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Inside Hegid’s Modular Approach, Part II

By Steve Lundin

Hegid watches are built around the concept of interchangeability. Buyers receive a capsule, the core of the watch itself, and can customize with different bezels and bands, changing the basic look of the watch while retaining the fundamental style.

In this second part of our interview with Hegid founders Henrick Gauche, Grégory Gauche and Emeric Delalandre, we learn more about the France-based brand’s design sense, it’s technical specifications and its plans for distribution in North America.

 

How does Hegid reflect a French design sensibility?

Hegid claims a French touch in high-end watchmaking. First, Hegid EVOL invention can be related to the freedom approach of fashion by enabling enthusiasts to complete their watch collection more frequently, for less investment.

Watchmaking is also often associated with social status. Hegid’s customers express their independence through their watch creations. Hegid is proudly made in France, a singularity that stands out in watchmaking. France, which is the country of luxury, is unfortunately underrated in horology. Only the connoisseurs know that, more than being the country of freedom and of fashion (both being Hegid’s values), France is the home of some of the best artisans working for the most prestigious and unique brands of the industry.

It is with this savoir-faire, which recently joined the UNESCO cultural patrimony, that Hegid is producing its timepieces. Like every luxury creative brand, Hegid has an art director who manages all the brand’s public communications and prepares the future collaborations. Jerôme Coste was once the founder of the haute couture helmet brand Ruby, which allowed him to become a figure of the Parisian creative scene. He then collaborated with major designers in the international fashion industry.

Hegid believes that creativity is essential to make a watch brand appealing in the long-term and that is why his role is key in the company’s decision-making process, which is not traditional in horology. “Make your evolution” is Hegid’s tagline. At a time when everything is changing, the Maison invites you to “Make your Evolution”. Make your Evolution, whether in your imagination or on the wrist.

Tell us about the movements.

On Hegid’s capsules, there are movements that we ask Sellita to specially produce for us. They are made in La Chaux-de-Fonds, at the French-Swiss border. They are SW200-H, based on their famous Top Grade model (the high-end finish of this line) with additional specifications that makes our movements different from the others. We decided to select only the very finest individual components to create the SW200-H for Hegid timepieces.

Thus, the creation of the ultimate version of this caliber. Every brand using Sellita movements has its secret sauce. Hegid’s is to make them hard to unsettle and stronger to be more durable. Our movement can change in the future when we will bring more features but will always have the same durability-reparably dual approach.

In terms of specifications, our movements are delivered to our customers with a special and precise regulation.

All the setting operations are made by a renowned French expert watchmaking atelier in Morteau, in the Doubs area of France. Even if a lot of people tend to say that Sellita can be less than ideal, we want to claim that Sellita’s movement are globally awesome, very qualitative and reliable if you choose the high finishes and new movements. This needs to be highlighted.

Sellita has existed for years, and some of the most prestigious brands use their base-movement in their new watches.

Last but not least, Hegid’s promise being the durability for customers, we had to choose a movement that was both reliable and easy to be serviced or repaired by most qualified watchmakers all around the world.

Sellita being independent, they can deliver parts to every registered watchmaker on demand. This makes a big difference at a time when, for most brands, you must go to their after-sale service, and then they send the watches to the global after-sales service center, and you sometimes wait several months for your watch.

This helped us to choose Sellita instead of ETA. ETA, as a part of the Swatch Group, with the ComCo affair, will be obliged to stop the delivery of parts of their movements to companies outside of their group at some point, which means that our watches wouldn’t be repairable if Hegid doesn’t joint the Swatch group. We didn’t want this. The SW200-H movement made in collaboration with Sellita is therefore the best choice for our customers in terms of quality and durability.

Except the movement, the dial and the hands of the watches (which come from Switzerland) the rest of a Hegid timepiece (85%) is mostly made in France by cutting-edge artisans. From Paris to Morteau, the creativity and the rigor of artists, designers, manufacturers, and even French leather craftsmen (Sibra) proudly enable the manufacture of Hegid watches.

