The use of comic book characters or cartoon personalities in watchmaking isn’t new. However, we’ve recently seen a successful?revival of the classical Character Watches. Watches incorporating Mickey Mouse, Snoopy or Popeye have become very popular lately, and we can surely expect more to come in the future. Small-time Dutch independent watchmaker De Rijke & Co. now enters this humo...
Half a century of life deserves a big celebration, and Audemars Piguet will be pulling out all the stops to fete its Royal Oak. Not only has it hit the 50-year milestone, but its popularity has reached unprecedented heights; just try getting your hands on one. Today, Audemars Piguet releases three new variations of its 41mm Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon with the brand’s latest-gene...
For our new installment of The Collector's Corner, we are returning to a Richemont brand, one that is known as “La Grande Maison”, or the watchmaker of watchmakers. That's right, this week we are looking at Jaeger-LeCoultre, specifically, a 1990s hit that lives on in the current collection. We love complications here at MONOCHROME, and we are switching things up a bit and are going wit...
The launch of the Octo Finissimo collection in 2014 was a defining moment in the history of Bvlgari watches. Topping one record after the other for seven consecutive years, the brand became the master of ultra-slim movements and redefined the aesthetic of the luxury sports watch in a distinctive, modern and stylish design language. After exploring the limits of ultra-thin mechanical watchmaking, B...
Audemars Piguet’s?longstanding history of calendar watches is still very much alive with the new release of its Code 11.59. Although it is not the first time the QP complication finds its way to AP’s vision of a modern classic, this one looks exceptionally handsome, thanks to the starry sky background. In a departure from the bold pink gold version, here is the new Code 11.59 by Audema...
By now, it shouldn’t be a secret anymore that Audemars Piguet’s famous Royal Oak is turning 50 this year and that the brand has unveiled a new Jumbo Extra-Thin version, the 16202. The brand has made a serious effort to mark this occasion with a new collection with special rotors, new models and a slightly retouched look. One model that combines all three of those elements is the all-ne...
While the stars of the show for the celebrations of the Royal Oak’s 50th anniversary were, without a doubt, the new Extra-Thin 16202 and the Openworked 16204, Audemars Piguet won’t only be looking at the Jumbo models. In fact, throughout 2022, the entire permanent Royal Oak collection will be updated. Be reassured; we’re talking small touches to make these models slightly more re...
2020 was a very difficult year for the Swiss watch industry with a historic fall of 21.8%, the steepest decline since 2009. Following this sharp contraction of the global watch market, 2021 has seen a recovery from the pandemic and a return to growth, to the point of recording its best year ever! The FHS, the Federation Horlogere Suisse (or the Swiss Watch Federation), has just released export sta...
Fuelled?by robust demand in?Asia?and the?United States, the luxury market rebounded strongly in 2021. LVMH, the world’s largest luxury-goods company, has just released its results for 2021. The French luxury powerhouse delivered record performance with a revenue of EUR 64.2 billion, up 44% compared to 2020 and up 20% compared to 2019. Organic revenue growth was 36% compared to 2020 and 14% c...
If you’re following the independent watchmaking scene, you were certainly aware of the difficulties encountered by HYT Watches, the UFO of the watchmaking industry, creating watches with fluidic indications. After a dormant period of about one year, we can now say it loud and clear: HYT is back in action with new partners to back the business (Kairos Technology Switzerland SA) and a new CEO,...
1972-2022. Yes, Audemars Piguet‘s most emblematic watch, and one of the most iconic watches of the entire industry, the Royal Oak, is celebrating its 50th anniversary – even though, looking at the watch, it doesn’t reveal its age. As you’ve come to expect, the brand will be using this jubilee as the occasion to revamp some of the models, introduce new in-house movements, la...
Kill your darlings is what they say, and around the same time last year, Patek Philippe killed the 5711, and Audemars Piguet killed the uber-popular 15202. Within a few weeks, the two most popular watches on planet Earth were discontinued, generating a good deal of turbulence in the world of watches. AP’s Royal Oak Extra-Thin, a.k.a. ‘Jumbo’, is now being replaced by the new refe...
More and more women enjoy mechanical movements and Glashutte Original's two watch collections for women?–?PanoMatic Luna and Lady Serenade – are fitted with in-house automatic calibres. With Saint Valentine's Day just around the corner, GO presents a romantic version of its Lady Serenade with pink sapphire crystal accents and a diamond-set bezel, colours designed to evoke the appearanc...
Rome-based watchmaker/jeweller Bvlgari has unique credentials as a maker of chiming watches. Following the acquisition of Gerald Genta and Daniel Roth some 20 years ago, the brand has inherited and cultivated a tradition of crafting exceptional striking watches. Bvlgari is one of the very few makers to produce grande sonnerie wristwatches or to be capable of creating mechanical wonders as the Octo...
An opulent marriage of Haute Horlogerie and Haute Joaillerie, Bvlgari’s colossally complex Octo Roma Emerald Grande Sonnerie is embellished with enough gemstones to pave a Roman road. Equipped with a four-gong Westminster chime with automatic winding regulated by a tourbillon, this impressive Grande et Petite Sonnerie is Bvlgari’s most complex timepiece to date. Assembled over nine mon...
