PRIVATE
TIME
New watch launches are no longer a his-and-hers scenario. Gender parity is increasing in the world of watchmaking. WORDS DEBBIE HATHWAY
WATCHES & WONDERS, the world’s most prestigious annual watch fair, usually reveals watchmaking trends for the year even though these emerge more by chance than predetermination. This year’s virtual event accommodated product presentations and exclusive interviews arranged for select media as well as a daily broadcast from Geneva, Switzerland, in which host Belle Donati and guests explored topical issues. One of them was gender parity in watchmaking. In recent years, brands such as Roger Dubuis and Purnell have positioned themselves as manufacturers of unisex timepieces differentiated by case size rather than design for men or women. Jaeger-LeCoultre CEO Catherine Renier wore the magnificent Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 on her wrist during an interview. The point was to show that the world’s first timepiece with four faces is not necessarily for men, despite measuring 51.2mm by 31mm with a 15.15mm overall thickness to neatly contain 11 complications. Chris Hall, senior watch editor at Mr Porter, says the conversation around gender parity in watchmaking is moving in line with what is being discussed in wider culture. He references Vacheron Constantin’s Historiques American 1921, available in two case sizes, which previously would have been explicitly referred to as having a smaller women’s case size and a larger one for men. ‘A lot of men are coming onto our platform and actively shopping for the 36.5mm version,’ he says. While women have been wearing oversized watches for a while now, considerations around buyers’ preferences for
48
PHOTOGRAPHY SUPPLIED
uniquely yours PRIVATE EDITION
