Latest news with #ClassiqueSouscription
Stuff.tv
5 days ago
- Business
- Stuff.tv
Omega boss teases new Swatch collab, but who's getting the MoonSwatch treatment next?
When Swatch and Omega dropped the MoonSwatch in 2022, chaos ensued. Queues snaked around city blocks. Watches sold out instantly. People flipped them online for double, sometimes triple, the retail price. And all for a $270 / £240 plastic watch inspired by the legendary Omega Speedmaster (one of the best watches around). It was, by any metric, a phenomenon – the kind of marketing moment brands dream of. Not only did it inject a bolt of fun into the luxury watch scene, but it also pulled a younger crowd into horology who might've otherwise bought a smartwatch. Two years on, and while the MoonSwatch is still popular, the hype has died down. But a new collab is coming… At an event in Biel to celebrate Omega's 60-year partnership with NASA, CEO Raynald Aeschlimann dropped a tantalising hint. During a roundtable discussion with journalists, he was asked whether any new Swatch collaborations were on the cards. 'Even today, I saw something different. A collab. Not with Omega, by the way,' he replied, according to Esquire's About Time newsletter. Cue speculation. If it's not Omega, then who is next up for a plastic makeover? Could we be on the cusp of another MoonSwatch moment? Here are a few brands that could be lining up for a shot: Breguet If we're talking anniversaries, Breguet is top of the list. The grand old brand turns 250 in 2025 and that's not just a 'cake in the office' birthday. It's also just had a leadership shake-up. Gregory Kissling, the former head of product at Omega, is now running the show. That's a serious signal that something new is coming. The Classique Souscription was recently relaunched, and a stripped-back Swatch version would bring a slice of horological heritage to people with regular salaries. Imagine getting that gorgeous single-hand design on your wrist for under $300 / £300. Maybe even a Type XX chronograph in bright colours? Sign us up. The only hitch: Breguet is very premium. Possibly too premium. It's Swatch Group's crown jewel, and they might not want to risk diluting that prestige with a plastic twin. But hey, if they do… I'll be camping outside to buy one. Blancpain Technically possible, but unlikely. Swatch already did a collab here – the Scuba Fifty Fathoms series launched in 2023 to celebrate the dive watch's 70th anniversary. It was fun, bright, and unexpectedly educational, thanks to their ocean-themed packaging and bioceramic cases. Blancpain's 290th birthday is this year, but going in for a second collab so soon feels like a stretch. Then again, we didn't expect the first one either. Still, we'll put this in the 'probably not, but never say never' pile. Glashütte Original This could be an inspired pick. Technically, the brand was formally founded in 1990, post-reunification, but its roots in German watchmaking stretch back much further. Plus, it flies under the radar compared to its Swiss siblings, and could use a bit of spotlight. A Swatch version of the Seventies Chronograph Panorama Date? That would be glorious – retro curves, bold colours, and a large date window. Or what about a simplified PanoMaticLunar? That might be a bit too fiddly to recreate with Swatch tech, but we'd love to see them try. A SeaQ diver makes more sense practically – solid, simple, and not a million miles from the Swatch Scubaqua recently launched. But it may feel a little too close to the Blancpain collab. Still, if Swatch wants to champion a lesser-known in-house gem, Glashütte Original is an excellent shout. Hamilton Now we're talking fun. Hamilton already leans into nostalgia and pop culture more than most of its Swatch Group peers, featuring in Interstellar, Oppenheimer, and Death Stranding 2 (to name a few). Swatch could riff off that with a collection of vibrant, plastic Khaki Fields. Imagine military-style dials in ice-cream colours. It would be absolutely perfect for summer. One issue: Hamilton just released its own budget-friendly Khaki Field Quartz line last year. A Swatch tie-in might undercut that or confuse the offering. But if they can find a creative way to separate the two, this feels like an easy win. MB&F Here's where things get truly wild. MB&F, the mad scientists of modern watchmaking, turn 20 this year. And while they're not part of the Swatch Group, we do know that Maximilian Büsser isn't afraid to think outside the box. They've already proven with that they can take that fantastical DNA and make it (relatively) affordable. A Swatch x MB&F collab would be bonkers – not just another