Wait… What? An Oris Aquis dive watch with a cloisonne? enamel white gold dial, priced at EUR 23,500… Yes, that thing, as surprising as it may sound, is real. And yes, it is quite a departure from the usual price range and utilitarian style of the brand. In short, it is quite an unexpected release by Oris, to say the least, and quite a bold move from the brand, admittedly. So let’...
The Big Crown Pointer Date collection has been part of the history of?Oris?since its introduction in 1938. It has even pulled Oris through the quartz crisis and as such is one of the pinnacles of the brand. Reinstating the Big Crown Pointer Date as a full collection in 2018 meant we've seen multiple variants of this interesting, very retro-styled watch. In recent years Oris has also been experimen...
Introduced over 15 years ago, the Hublot Big Bang and its art of fusion concept have given birth to countless variations in all manner of sizes, material or complications. The versatile, ever-evolving Big Bang is often bold, aggressive or polarizing. As its name suggests, it is not meant for the faint of heart Presented on the occasion of the LVMH Watch Week 2022, the Big Bang Integral Time Only u...
If you are a fan of Bvlgari’s Serpenti watch and passionate about mechanical movements, we have news for you. The Italian brand renowned for its ultra-thin movements is shifting gear and using the formidable know-how obtained with its Octo Finissimo collection to create the new Piccolissimo watch movement, a teeny-weeny micro-mechanical calibre designed to fit inside the head of its legendar...
Last year TAG Heuer revamped the well-known Aquaracer Professional range, the brand's long-standing dive watch collection. It featured an updated, more refined look that was in line with the collection's lineage that started with the 2000-series in the early 1980s. The DNA is especially apparent in the overall shape of the case, which is retained albeit updated in the latest collection. New for 20...
As we’ve just entered the LVMH Watch Week, the other French luxury powerhouse, Kering (ex-PPR) has just announced the finalisation of the management buy-out of Girard-Perregaux and Ulysse Nardin, thus selling its watch activities to the current management of the brands. Following some talks that started a few months ago, it is now confirmed that Sowind Group SA, the umbrella above GP and UN,...
The Royal Oak Jumbo, a watch known under its current guise as the reference 15202, is one of the most sought-after and desirable watches produced by the Swiss industry. Its popularity has reached far beyond just the small circle of seasoned collectors. It’s a cult object, a design icon. Yet, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo Extra-Thin 15202 will leave us soon. We also know from the words ...
Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the past two months, the whole buzz surrounding the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711 Tiffany-Blue dial made for the 170th anniversary of the NYC-based jeweller and watch retailer should be something quite familiar to you – and maybe, you’re also rather bored with this story by now. But, today, it’s basically the mother of all Tiffany-Blue...
Malek bin Easa is a regular contributor to MONOCHROME. Malek is the driving force and founder of the Emirates Watch Club and in that position a well-known figure in the Arab watch scene. This time we asked the Dubai-based collector about one of his most cherished timepieces, his Schwarz Etienne Roma Synergy by Kari Voutilainen. A model that has his personal touch! Because indeed, it's not just a c...
Let's play a word association game. When you hear the name Omega, what is the first thing that pops into your head? If you're like me, it instantly conjures up thoughts of Speedmaster chronographs and space exploration. This is no small thanks to Omega's marketing prowess and (well-deserved) pride at being on the wrists of the men who boldly went where no man had gone before. But it is at the othe...
Products are introduced. Products have a commercial life. Products are discontinued. There’s nothing exceptional in this, it’s named a product life cycle… Regularly, for various reasons, watch brands add or remove some references from their collections, whether because of a need to innovate, because of the introduction of a new design, because a new movement is coming, or because...
As we’ve explained in the past already, the name Gerald Charles might not be as familiar as Gerald Genta, but they actually belong to the same man. And behind the name Gerald Charles is an independent watchmaker that aims at reviving the spirit of the watches designed by the genius man in the mid-2000s. Something that we’ve demonstrated by looking at several editions of the signature M...
Following the announcement a few months ago of its strong performance over the 6 first months of its fiscal year, Richemont today released its sales figures for the third quarter ended 31 December 2021 – remember that Richemont closes its books on 31 March – and once again confirms the trend seen over the past year, with recovery of sales in mind following the massive drop due to the p...
Mostly known for the design of one of the most iconic cars ever created, a line that is extremely enduring (yes, we’re talking about the Porsche 911), Ferdinand Alexander “Butzi” Porsche was a genius, a visionary, and a talented designer of all things. As the founder of the?Porsche Design studio, we should keep in mind that the first product created under this umbrella was a wris...
First released in early 2021 with quartz movements, followed by a highly anticipated automatic model in mid-2021, the Tissot PRX has been an immense success for Tissot, which managed with this watch to captivate the growing interest in sporty-chic watches with integrated bracelets, at a fair price. First released with classic full-steel cases and expected blue or blue dials, it now comes back in a...