Formerly homeless Philadelphia native becomes luxury watch brand CEO

PHILADELPHIA, PA. - Young Philadelphia entrepreneur Emir Horton is taking charge of his career by investing his time into building luxury watch brand Eartha by Emir.

Horton used the internet to teach himself the business skills he needed to found Eartha by Emir in September 2020 during nationwide lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. His inspiration came after early struggles in his career when he relocated to Los Angeles. Those struggles wound up leaving him temporarily homeless.

"It wasn’t until I gained stability in my housing where I then reflected when I was sitting on that curb and I said, ‘You know, I need to be a better manager of my time,’" Horton recalled. "And that meant that I can no longer solely depend on this one stream of income coming from Hollywood because I was paying my dues and all those things so I said, ‘What can I do to support myself? What can I build?’"

In the end, Horton says it was something his mother told him that inspired him to turn his passion for watches into a company.

"A man should always have a wallet and a watch," Horton recites.

After choosing to start on his company, Emir says he learned the different aspects on the business alone, from watching YouTube videos on how to build and design watches to tracking down a manufacturer. 

Emir stopped by Good Day Philadelphia to share his story.

Three years later in 2023, Eartha by Emir has released two collections called "Perseverance" and "Resilience" featuring men’s and women’s watches respectively, which Horton says are in high demand largely because of the brand’s unique touch.

"I think what our customers really enjoy about it is what these pieces represent. They’re very symbolic, even down to the designs themselves," Horton says. 

Horton emphasizes this thoughtful symbolism in not only the watches themselves, but also in the company’s name and mission.

"Eartha is my grandmother's name. She was the first person that came to my name came to my mind when I thought about what I wanted to name the company out there," Horton says. "She really represents strength. And she shows up for those who she loved, and that's what I want my message to be about."

As Horton strives to embody strength to his brand, he also plans to strengthen Eartha by Emir’s product variety in the near future by expanding beyond watches. 

Two watches from Emir's 'Eartha by Emir' line.

"We’re not just going to be selling watches in the future," Horton says. "Some other pieces are there."

Still, Horton describes his luxury watches as a "status symbol," and believes that Eartha by Emir’s approach to them will allow it to be a very profitable business. 

"I do believe I have a billion-dollar brand in my hand. I really do. It’s going to be multidimensional," he says.