Rendez-Vous

MATTHIAS BRESCHAN

MANAGER, HAMILTON

How was the year 2009?
In 2009, you will really see two groups of brands. You will see brands with real substance and value at a good price. They will have a good year even after the boom in fiscal 2007 and 2008. Those who have increased their prices sharply without enhancing their value/substance, will have to adjust and justify their pricing. For us, 2009 has started extremely well. We had a meeting with Tourneau in New York, which is the most famous watch store in the world. Their sell-out figures show that from January 1 to March 15, Hamilton showed 35% plus growth. The brand has done extremely well and has become the market leader in the price segment US$500 to 2,000 for mechanical watches.

Tell us about the new collections?
Hamilton products are 100% Swiss-made. We use ETA movements and Valjoux movements. Even the rubber straps come from Switzerland to avoid allergy related problems. Some of the straps are made in Italy, Germany, France and Switzerland. It’s a worldwide launch and the products will be available prior to the festival season. 

The Slimline is a very thin, elegant and sophisticated product (8.4 mm thick). The X-Mach is a flight calculator integrated on a watch base. It’s not really an aviator watch but one with a lot of features for calculating maximum speed, pressure, altitude, etc. There is a watch with the Elvis Presley Foundation. Hamilton Ventura is when the world’s first battery-driven electrical watch becomes automatic. We shall soon celebrate 75 years of Elvis Presley. Hamilton is celebrating cultural icon, Elvis Presley, with two special models of the iconic Ventura watch, to mark what would have been the ‘King’s’ 75th birthday in 2010. The distinctive, shield shaped timepiece, worn by Elvis in the 1961 movie, ‘Blue Hawaii’, comes in two new interpretations – a replica of the original 1950‘s model and a XXL version. The Ventura Elvis Anniversary Collection promises to contribute a new chapter to two legends. Hamilton’s new 50mm Khaki BASE Jump watches. That’s BASE as in parachuting off of Buildings, Antennas, Spans and Earth. Available in automatic and chronograph versions, the timing functions are activated by turning the bezel, not by pushing buttons. Twist the bezel counter-clockwise to start and stop, then clockwise to reset. It has a Valjoux 7750 ultra chrono but the watch has no pressure. We succeeded in changing the function of the pressures and integrated them into the bezel. A unique feature of the Khaki BASE Jump Auto Chrono is the chronograph functionality activated via the turning bezel. The Khaki BASE Jump Automatic version also integrates a turning bezel, in this case for an original bi-directional countdown. Both watches use a typeface of the sort commonly found on ‘classified information’ files, ensuring that the looks signal dynamic operation possibilities. The robust character is highlighted by a protected crown, positioned on the left-hand side of the watch for easy use in extreme situations, and an easy-grip finish on the bezel’s outer edge. It gives wearers wings.          

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