Five watch trends to combat the gloom

Are women watch lovers like the others? Can small diameter rhyme with big effect? ​​Are mangas Swiss? And do gentlemen finally like pink? So many existential questions that are shaking up the watchmaking world. We have taken a look at the dial in five back-to-school trends.

1 Miniwatches are back

We had anticipated it with the reappearance last June of the very small version of the Royal Oak by Audemars Piguet. This fall, make way for the Mini Tank Louis Cartier (€7,600, right). This version with a yellow gold case (28 by 15.2 mm) completes the collection of microwatches from the most trendy watch brand of the moment: Tank Américaine, Baignoire, Panthère, not to mention the reissue of a small Tortue model from 1922. Small jewels powered by quartz movements. “It’s a masterstroke, I find these creations superb, it gives the watch the status of a fashion accessory,” says Édouard Genton, head of many watch boutiques in eastern France. For the occasion, everything has been miniaturized, redesigned and adjusted to the millimeter, design and movement. “Mini watches are really popular at the moment,” analyze Anne de Pontonx and Clara Dufour, from Françoise Paris, a specialist in vintage watches for women. The jewelry watch has long been associated with women of a certain age. But things have changed, young women love them. Especially since we see them more and more often on the wrists of stars, both female and male.” For Pierre Rainero, director of image, style and heritage of the house on rue de la Paix, “there is a certain taste at Cartier for beauty linked to miniaturization. Wearing small objects is above all a source of elegance, and these small watches are not only of interest to women. We receive just as many requests from men.”

2 “Swiss made” is getting loose

Swiss industry is often criticized for being too serious. But with a new generation of bosses born in the 1970s now at the helm of major brands, the tone is changing. Like this incredible Tissot PRX UFO Grendizer, designed in collaboration with Go Nagai, the Japanese creator of Goldorak (Grendizer by its original name), the giant robot from the “Récré A2” years. Here, the watch is even offered in a case in the shape of a flying saucer! (our photo, €895) “I love watches, I love Goldorak. It was a childhood dream, a return to childhood,” confides Sylvain Dolla, president of Tissot. For our generation, it is THE first cartoon, the one that left its mark on us all. However, at the beginning, it was not aimed at the under-28s in our teams. But even if young people don’t know it, manga inspires them. » A surprising inspiration from a Swiss house as established and important as Tissot? “You have to be disruptive, otherwise you get bored! A Tissot will always be a safe choice in the eyes of watch lovers, but this status should not prevent us from having fun. If people buy our products, it is because we take pleasure in making them. Watchmaking is only passion: we sell gifts! One in three Tissot watches is bought to be given as a gift. And who says gift, says emotion.”

3 Pink is making its mark

Pink is no longer the preserve of women. And especially among watch fans. One of the most sought-after timepieces this year is indeed the Black Bay Chrono Pink by Tudor, a 41 mm steel case, a bubble-gum colored domed dial with black sub-dials (opposite, €5,720). The rare examples available have literally been snapped up in stores, and are reselling for more than €10,000 second-hand, via the Chrono24 platform. “We realized that many of Tudor’s partnerships have the color pink in common,” confides the brand with the shield. “From the Giro d’Italia leader’s jersey to the totem color of our ambassador Jay Chou (Chinese “Mandopop” superstar, editor’s note) and the visual identity of David Beckham’s Inter Miami CF. We wanted to celebrate this aesthetic choice that denotes a certain audacity. » Tudor is not the only one to dare to wear a pink dial, to be worn by both men and women. They can be found, generally in steel, at Longines as well as Frédérique Constant, Breitling, Zenith and Omega. “At TAG Heuer, the pink Aquaracer (opposite, €3,850) is the best example of this desire for color to break the codes,” says dealer Édouard Genton.

4 Men, women, whatever

Do watches have a gender? In any case, not for Zenith, which no longer classifies its models according to men and women (our photo, Defy Skyline chronograph, €13,900). “In watchmaking, we have always seen unisex collections that could be exchanged within a couple, like the Tank or the Reverso,” says Sébastien Lepage, co-manager of the Lepage house founded in 1922. “But I am seeing more and more requests from women for men’s watches, such as Omega’s Speedmasters. Not all of them identify with so-called feminine watches in mother-of-pearl and small-diameter diamonds. This is a trend that is gaining strength, also with customers who wear their husband’s watches and come to have them sized in store. I have several couples of customers who choose their husband’s gift together, with the understanding that they will pass it on!” “Added to this is the Taylor Swift effect, who regularly wears the same Rolex as her fiancé and American football star, Travis Kelce, when she goes to support him in the stands.

5 The reassuring classic

While inflation has passed through, fans of fine watchmaking are playing the card of simplicity and sobriety. “Impulse buying is over. This is true for watches as well as for cars,” confirms Édouard Genton. “We are seeing a return to classics, without complications, like the simple Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso in steel or a Breitling Navitimer with a black dial.” Also on trend this fall, the new chic Portofino sports chronographs by IWC Schaffhausen, 39 mm in diameter, with a steel case and silver dial (our photo, €8,500). “It’s the rule of the 2 Cs: crisis equals a return to classics,” summarizes Yohan Bizy, European director of Frédéric Constant, Citizen and Alpina. We are returning on a global scale to round or square models, in steel, with a leather strap.” Safe values ​​and know-how are therefore once again at the forefront. “People want timeless pieces,” assures Édouard Genton. “Quartz or mechanical, that’s not the issue. In this area, Cartier has done a fabulous job, by redesigning its Santos, Panthère, Tank or Baignoire. The red case and the strength of the brand count for a lot! It’s a brand that respects its customers, that doesn’t exaggerate in terms of price. But it’s also a house that delivers: you’re not going to wait two years for your watch!”