Hublot, deeply ingrained in contemporary pop culture, took a noteworthy step eight years ago by collaborating with the popular and flamboyant French artist Richard Orlinski. According to Ricardo Guadalupe, Hublot’s CEO, the timepieces Orlinski created are “instantly snapped up by art and watch collectors alike.” Orlinski’s signature faceted, bright-coloured creations includ...
In recent years, using coloured cases and transparency has become a prevalent trend in the luxury watch industry. However, Hublot stands out as the undisputed leader when creating an entire timepiece in vivid colours and transparent materials.?One striking example is the lemon-yellow Big Bang Tourbillon Neon Yellow, unveiled by Hublot in 2023. This exceptional timepiece was crafted using a materia...
The third record for thinness in the successful Octo Finissimo series?by Bulgari, the Octo Finissimo Automatic started its life in the most monochromatic and sleek attire possible – sandblasted titanium over a tone-on-tone dial, a signature look for the collection. However, since its introduction in 2017, the model has seen multiple variations of colours and materials, specifically since the...
Over the years, Bulgari has released various iterations of the Octo Finissimo Automatic, showcasing the brand’s willingness to experiment with diverse materials and textures. Each subsequent model breathed new life into its appearance, unveiling a captivating and distinct aesthetic. The brand also improved the Octo Finissimo Automatic series, notably increasing water resistance from the inau...
The Hublot MP series is a collection of masterpieces characterized by their disruptive and highly technical take on Haute Horlogerie. The latest chapter in this story, initiated in 2011, is the Hublot Big Bang MP-10 Weight Energy System Titanium. Visually arresting and technically complex, this limited edition timepiece is powered by a movement displaying the hours and minutes on rollers, the seco...
Earlier this month, LVMH, the French luxury powerhouse, reorganized the management of its watch division. Frederic Arnault was named CEO of LVMH Watches – overseeing TAG Heuer, Hublot and Zenith – Julien Tornare subsequently took over as CEO of TAG Heuer while a former Richemont executive, Benoit de Clerck, was recruited to run Zenith. Just ahead of the LVMH Watch Week, we had the oppo...
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the iconic Carrera chronograph last year, TAG Heuer unveiled the Carrera Glassbox and a 42mm Carrera Chronograph Tourbillon, a timepiece equally characterised by seamlessly integrated domed sapphire crystal. Inspired by the domed hesalite crystals found on early Carrera models, this watch with refined ergonomics presented a distinct and clean aesthetic. Initial...
Jack Heuer’s chronograph designs are revered as iconic and exemplary, laying the foundation for contemporary TAG Heuer collections that adhere to his fundamental principles and approach to watchmaking. As we embark on a new year, TAG Heuer presents a new timepiece inspired by the second-generation Carrera Dato 45 ref. 3147 from 1968, showcasing the successful Carrera Glassbox design and feat...
What comes after Black Friday, the Christmas holidays, and the New Year’s Eve celebrations? That’s right, Blue Monday. Labelled to be the most depressing day of the year, Blue Monday is typically connected to the third Monday in January, which this year would have been the 15th. This means that, for what it’s worth, we’ve already passed it, possibly without even realising i...
Unveiled last year during Watches and Wonders, the Chopard L.U.C 1860 in Lucent Steel with a guilloche salmon dial is a watch that left quite an impression on us. But there’s more to this timepiece than its elegance, its compact dimensions or its combination of materials and colours – salmon over steel is, by far, one of our favourite combos here at MONOCHROME. It’s a watch with ...
While it might not come across as a particularly high-brow mechanical complication, the power reserve indicator is extremely useful. The equivalent of a petrol gauge on a watch, a power reserve indicator lets you know how much tension is left in the mainspring or, in simple terms, how much fuel is left in the tank. One of the most unusual takes on this complication belongs to a 1959 Conquest model...
As was expected, LVMH, the world's largest luxury goods company, has announced record revenues for 2023. At EUR 86.2 billion, revenues are up 9% while the organic growth was +13%. The progression of revenues was higher in the fourth quarter than in the third quarter with organic growth of 10% versus 9%, despite some uncertainties in the global economy, showing the resilience of the luxury market. ...
Collaborations between watch brands and designers, artists, musicians, trendsetters, artisans, comic characters, action heroes, etc., are the order of the day. You’d be hard-pressed to think of a brand that has not succumbed to some outside input to generate a buzz among younger collectors or even wizened collectors looking for something fresh. Since the unveiling of the then ‘shocking...
When you look at this watch, you might think that someone opened a wooden drawer in the attic of a venerable manufacture, found a dusty box and opened it to reveal a well-preserved late-1930s watch. A representative of the brand’s heritage, which would become the base for a re-edition. Except that here, we’re talking about Raymond Weil, a brand founded in 1976, which has 1) never produ...
Following the announcement in July 2023 of its half-year results showing an impressive growth of 18% in sales, Swatch Group has just issued its key figures for the entire year 2023. The Biel-based conglomerate, owner of brands such as Omega, Longines, Tissot or Breguet, reports sales up by 12.6% at constant exchange rates, or 5.2% at current rates to CHF 7,888 million. Despite a slightly slower pa...