All of the brand’s collaborators are at the forefront of their respective arts, by operating in a respectful and sustainable way in their environment. The geographic proximity of production and regular monitoring of everyone’s work, allows Hegid to ensure the excellence of its timepieces. When it comes to high-end objects made to last for decades, there can be no concession in their manufacture.

What’s in the works for line expansion and will there be any changes forthcoming?

The most diverse inspirations follow one another in the brand’s creations, which are released at the rhythm of the fashion seasons. Hegid seeks to regularly nurture the creative minds of its current and future customers. By offering the possibility of transforming its watch to always be in tune with the present moment, Hegid invites everyone to evolve more regularly. There will be new cases and new straps, some designed by Hegid, others in collaboration with artisans and brands.

Hegid is also developing accessories, which complete the brand universe of its wristwatches. In the pipeline, the current 34mm capsule will soon be the medium size of Hegid watches and will be complemented by another capsule that will be smaller and thinner small size. Later, a larger collection designed to allow more complications for the capsule should also arrive. All these lines will, of course, be equipped with the EVOL system and will continue to offer the possibility to evolve over time.

How are you marketing these products?

Hegid is a global brand for the creative souls, inspired by the Artisans of Change (the new master craftsmen reinterpreting the traditional savoir-faire and the entrepreneurs exploring new virtuous models).

While most brands target a specific audience (diving, aviation, business, fashion enthusiasts, etc.), Hegid believes that anyone can mix and match elements from different influences in their very own way to create a unique watch for any occasion. The brand universe attracts individuals that embrace the future, that like to be unique, and who don’t need to be reassured by a logo or a recognizable model.

What are the plans regarding awareness and a dealer network in the United States?

Hegid already has hundreds of customers with a satisfactory rate of 94%, and the concept of recurring purchases allowed by the EVOL invention is being proved by the 1.8 cases and 2.4 straps purchased per year per capsule owner figures. As a result, some of the brand’s collections are already sold out.

Hegid convinced the most prestigious retailers of its local market and is distributed by leading stores like Printemps Haussmann or La Samaritaine (DFS) in Paris. The brand recently arrived in the United States, starting with Manfredi in Connecticut, and will continue to expand with cutting-edge watchmaking boutiques and department stores throughout the Americas in the coming months.

The French, Swiss and American press considers Hegid as one of the most promising brands of the future. The Hegid team is experiencing growth to facilitate the coming exciting projects and products.

Liken this watch to others in the space – why is it unique?

Hegid stands for a creative, durable and evolutionary approach of horology by offering watches with fine automatic movements that will last for decades. The designs can be changed in seconds with only two fingers. With the EVOL system, consumers don’t need to change of watch anymore, they just need a new case or strap to have a new style on their wrists. Additionally, the entire team behind Hegid is dedicated and has the long-term vision to implement a new standard in high-end watchmaking: the modular watch.

If this watch had a brand ambassador who would that person be?

Usually, a brand ambassador reflects the target consumer of the brand. Hegid is not exclusive in its customer approach, so it is a hard question for which we do not have the answer.

The early adopters of the Maison’s products are the young generation (twenty to fifty years old) of luxury consumers, looking for more creative styles and an intelligent acquisition of mechanical watches. They love the traditional idea of the timepiece made to last for a lifetime and they appreciate the ability to change it whenever they desire. The fact that they are the architect of their individual daily styles make them consider Hegid at their timepiece of choice.

As mentioned before, Hegid is inspired by the Artisans of Change (the new master craftsmen reinterpreting the traditional savoir-faire and the entrepreneurs exploring new virtuous models) and will first collaborate with some of them, which will indirectly be the ambassadors of Hegid.

Again, who would the ultimate brand ambassador be?

Leonardo Di Vinci or Steve Jobs.

 

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The Watches

Hublot Teams Again With Takashi Murakami

Hublot ends the year with a colorful and glittery Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow, the watchmaker’s second watch designed in collaboration with Japanese artist Takashi Murakami.

The Hublot Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow watch is available in a limited edition of 100 numbered pieces.

While the first watch of the collaboration was a now sold-out all-black Classic Fusion watch, this new model returns to the artist’s thematic smiling flower, colorizes it and then frames it with a 45mm clear sapphire case.

