Audemars Piguet
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Royal Oak Jumbo watch, 39mm, extra-thin automatic movement, yellow gold case and bracelet, Audemars Piguet.
Information on Audemarspiguet.com Audemars Piguet / Press photo
It was the most anticipated launch of the year.
And on the planning side, Audemars Piguet made no mistake choosing a rare moment of relative calm (between LVMH Watch Week and the pre-announcements of the Watches & Wonders show) to unfold the first part of the celebrations of its icon, the Royal Oak.
This edition of the 50 years, many have dreamed, imagined, desired.
So how do you satisfy an informed public that is as impatient as it is demanding?
By returning to the very essence of the charm of this legendary watch designed by Gérald Genta.
While all bear an oscillating weight engraved in the colors of the event on their back, the Royal Oak premier crus are then available in a multitude of color variations, complications or delicate skeleton work.
But the centerpiece certainly remains this extra-thin all-yellow gold Jumbo.
A noticeable return to this shade of gold, which has recently been neglected in favor of pink gold, which delicately frames a magnetic fumé dial that you never tire of admiring.
Nice nod to the passage to the reputation that the Royal Oak carved out when it was launched in 1972, a steel watch sold at the price of gold.
Unless it's now the other way around...
Swatch x Omega
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SpeedMaster Moonwatch Mission to Saturn watch, 42mm, quartz movement, in bioceramic, Swatch, €250.
Available on Swatch.com Swatch / Photo press
Definitely the highlight of last year.
Cleverly kept under the seal of secrecy before being revealed with great fanfare at the beginning of March, the first collaboration between the two sister manufactures, Swatch and Omega caused a stir.
For the endless queues that we have been able to see for months all over the world, of course, but also for this unique product.
If we no longer present the iconic curves of Omega's flagship watch, the Speedmaster Moonwatch, this neo timepiece embarks with it towards success the new material in sight unveiled a year ago by Swatch, bioceramics.
Enough to propel Swatch to another dimension, to conquer the stars that have marked the success story of Omega since the 1960s.
All at the low prices of which Swatch has the secret,
with a quartz movement at 250 euros which will only be available in a selection of the brand's boutiques.
A masterstroke that made the year for Nick Hayek, CEO of Swatch Group.
rolex
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GMT-Master II watch, 40mm, automatic movement, in steel, Cerachrom bezel disc in two-tone green and black ceramic, Rolex, €10,400.
Information on Rolex.com
Rolex / Photo press
Always gazing up at the sky, the Swiss manufacturer is doubling down on the launch launched with its Air-King with another watch so beloved by airline pilots since its launch in 1955, the GMT Master-II.
A dual time zone, available at the time in 36mm, which is now displayed in 40mm.
But the devil is in the details.
If we already knew the subtle play of two-tone in pink gold, chocolate and black, we now discover a Cerachrom bezel in green and black ceramic.
The same nuance that dressed the Submariner version 2.0 in 2020.
On the dial side, the green hand is making a comeback, but it's a completely different, often forgotten element that is attracting all eyes this season: the crown.
Offset to the left for the very first time in its history, it immediately won over all left-handers looking for
Louis Vuitton
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Tambour Twenty watch, 41.5mm, manufacture automatic movement, in polished stainless steel and leather strap, Louis Vuitton, price on request.
Limited to 200 pieces.
Information on Louisvuitton.com
Louis Vuitton / Photo press
New team and ambassador… To celebrate its 20 years of success, the Tambour star of the trunk-maker house is getting a boost and giving a foretaste of what's to come.
A short time in watchmaking history, and a long one at the same time for this timepiece which underwent many technical and stylistic evolutions until it won two highly coveted GPHG Awards (nicknamed the Oscars of watchmaking).
The opportunity for Jean Arnault, marketing and development director of Louis Vuitton watchmaking, to put the Tambour back in its historical context, with a Twenty version closer to the original model, and to outline a bridge to the future.
With in particular a first campaign, more mature and rooted in classic watchmaking codes, which is embodied by actor Bradley Cooper.
cartier
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Cheich de Cartier watch, attributed to the pilot Gaston Rahier and sold at Sotheby's Paris on September 30th.
Estimate: €200,000-400,000.
Information on Sothebys.com Sotheby's / Photo press
We knew the power of attraction of old Cartier watches at auction, but this model, which will be presented under the hammer of Sotheby's Paris on September 30, has unleashed passions.
The cause ?
Its rarity and uniqueness, both in form and substance.
Because the Cheich watch is above all the story of a meeting in the 80s between Alain-Dominique Perrin and Thierry Sabine, the creator of the mythical Paris-Dakar rally in 1979. Together, they think of atypical curves and immediately recognizable features of this rare timepiece, which could only be won by the winning drivers of the “Défi Cartier”, those who have therefore won the rally twice in the same category.
Only two drivers made it there before the award was canceled in 1986, Hubert Auriol and Gaston Rahier.
Etc'
is the trophy of the latter, who died in 2005, which therefore returns to auction this season, bringing to light at the same time this lesser-known chapter of the Cartier watchmaking saga.
All won for more than a million euros by one of the greatest watch collectors, the founder of Loupe This.
Richard Mille
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RM 88 Tourbillon Automatic Smiley watch, 48mm, ATZ white ceramic and red gold case, Richard Mille.
Limited to 50 copies, information on Richardmille.com Richard Mille / Photo presse
This is called an unexpected drop.
While the parades for Paris Fashion Week saturate the airwaves of social networks, it is another fifty-year-old symbol that has gained virality this September 29.
