Hublot's Big Bang Watch at 20
It has been worn by A-list musicians, sports stars and artists, timed a World Cup soccer final and appeared on the Olympic podium. Love it or loathe it, there is no denying the impact that Hublot's Big Bang has had on watchmaking and popular culture since its introduction 20 years ago.
Released in 2005, the original Big Bang design was big and brash. It had an oversize 44-millimeter case; a chronograph, or stopwatch, function; and a bezel held in place with six exposed screws. Also prominent was its experimental material mix of steel or red gold, titanium, ceramic, carbon fiber, Kevlar and rubber. That year, it won the design prize at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève, the watch industry's annual awards event.
It also set Hublot, founded in 1980 and generally considered an insider sort of brand up to that point, on the way to becoming something of a household name.
'The Big Bang was a miracle,' said Jean-Claude Biver, the industry veteran who was the company's chief executive at the time. 'When we started in 2004, nobody knew Hublot. Ten, 15 years later, everybody knew the name. It made Hublot.'
The watch's name helped. 'I came up with the name because I was convinced this type of watch, with its materials, dimensions, colors and modular construction would create a revolution in the watchmaking tradition,' said Mr. Biver, 75.
The Big Bang was expensive, too. 'The first steel and rubber models were 8,900 Swiss francs,' he said. 'It was not cheap at all. It was courageous to come out at that price.'
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