watch with cool colours, but something totally unexpected. Unlikely? Sure. But if Swatch wants to flex its creative muscles, this would be the one to watch. Vacheron Constantin And now we're truly in fantasy territory. But hey, if we're dreaming, let's do it properly. Vacheron is celebrating its 150th anniversary. It's already launched a lot of stunning celebration models, including the steel 222 (which has become a bit of a cult icon lately, especially after last year's solid gold reissue). A fun, affordable Swatch version would be a dream come true. The problem? Vacheron is under Richemont, not the Swatch Group. So unless someone's planning an industry-shaking handshake, this one's staying in my dreams. Whatever's coming next, we're all watching, waiting, and wondering. If Swatch can have another MoonSwatch moment – whether with Breguet, Hamilton, MB&F, or someone completely unexpected – it'll be great for the watch world. Let us know which brand you think is most likely! Liked this? TAG Heuer launches a trio of Monaco watches for the Monaco GP, and I'm having trouble choosing a favourite
Khaleej Times
23-05-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Breguet marks 250th year with the single hand Classique Souscription 2025
Two-and-a-half centuries ago, Frenchman Abraham-Louis Breguet, considered one of the greatest watchmakers of all time, etched his name into the annals of horology with a series of technical triumphs that forever altered timekeeping. The tourbillon, the gong spring, the pare-chute shock protector, even the world's first wristwatch — Breguet's inventions were as poetic as they were revolutionary. More than just an inventor, Breguet was an artist and philosopher of time, wielding restraint and elegance in an era known for baroque excess. As Breguet's eponymous house readies itself for its 250th anniversary, it pays homage not with pomp or mechanical fireworks, but with a watch so pure, so quietly audacious, it could only have been conceived by the master himself. Enter the Classique Souscription 2025, a single-hand wristwatch that harks back to the original Souscription timepieces of the late 18th century. It is both a resurrection and a revelation. The original Souscription watch was born of necessity and genius. Returning to post-Revolution Paris in 1795, Breguet needed a way to rebuild. He conceived a subscription model: pay a quarter of the price upfront, and a simplified, robust timepiece would be made to order. Not only was it an early example of direct-to-consumer marketing, but it was also the democratisation of haute horlogerie. Large in diameter, legible in enamel, and novel in having a single hand, these watches became a touchstone for the collectors and the curious. The 2025 reinterpretation channels this legacy with finesse. The grand feu enamel dial is an ode to purity — crisp, radiant, and graced by a solitary, flame-blue Breguet hand, inarguably one of the most recognisable of watch hands. The Arabic numerals, inclined ever so slightly, whisper of another era, while the chemin de fer chapter ring brings structure to the minimalism. In this unconventional layout, time is measured not with to-the-second precision, but with elegant approximation: the hand sweeps across the dial in 12 hours, with five-minute intervals marked between the hours. Reading the time becomes an act of intuition rather than obsession, a quiet ritual for those who embrace time as a fluid presence, not a constraint. This is not a watch for the hyper-scheduled. It is for those who move to a slower rhythm, who understand that sometimes, not knowing the exact minute is a luxury unto itself. It is for the poets and the philosophers, the aesthetes and the artisans — for those who savour time, not chase it. The 40mm case is fashioned from a proprietary 18K 'Breguet gold', a warm, blush alloy that melds gold, silver, copper, and palladium — a modern interpretation of 18th-century metallurgy. Gone is the familiar fluting; in its place, there are a satin-brushed middle and gracefully curved lugs, lending the watch an intimacy with the wrist that's rare for something this steeped in tradition. And then there are the secrets on the dial — the almost invisible 'Souscription' and serial number engraved in enamel using a diamond-point pantograph, a nod to the brand's historic war against counterfeiting. As Breguet CEO Gregory Kissling aptly puts it, this watch bridges the history the brand wants to share with the future it desires to shape. And for Breguet, whose 'pomme' hands have become icons in the watch world, it is a statement that one hand is — and always has been — enough.
