, while Achille Castiglioni designed “Record”, of which the present collection also includes a chronograph version. Every year the “Alessi Watches” collection ushers new additions. Ettore Sottsass designed “Ciclo” with a large crown, a dial in bright colours, and well-defined white graphics, typical of his design approach. Andrea Branzi had fun playing with the hour numerals, placing them in new and eccentric positions on or off the dial, along the crown. Indeed, the name “Out_time” is clearly evocative of the project style. The Dutch designer Wiel Arets created “watch.it”, with a strap in steel or brown leather, a matte white face, and the hours marked as if they were tiny beads of water. Miriam Mirri designed four wristwatches for the “Alessi Watches” range. “Mariposa” – “butterfly” in Spanish – in two variants, with a white or blue dial; “Millennium”, in aluminium in grey, red and violet with a leather strap to create a new light and practical combinations. The young Italian designer also created the first two watches for the Alessi Watches Kids line, “Millennium jr.” and “Space-bimba".