Most of us, myself included, tend to let ourselves go a little during the Christmas season and indulge in a little too much food, drinks and money-splurging.?To combat that, many people have some form of New Year’s resolutions, like quitting smoking, losing a bit of weight perhaps, or just spending more time with your loved ones. To support you in those efforts, we thought it might be a fun ...
In 2019, Moritz Grossmann ventured into the scarcely populated territory of rectangular watches, unveiling three dial variants in five different versions as part of the Art Deco-inspired and appropriately named Corner Stone series. The Corner Stone featured a specially designed shaped calibre with a central hour and minutes display and a small seconds sub-dial at 6 o’clock; the collection in...
Stating that Grand Seiko is Japanese is like saying that the Eiffel Tower belongs to Paris. It seems so obvious at first that you might forget that France’s most famous monument wasn’t meant to become a permanent fixture. With Grand Seiko, the Japaneseness of the brand isn’t just about the location. It’s not about making watches in Japan; it’s about making watches the...
Switzerland-based luxury conglomerate Richemont Group has just issued its trading update for the nine months ended 31 December 2023. The group, which includes brands such as Cartier, IWC, JLC and Vacheron, reports sales up by 8% at constant exchange rates and by 4% at actual exchange rates to EUR 5.6 billion for the last quarter of 2023. At EUR 15.8 billion, sales over the nine-month period ending...
Last Tuesday (of course), Omega presented its latest Speedmaster model, the Speedmaster Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8. As an updated version of an existing model, the watch felt highly familiar at first sight. Presented in 2018 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the mission that first observed the other side of our satellite (and also the first human spaceflight to reach the Moon…), this ...
It’s proving to be a bumper crop year for dragon-themed watches, and brands from all walks of life are deploying their creativity to create something inspiring for the upcoming Year of the Dragon. While it’s only natural to associate Roger Dubuis‘ Excalibur collection with the wonderfully over-the-top Arthurian-inspired Knights of the Round Table editions, it is also home to flam...
The connection between Omega and space exploration isn’t to be demonstrated anymore. While born as a racing chronograph, the 1957 Speedmaster is now known by all as the official watch of astronauts, as the watch worn by Apollo 11 crew members… It’s nicknamed the Moonwatch for a reason. Yet, there’s more than this specific version in the collection, and Omega has long demons...
Jaeger-LeCoultre‘s Master Thin collection is home to sophisticated, understated, ultra-thin dress watches ranging from time-and-date to moon phase models and more complex proposals like tourbillons and perpetual calendars. Offered with understated beige or sunray decorated dials, JLC introduced metiers d’art dials to the collection at the end of 2018. First appearing on the Master Ultr...
I won’t hide the reality: finding a genuinely elegant watch at a fair price isn’t the easiest of tasks. Dress watches, while often free of any complications, are not the most represented timepieces within the portfolios of accessible brands. Naturally,? there are some candidates to consider,?but finding an affordable dive watch is far easier. In this field, Tissot enjoys a high ranking...
The new year has only just started, but we already have a piece of advice for you: if you’re hunting for new watches, which I guess most of you probably are, explore the industry a little. There is plenty of very interesting and cool stuff to be found off the beaten path, and it doesn’t take much to enter a whole new world you might have never known existed. Take rectangular watches, f...
Approaching a hands-on article about a watch can take various angles, and one exciting perspective is to envision how a newcomer to the watch scene might react to a timepiece and what questions might arise during their exploration of the product. Let’s explore this approach as we delve into the mighty IWC Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar TOP GUN Lake Tahoe (what a name…), pre...
From the brand with the most explosive named collection in watch history comes the loud, eye-popping Spirit of Big Bang Titanium Dragon. Upholding the brand’s preference for fusing disparate materials on board its bold, shaped cases, Hublot offered Chinese artist Chen Fenwan the Spirit of Big Bang as a blank canvas to exercise her creativity. Using the millenary Chinese art form of paper cut...
With watch brands across the board riding the Chinese New Year wave, there are no prizes for guessing which of the twelve animals represented in the Chinese Zodiac will be in the limelight this year. Admittedly one of the more attractive beasts to depict on a watch, the dragon replaces the rabbit of 2023 and will reign supreme until he is replaced by the snake in 2025. One month ahead of the Lunar...
A couple of months ago, Blancpain & Swatch caused quite a storm by presenting their collaboration based on the iconic Blancpain Fifty Fathoms. Following the success of the Moonswatch with Omega, the Scuba Fifty Fathoms captured the spirit of the legendary dive watch in bioceramic, a lightweight material that came in five different colours. Now, there’s a sixth one added to the line-up, c...
The Chinese New Year provides many watch companies with the perfect excuse to produce a special edition decorated with one of the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac. This year is the Year of the Dragon, and, for the first time, Longines jumps on the Chinese New Year bandwagon with a limited edition of 888 pieces of its Flagship Heritage model with moon phases. Available exclusively in Asia, the ...