Highlights From LVMH Watch Week's Singapore Edition
We highlight four eye-catching timepieces launched at this year’s LVMH Watch Week Singapore Edition, which pay homage to each watchmaker’s rich and colourful heritage.
Since 2020, the LVMH Watch Week, held each January, has been the first major watch event to kick off the horological season. For 2023, the French luxury conglomerate brought the four watch brands in its stable—Bulgari, Hublot, TAG Heuer and Zenith—to Singapore for the first time. The creations were showcased at the Capella Singapore, and it was a chance for journalists from all over the world to admire and examine these marvellous novelties up close. One common thread among the four watchmakers was a return to their roots, as they looked to the past for inspiration, and breathed new life into some of their most emblematic creations. Beloved classics from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s were given a new twist; some underwent a complete metamorphosis. Yet at the heart of each new timepiece lies the creativity and tenacity of these watchmaking powerhouses. This year’s releases proved that a distinctive design that marries great form and functionality, will always be the key to timeless allure. Here are our favourites.
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Bulgari’s spirit animal, the serpent, is a symbol of perpetual rebirth, wisdom and sensuality. Since its debut in the 1940s, the Serpenti collection has been synonymous with the Tubogas, a technique that utilised a material and manufacturing process that was similar to how gas pipes were produced. Not only were bracelets made using the Tubogas technique supple and flexible enough to wrap around the arm, but their industrial aesthetic also presented an interesting juxtaposition when used in jewellery timepieces. The earliest Serpenti watches featured dials placed at the position where the ‘head of the snake’ would have been. More than 70 years on, this watch remains an icon, thanks to its duality as a jewel that tells time.
At first glance, the new Serpenti watches look the same. However, this is the year of metamorphosis for the collection, as Bulgari has reinvented it with an entirely new manufacturing process. Traditionally, the Tubogas technique involved coiling an entire length of gold wire around a flexible titanium blade with a machine. The Serpenti Infinity collection is created with the new method, which involves slipping flattened gold rings over the blade by hand. This modular construction of the bracelet, link by link, enables the use of thicker links unlike the gold wire used previously. This allows gemstones to be set directly on each link. This new way of crafting watch bracelets offers infinite possibilities for the Serpenti collection, according to Bulgari. For starters, the Serpenti Infinity collection consists of iterations in rose gold with diamonds set in a wave pattern, in either single or double-twirl bracelets. Fully gem-encrusted Serpenti watches around the arm? We can’t wait.
TAG Heuer timepieces often have a storied legacy, and none more so than the TAG Heuer Carrera. It was named after the short-lived but legendary Carrera Panamericana, one of the most dangerous rally racing events ever held. The watch is widely considered to be one of the most recognisable racing chronographs on the market. The very first Carrera was designed by former TAG Heuer CEO and great-grandson of the brand’s founder, Jack Heuer, with the intention to create a sleek, highly legible and functional racing chronograph. Since its debut in 1963, the Carrera has been beloved by racers who prefer their tool watches with a classic and elegant profile.
The special 60th anniversary edition of the TAG Heuer Carrera revisits the 2447 SN model of the late Sixties. It also happens to be one of the most coveted vintage Carrera models in the collection. Instantly recognisable features are its “panda dial” (so named for its silver backdrop and contrasting black subdials), stripes on the hour markers and hands, as well as the double-dotted 12 o’clock marker. Unlike the original 2447 SN model though, the 60th Anniversary Edition has a larger 39mm watch case, 3mm wider than its predecessor. Fitted with TAG Heuer’s in-house manufactured Heuer 02 automatic chronograph movement, the Carrera Chronograph 60th Anniversary Edition is released in a limited edition of 600 pieces.
Hublot is a Swiss luxury watch brand whose Italian founder, Carlo Crocco, created the first watch in history to feature a natural rubber strap with a gold case held together with 12 titanium screws, inspired by the porthole on a ship or ‘hublot’ in French). Though the watch initially did not garner positive response during its debut, it soon proved to be a commercial success; within the first year of its launch, it raked in sales figures of more than US$2 million (about S$2.7 million).
This year, as Hublot gears up for its big 4-0, it celebrates its beginnings with the Classic Fusion Original that captures the simplicity and audacity of the model that shook up the watch industry in 1980. The rejuvenated model pays homage to Crocco’s original design, by retaining elements such as the rubber strap, black dial, faceted hands and the striking yellow gold case. What’s new are the six screws on the bezel (rather than the twelve in the original), as well as the mechanical movement that orchestrates this latest model (previously it was quartz). To cater to a wider variety of wrist sizes, the Classic Fusion Original is available in 42, 38 and 33mm sizes.
Zenith revived its 1969 DEFY collection several years ago, and it has since released many new models under this series, including the well-received DEFY Skyline that was launched during the LVMH Watch Week. However, what continues to excite many watch lovers, is Zenith’s reissue of emblematic models from the 1970s. Shortly after the event, Zenith announced the release of the DEFY Revival A3691, a reissue of the brand’s original DEFY model with a brightly-coloured dial.
Introduced in 1971, the A3691 was an important milestone that inspired the subsequent and extensive use of bold colours in Zenith’s creations. The 2023 model has a vibrant red gradient-effect dial, 14-sided case, octagonal bezel, ladder-style bracelet, hour markers with horizontal grooves, and date window at the 4.30 position, elements that remain faithful to the original 1971 edition. The main difference is the modern-day Elite 670 movement housed within. The good news is, unlike the A3642, the first model in the DEFY Revival series that was a limited edition, the A3691 is part of Zenith’s permanent collection.