About Horizon
Back in 2015, I was using my employment card to sketch ideas. Small thoughts, quick notes, shapes I didn’t want to forget.
While working at my job, I had a lot of ideas for things I wanted to create. Like many others, I was dreaming of building something of my own.
Some ideas were just words. Some needed to be drawn properly — to see them more clearly.
One day, I looked at that simple card and thought — maybe this could be something more.
I was — and still am — against using plastics as much as I can.
I’ve always liked tools that last. Things you can carry for years. Things that age with you. That’s why I wanted Horizon to be made in steel from the beginning — strong, simple, and built to stay.
In the early days, like every project, we made some compromises to get started. But over time, we learned, improved, and stayed closer to what we believe in.
Today, all Horizon tools are made from materials we trust — built for everyday use, built to last.
Horizon wasn’t built in one place.
In my mid-20s, I was traveling more — meeting people, seeing new ways of living, carrying small ideas with me. One of them was Horizon.
Since it was the size of a credit card, it was always with me. I kept it in my pocket, in my notebook, in my wallet. Wherever I went, it came too. That made it easy to share — and people noticed it. In cafés, at school, while traveling — it quietly caught attention on its own.
Before that, I wasn’t thinking I was doing anything special. I was probably underestimating myself — like many people do. Classic low confidence.
But those small moments — showing it to people, seeing their reactions — helped me understand that simple tools, made with care, can mean something to others too. That’s when I felt ready to share Horizon more openly.
Being interested in typography — and falling in love with Helvetica® — shaped much more than just the look of Horizon. It shaped the way I think about design. Helvetica® has always represented something I admire deeply: clarity without noise, balance without effort, timelessness without trying to be timeless. It’s honest. Functional. And quietly beautiful — much like what I hope Horizon has become. You can read more about that connection in our homage to Helvetica®.
That’s how Horizon started. Turning something as ordinary as an employment card into a tool for sketching, thinking, and creating.
Since then, Horizon became a story shaped by many people. Thanks to the support of our Kickstarter backers, and the skills and effort of everyone we work with, we’ve come a long way from those early days.
Today, we are still a small studio based in the Netherlands. We design simple tools for people who like to make things — for those who think with their hands, sketch ideas, and carry small useful objects every day.
Ufuk Koc, Founder & Designer
Team