In the line of sight, the legendary Smiley which is associated with a well-built watch manufacturer that we had not seen coming to this field this season, Richard Mille.
With this surprising RM 88, the unique watchmaker is reviving the pop and fun charm of the candy watches that hit the headlines at the 2019 SIHH watch show. yellow gold and flamingo or cactus covered with neon PVD.
All reduced to less than one gram of gold to combine these microsculptures by engraver Olivier Kuhn with
obsession with lightness that has always driven Richard Mille.
If the feat certainly lies in the realization of these girl-size elements, the back of the decor is no less remarkable since the house had to use two plates to be able to fix and protect them from movement and shocks.
Beneath the rainbow in colored varnish (which alone will have required 25 hours of work) nestles a new in-house automatic skeletonized tourbillon caliber which will have seen the light of day after three years of hard work.
And in view of the shortages of watches regularly displayed by Richard Mille, it's a safe bet that these 50 new copies offered at more than one million euros each have already found buyers.
If the feat certainly lies in the realization of these girl-size elements, the back of the decor is no less remarkable since the house had to use two plates to be able to fix and protect them from movement and shocks.
Beneath the rainbow in colored varnish (which alone will have required 25 hours of work) nestles a new in-house automatic skeletonized tourbillon caliber which will have seen the light of day after three years of hard work.
And in view of the shortages of watches regularly displayed by Richard Mille, it's a safe bet that these 50 new copies offered at more than one million euros each have already found buyers.
If the feat certainly lies in the realization of these girl-size elements, the back of the decor is no less remarkable since the house had to use two plates to be able to fix and protect them from movement and shocks.
Beneath the rainbow in colored varnish (which alone will have required 25 hours of work) nestles a new in-house automatic skeletonized tourbillon caliber which will have seen the light of day after three years of hard work.
And in view of the shortages of watches regularly displayed by Richard Mille, it's a safe bet that these 50 new copies offered at more than one million euros each have already found buyers.
is no less remarkable since the house had to use two plates to be able to fix and protect them from movement and shocks.
Beneath the rainbow in colored varnish (which alone will have required 25 hours of work) nestles a new in-house automatic skeletonized tourbillon caliber which will have seen the light of day after three years of hard work.
And in view of the shortages of watches regularly displayed by Richard Mille, it's a safe bet that these 50 new copies offered at more than one million euros each have already found buyers.
is no less remarkable since the house had to use two plates to be able to fix and protect them from movement and shocks.
Beneath the rainbow in colored varnish (which alone will have required 25 hours of work) nestles a new in-house automatic skeletonized tourbillon caliber which will have seen the light of day after three years of hard work.
And in view of the shortages of watches regularly displayed by Richard Mille, it's a safe bet that these 50 new copies offered at more than one million euros each have already found buyers.
Tag Heuer
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Monaco Gulf Edition watch, 39mm, automatic chronograph movement, steel, leather strap, Tag Heuer, €6,700.
Available on Tagheuer.com Tag Heuer / Photo press
It was last May, when the streets of the Principality vibrated to the sound of legendary cars burning the asphalt, that Tag Heuer unveiled the new version of its square Monaco icon, powered by Steve McQueen in the film
Le Mans
in 1971, co-created here with the Gulf brand.
While this 2022 variation, equipped with the Heuer 02 caliber, no longer sports the crown on the left like the original or the 2021 version, it nevertheless takes an interesting look into the past by returning to its yesteryear logo at 12 o'clock.
There is also the Gulf logo which already adorned Steve McQueen's pilot's suit at the time, as well as the oil brand's signature colors, between orange and sunny blue.
Unlike the old perfect accords that had been presented between Tag Heuer and Gulf, the vertical bands have become more refined, the background is warmer and the same colors also adorn one of the chronograph counters.
A relic of the past, nicely brought up to date, which won the iconic watch prize at the GPHG 2022.
Zenith
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Defy Skyline watch, 41mm, El Primero automatic movement, steel case and bracelet, Zenith, €8,300.
Available on Zenith-watches.com Zenith / Photo press
If any reboot involves a wise look at the house's heritage, Julien Tornare has taken the time to review the historical icons to better bring them up to date.
First clue in January 2021 with the launch of the legendary neo Chronomaster Sport.
But we had to wait until LVMH Watch Week 2022 to admire its full depth.
The homage to the 1969 El Primero movement is still there, but the house has added the safe-like 12-sided bezel that was launched the same year.
A visual signature that now also adorns the new Defy watch, star of the brand, called the Skyline.
Here too, the sporty chic look is graphic and daring, plus accessibility since this model is more around 8000 euros,
where its competitors pass rather widely the bar of 10,000 euros.
Everything is driven by an ultra-precise El Primero movement, which was usually found only on the brand's chronographs.
Girard-Perregaux
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Cap 2.0 watch, quartz movement, ceramic and grade 5 titanium case, Girard-Perregaux, €4,700.
Limited to 820 pieces, information on Girard-perregaux.com Girard-Perregaux / Press photo
When we talk about the watchmaking style of the
seventies
, it is more often images of panda chronos or cappuccino dials, circled in yellow gold, that come to mind.
This was without counting on another highlight of the decade, the frenzy around digital displays, as in 1976, when Girard-Perregaux launched its own timepiece, the Cap, into orbit.
The arrival of the neo Cap offered in October 2021 by Girard-Perregaux and the Bamford collective for the Only Watch auction already sounded like a clue, especially when enthusiasts realized that this unique piece featured a brand new movement.
Hence the immediate enthusiasm when the manufacture unveiled 820 new pieces of this resolutely alternative tempo.