The artist’s emblematic smiling flower, now brightly colored, once again grins at the center of the dial of the new watch, where its rests just above the sapphire crystal. Around it Hublot places twelve gem-set flower petals, all of which rotate around the smiley face. The effect is mesmerizing (check out this excellent video).

To create the dial’s polychromatic effect, Hublot artisans set 487 stones from a rainbow of sources: rubies, pink sapphires, amethysts, blue sapphires, tsavorites, yellow and orange sapphires. Hublot engineers developed a special ball-bearing system that enables the petals’ rotation.

Inside, Hublot fits its superior HUB1214 automatic caliber, here without the chronograph function. This movement has a power reserve of 72 hours.

Price: $106,000

Takashi Murakami wearing the Hublot Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow.

 

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The Watches

Chronoswiss Open Gear ReSec Goes Green

Chronoswiss deftly adds a guilloché spiraling leaf pattern to one of its best sellers, creating the eye-catching Open Gear ReSec Jungle.

The new Chronoswiss Open Gear ReSec Jungle.

The 44mm watch, with the familiar Chronoswiss multi-layer regulator dial, knurled bezel and onion crown, features a separate hour hand and a prominent central minute hand. Named for its premier function (ReSec stands for Retrograde Seconds), the watch’s jumping seconds hand along the lower half of the dial operates in a half-circle, leaping from the thirty seconds position back to start its arc to complete counting each minute.

For this new limited edition of fifty pieces, Chronoswiss coats handcrafted wavy guilloche with a green chemical vapor deposition. The combination creates a color-changing effect that appears much deeper than it is.

“The wavy, moiré pattern on this timepiece is emotionally inspired by what you would see in that situation, its vivid colors changing seamlessly from racing green to silver blue and shadowy black,” says Chronoswiss owner and director Oliver Ebstein.

He explains that Chronoswiss artisans create the watch’s distinctive multi-layer effect by stacking the dial within black galvanized bridges, subdials and skeletonized gear train wheels ­– all framed by an internal (luminescent) marker track. 

“With many patterns you can create 4–5 waves by simply changing the diameter with a switch, explains Chronoswiss designer Maik Panziera. “But with the palm leaf-inspired moiré pattern it’s a different story.”

He adds that the brass wheels that guide the movement of the machine must be changed after each wave is cut.

“But it is worth it – in the end you have such a great pattern that you cannot compare with CNC-made products. To produce guilloché by hand really excites me, because it gives every watch an individual soul,” he adds.

Chronoswiss powers its 44mm Open Gear ReSec Jungle with the automatic Chronoswiss Caliber C. 301. Price: $9,700

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The Watches

Patek Philippe Pumps Up Chime Volume

Patek Philippe underscores its reputation as the source for the finest minute repeaters with a new model, the Ref. 5750 Advanced Research Minute Repeater, an extra-loud chiming wristwatch that utilizes a new sound amplification system.

Patek Philippe will make fifteen 40mm platinum-cased Ref. 5750 Advanced Research Minute Repeater watches.

The Geneva watchmaker says its new watch delivers dulcet time-telling tones that can be heard up to 180 feet away from the wearer’s wrist.

Patek Philippe’s new system, dubbed ‘Fortissimo ff,” consists of a sound lever, or metallic ‘blade,’ that oscillates a sapphire crystal wafer located on the back of the watch. Patek Philippe’s Advanced Research arm has spent several years developing the Fortissimo ff and will place it into fifteen 40mm platinum-cased Ref. 5750 Advanced Research Minute Repeater watches.

The watchmaker says its new system, for which Patek Philippe registered three patents, essentially builds a novel pathway for the sound to reach the wearer’s ears. The hammers on the new model, built directly from the design of Patek Philippe’s famed caliber R 27 PS (from 1989), strike in a traditional manner on a titanium ring. Then the new ‘Fortissimo ff’ module takes over to amplify the tones.

The new design transmits the gong oscillations to the sapphire wafer, which, unlike a traditional repeater, is not connected to the case and vibrates on its own. This effectively amplifies the sound, sending it out through four openings at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock in the titanium ring. A dust filter protects the movement.

