Jacob Arabo, also known as Jacob the Jeweler, founded Jacob & Co., the company that makes the popular Jacob & Co. watches. He immigrated to New York from Russia at age 14 along with his parents and two sisters. When he was 16 he dropped out of high school and took a six-month course in jewelry but left after four months to get his first job. By the time he was 18 he had his own business and employed 10 jewelers. By 21 he had a store at the famous Kaplan Jewelry Exchange in the Diamond District in Manhattan.

In 1986, Arabo formed his own brand, Jacob & Co. Arabo’s star began to rise in 1994 when singer Faith Evans bought one of his rings and introduced her husband, famed rapper Biggie Smalls, to Arabo’s work. Impressed with Arabo’s designs, Smalls introduced LL Cool J and Sean “Puffy” Combs to him, and word of mouth quickly spread and snowballed among the celebrity set, including Tupac , Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, and a legend was born.

Arabo launched his first watch collection, The Five Time Zone, in 2002. It consisted of wild, bold colors and of course, five time zones. Different colors of diamonds form a world map and there are endless variations of this design, and the unique movement of the dial indicates the different time zones. These watches were inspired by the international traveling lifestyles of his celebrity clients. They were an immediate hit.

Jacob & Co. watches are now so popular that Arabo became known as the “King of Bling” and rappers mentioned him and his jewelry in their songs, from 1999′s “Girl’s Best Friend” by Jay-Z to The Game’s “Big Dreams” in 2008. Jacob replica watches are designed to closely imitate the originals, which average people could never afford. They do not have the same quality nor are they made of the same expensive materials such as diamonds but that is hard to tell from just looking at the watch. Fake Jacob&Co watches have become increasingly popular as people want to associate with the famous people who use the brand. Take note that some manufacturers provide better copies than others, so carefully examine any fake watch you may consider buying.