Play ball

Play ball Tissot is Official Timekeeper and partner of many global sports events. Since 2015, the Swiss watch Brand has been the Official Timekeeper and Official Watch of the NBA. The biggest partnership deal in the brand’s 166-year history is also a fantastic asset for the watchmaker in the U.S. market.

Sport is second nature to Tissot, as well as a driving force for a brand that has never been content to simply display its logo on a jersey. What matters is to be part of the game by doing what it does best: timekeeping. “As well as a vector for communication, reaching a large audience through an exciting medium, timekeeping is a way to stay on top in terms of technology,” promises the brand. “As sports evolve, so do we.” This was the mindset behind the deal signed in 2015 between Tissot and the National Basket ball Association (NBA). At the time, the brand described the new partnership as the biggest in its entire 166 years of history, and for good reason. NBA games are programmed in 215 countries in 50 languages. Its merchandise is sold in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries worldwide. Naturally, such a major player on the international sports scene needed a timekeeper (its first) that was up to the job, and Tissot left no-one in any doubt that it was. With the ink barely dry on the agreement that made the brand Official Timekeeper and Official Watch of the NBA, Tissot was already rolling out an all-new timing system across the 29 NBA arenas, including a state-of-the-art shot clock.

THE PLUS SIGN IN THE SWISS FLAG WITHIN THE TISSOT LOGO SYMBOLISES THE SWISS QUALITY AND RELIABILITY TISSOT HAS SHOWN SINCE 1853. THE WATCHES, SOLD ALL OVER THE WORLD, ENABLE TISSOT TO BE THE LEADER IN THE TRADITIONAL SWISS WATCH INDUSTRY, EXPORTING MORE THAN 4 MILLION WATCHES EVERY YEAR. TISSOT STANDS BY ITS SIGNATURE, INNOVATORS BY TRADITION. THE HIGH QUALITY OF THE BRAND WITH EVERY COMPONENT IS RECOGNISED WORLDWIDE.

A concept store in NYC Tissot has ties with some of the sport’s biggest names. Tony Parker, who recently announced his retirement from the game, is a Tissot ambassador for many years. The brand was one of the first to salute the point guard’s exceptional career, which includes four NBA championships with the San Antonio Spurs and six selections for the NBA All-Star Games. Last year, two new members joined Tissot’s family of athletes. They are Klay Thomson, already a three-time NBA champion and Olympic gold-medal winner, and 2018-19 NBA All-Rookie First Team member Trae Young. This level of commitment had to include a range of dedicated products, namely the Chrono XL NBA collection of watches in the colors of the nine NBA teams that have partnerships with the brand. A collector’s edition was recently added to the lineup. It features a strap made from the same leather as the official NBA Spalding basketballs.

Tissot has also designed 30 interchangeable case backs for this special watch, one for each team in the league. All that remained was for the brand to open a basketball-themed store. which it now has, at a prime location in New York’s Midtown neighborhood, at 112 W. 34th Street. Everything about this concept store has been designed with basketball fans in mind, from the giant screens showing matches to video games and the augmented reality Tissot Buzzer Beater. Action-styled mannequins wearing team uniforms, larger-than-life photos of the brand’s ambassadors, plus a wall of multicolored basketballs add to the mood. Not forgetting, of course, the Chrono XL NBA watches. Fans visiting the store can also enjoy Tissot’s other sport and classic watch collections. New this year is the Tissot Gentleman. Both ergonomic and elegant, this multi-purpose watch is equally suitable for wearing in a business environment as at the weekend, when it adapts easily to leisure activities. As part of a modern, active man’s lifestyle, the Tissot Gentleman is the perfect companion for every day, every occasion and every style. Tissot’s new watch comes in both Quartz and Automatic versions. C.R.

Elegance is an attitude

Mikaela Shiffrin