The ProTek Brand comes from watch industry veteran Barry Cohen, founder and former owner of Luminox Watch. In 1989, Cohen wanted to create a brand with a USP (unique selling point) to separate it from watches on the market. He sought a technology to accomplish this goal and found a firm specializing in self-powered illumination. He reasoned that if a watch could include continuous illumination, it would solve an age-old dilemma of not being able to read time in the dark. The firm granted him exclusive use of the technology in the American market for 10 years, and this is how the Luminox brand came to be.

With this superior lume technology, major retailers such as The Sharper Image and Cabela's, recognized a business opportunity and began carrying the brand. Shortly thereafter, Luminox led the watch market in two categories: tritium gas illuminated timepieces and tactical style watches.

Eventually, nearly a dozen brands emerged in the tactical watch category, and almost 100 other companies pursued the same illumination for timepieces in their brands. Suffice to say, Cohen had created a movement. After 27 years, Cohen left his former company but is now back in the category with the technology he pioneered with his new brand: ProTek.