Hublot creations and partnerships
Maverick watch brand Hublot has created a distinctive niche for itself in the world of Haute Horlogerie through its Art of Fusion that allows it to produce unique and cutting-edge timepieces. Ricardo Guadalupe tells us what makes the marque different and how this difference has contributed to its success
The brand hosted The World of Hublot at The Dubai Mall, where its unique identity, pioneering concepts and collaborations with key partners were celebrated. Day & Night Magazine spoke to Ricardo Guadalupe, CEO of Hublot, on the occasion.
Q:Tell us about the Big Bang watch – your expectations, its success and contribution to the brand’s growth?
A: We created the Big Bang in 2005 and it has been the key element for the success of the Hublot brand. It represents the Art of Fusion; the power of the product is its strong identity – you can easily recognise the watch even from a few feet away when someone is wearing it. That strong presence and the possibility of making watches from different materials – such as rubber, ceramic, carbon fibre, and Magic Gold – have been key reasons for our success.
In 2005, we expected to make CHF100 million after five years. But, surprisingly, we actually made triple of that.
Q:Why does the Big Bang still sell after ten years and why do people buy multiple versions of the watch?
A: The collection itself feels like a big family and customers who buy one watch are so enthusiastic and motivated that they buy a second one, a third, and so on.
Q:Where did the idea for the All Black Collection come from?
A: Black is an important colour for Hublot; it is the colour of rubber at the base and of the ceramic that we use. Black is in the brand’s DNA. Now, black is a standard in the industry as almost all brands have at least one watch in black.
We came up with the idea of doing an all-black watch where the time cannot be seen, when we were having lunch in Monaco with Mr. Biver and our retailer there. It was a crazy idea, but in today’s world, our clients don’t need a watch to tell time; they have their phones and other devices. A watch is more an expression of personality; it is the most important element that represents who they are.
We decided to create ‘the invisible visibility’. You could wear an All Black watch – others cannot see the time, but you could see it if you held the watch at a particular angle. In a philosophical sense, you make your own time. We created a limited edition of 250 watches in 2006. It was an immense success; since then we have been unveiling new limited editions every year and this is our tenth year of All Black.
We wanted our Anniversary watch to be special and different from our other watches. We had been working with sapphire lately and we decided to have something in black sapphire but transparent. Thus, an All Black watch that is also see-through – the ultimate concept.
Q:What was your reaction to the success of All Black?
A: It was like finding a hidden treasure. I realised that we had hit on something that had huge potential and, like the Big Bang, it would grow the brand to another level.
Q:How was Hublot able to change Ferrari’s mind about working together?
A: We began as a marque in 2004, so it was too early for Ferrari to appreciate Hublot when we first approached them in 2005. But in 2011, they saw Hublot as a strong brand. We had also been bought by LVMH in 2008; when you are part of a big group, it also helps in building up your image. They saw Hublot was really successful, almost a reference in the watch industry, and Lapo Elkann, of the Gianni Agnelli family, was convinced that Hublot is a perfect match for Ferrari. He spoke to Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, the then chairman of Ferrari, and arranged for a meeting. Mr. Biver, Lapo and I met with him and he was convinced. Since then, we have demonstrated the success of our partnership with Ferrari.
Q:Regarding Berluti, how difficult is it to put leather, which is 35 per cent water, inside a case supposed to waterproof?
A: That is part of our innovation and creativity. In addition to inventing the Magic Gold, we also use unusual materials for our dials such as denim for the Jeans collection for ladies. Teaming up with Berluti, we decided to put leather on the dial. Since leather has water, we encapsulated the leather in sapphire. The Berluti has an 1 MM thick waterproof sapphire capsule, but you do not notice it because of the anti-reflective treatment.
Q:Has the Berluti partnership been good though it is seen as a niche brand?
A: It has been a win-win situation for both brands. Hublot is definitely popular; Berluti though niche is a familiar name in the world of leather – it is easy to recognise the patina of a Berluti bag or shoes. The resultant watch is as great as it is aesthetically pleasing. This collaboration is successful because it brought us into the world of lifestyle and fashion, which has a different consumer base. People who would not buy a Big Bang would go for a Berluti watch. For instance, in Japan, Berluti is very popular. This has helped us to develop our brand awareness there. Similarly, Hublot is well known in Mexico but Berluti is not; this partnership has helped them.
Q:Is the whole case of the Unico All Black Sapphire made of sapphire?
A: When we created the Big Bang, we invented a new way of constructing the case – the sandwich, which is basically in layers. With this method, we have been able to create the sapphire watch, where the exterior is sapphire, but the interior is of transparent resin.
Q:How is that you are able to offer a Sapphire watch at such a good price, while entry-level sapphire watches from other brands are priced at around CHF200,000?
A: Our Sapphire timepiece is made of different elements of sapphire; it is not one whole case. When we use one case of sapphire, as in the LaFerrari, we have to start with one block of sapphire and manufacture around it. Here, we can use different pieces of sapphire to make different elements, which is more cost-effective. We have also invested millions of Swiss Francs for the polishing technology. We did this because we can make more than a thousand pieces of Sapphire in the next year. For these reasons, we are able to offer the Sapphire at such a price.
All the other brands that work with sapphire are making them more as prototypes, producing only five or ten watches in a year. They are not able to offer sapphire watches as a series of components.
Q:How many watches would you need to sell to break even on your investments?
A: I have not really calculated it; perhaps 500 of the Unico Sapphire and 500 of the All Black Sapphire. I have set a personal target of 5,000 pieces minimum.
Q:For the next Basel, would you present a new sapphire watch in colours other than the two presented? Would you unveil one for women?
A: Unfortunately no, we will not be able to offer a women’s edition yet. Working on a new case takes a lot of time. We will present a new version of the 44 MM, but with colour for men. Some women do like big watches and may buy them, but it will be more of an evolution of colours.
Q:Can you tell us about the design and approval of the Big Bang Sang Bleu?
A: Nowadays, tattoos are used as a way of expressing personality. Many stars, football players, rappers, men and women have tattoos today. I personally would never get a tattoo, but I like the tattoo designs. I decided to create a watch inspired by tattoos. We looked around for the best artist in the tattoo world. One of my friends knew Maxime Büchi, a Swiss artist; we liked his designs and he loves watches. He loved the idea of working with us to create a watch.
We had a few product design meetings wondering how to incorporate a tattoo in a watch. As we did not want to just engrave it on the bracelet and time was not a constraint, we decided to work on the discs – constructing a tattoo on the hour, minutes and seconds discs so that they come alive. We also decided to have facets on the bezel and the end result turned out to be fantastic. We will probably develop this further.
Q:Why was the Sang Bleu not exhibited in Basel?
A: We could not have it ready for Basel. Also, we wanted a special launch for the Sang Bleu.