As noted, the resulting chimes can be heard up to 180 feet away from the watch, according to Patek Philippe. Traditional repeaters become difficult to hear approximately when listening thirty feet from the watch.

Platinum case and components

Since the sound waves created using the new ‘Fortissimo ff’ technology never touch the watch’s case, the case metal for the watch does not affect the sound.

However, Patek Philippe did make several metal changes to the movement design when compared to the slide-activated Ref. 5178 minute repeater, which served as the inspiration for the new Ref. 5750.

A mini-rotor in platinum replaces the original model found on the Cal. R27. With its greater material density, the platinum version delivers the same winding power but with a thinner design.

The watchmaker replaced the steel hammers found on the Ref. 5178 minute repeater with platinum hammers, which produce a softer strike. Furthermore, a mini-rotor in platinum replaces the original model’s gold rotor. With its greater material density, the platinum version delivers the same winding power but with a thinner design.

Contemporary dial

Patek Philippe tops its new watch with an openworked dial of contemporary design that differs considerably from the watchmaker’s generally classical minute repeater dials.

The watchmaker says spoked wheels of 1960s automobiles inspired the watch’s skeletonized dial. The primary dial is inset with a seconds subdial with a similar pattern. And in another break from Patek Philippe tradition, the seconds dial indicates seconds using a rotating disc rather than a traditional hand.

The watch is set with a shiny orange alligator strap with black seams and a platinum fold-over clasp. Patek Philippe will make fifteen platinum-cased Ref. 5750 “Advanced Research” minute repeaters. Price upon request.

For additional technical details and several excellent videos about the Patek Philippe Ref. 5750 Advanced Research Minute Repeater, click here.

 

Technical Chronology

Below we list the technical achievements of Patek Philippe Advanced Research division since its first results in 2005.

2005: Silinvar, a novel, patented material based on monocrystalline silicon. It was developed in collaboration with Rolex, the Swatch Group, and CSEM in Neuchâtel, and is suitable for applications in watchmaking. Also in 2005: First escape wheel in Silinvar. This new part improves dependability because it requires no lubricants. It also reduces the mass to be moved (better efficiency), is corrosion-resistant, and remains perfectly concentric.

2006: Spiromax balance spring in Silinvar, which optimized rate accuracy by improved isochronism thanks to concentric breathing (expansion and contraction) of the balance spring.

2008: Pulsomax escapement in Silinvar, which optimized geometry of escape wheel and lever and increased energy efficiency by 15%.

2011: Oscillomax ensemble (Pulsomax escapement with GyromaxSi balance and Spiromax balance spring)
.

2017: Optimized Spiromax balance spring. Also, correctors with compliant mechanism in steel. This utilizes the elasticity of materials in microstructures and replaces articulations with pivots and leaf springs. This technical development offers numerous advantages: simplified assembly (12 parts as opposed to 37 previously), flatter design, no mechanical play, no friction, no arbor wear, which results in totally lubricant-free functionality and excellent energy efficiency.

Source: Patek Philippe

 

 

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The Watches

Frederique Constant Honors its First Heart Beat

Frederique Constant pays tribute to the Heart Beat model the Geneva-based watchmaker launched twenty-two years ago by introducing a special edition watch that reinterprets that initial design.

The new Frederique Constant Highlife Heart Beat Heritage.

The new Highlife Heart Beat Heritage, issued as a limited edition of 222 pieces, generally echoes the appearance of watches in the original 1999 collection. The new model measures 41mm in diameter and retains the Heart Beat opening at the top of the dial. This aperture revealed the inner workings of the ETA-based FC-310 automatic movement and the rotation of its ‘heart beat’ balance wheel.

You might recall that when Frederique Constant first debuted the open balance wheel, the young brand neglected to protect what was at the time a novel design. As it was never patented, numerous watch brands have copied the concept of the Heart Beat aperture.

The new blue Arabic numerals are inspired by the original oversized markers, as are the blue hour and minute hands. Underneath these vintage elements Frederique Constant here adds an engraved globe, replacing the crests of the original model.

Finally, Frederique Constant has added a new interchangeability to the integrated ostrich strap it continues to attach to the watch. A quick release system allows the wearer to change the look of according to the day or mood.

Price: $2,495.

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