Horological watchmaker Zenith highlighted its latest offerings, along with other LVMH brands at the LVMH Watch Week in Singapore, January 10-12. We meet Julien Tornare, CEO of Zenith, to talk about the marque’s focus on Defy, the strengths of the maison, and visions for the future…
Zenith’s offerings at the LVMH Watch Week has numerous additions to the Defy line; why the focus on Defy?
It is because we had to make a choice between two big launches, one of which was the Defy Skyline Skeleton. Timing-wise, it was better to do it now; a year ago, we were thinking of launching the Defy Skyline Skeleton at Watches and Wonders and debut now what we have for Watches and Wonders. We finally decided the launch times in the summer as we needed more time to be ready and because we believe that what we launch at Watches and Wonders will have a better room suited for it there. There, we actually build our area and can better express our brand ethos; we have the whole world coming there, and our audience is more global. At Watches and Wonders, Zenith will be introducing more Chronomasters, and something important in the Pilot line and perhaps a couple of additions to the Defy family as well. At LVMH Watch Week, we decided to focus mostly on the Defy.
What are the current pillars for Zenith?
We have two main lines – the Chronomaster and Defy. We have two more that I consider more tactical – the Pilot and the Elite. When I came on board in 2017, we relaunched the Defy, which was originally a 1960s icon. The Defy gave us the business and time to rework the design of the Chronomaster and to manage a strong and successful comeback for the Chronomaster that should have happened in 2020 but took place in 2021 because of COVID. 2021 was a very good year, with the comeback of the Chronomaster; a year later, we reinforced Defy with the Defy Skyline, which has been the next strongest engine after the Chronomaster Sport, and these are our two main pillars.
Pilot is very important to us, and we have been working very hard to unveil our new offerings at Watches and Wonders. As for the Elite, the classic 2-hand, 3-hand segment is not so strong at the moment as currently people are looking more for sports watches. But I believe that like fashion, this cycle will also turn and one day it will again become popular. We are already anticipating that and working on something strong in that. Just as a teaser, think of the Zenith x Kari Voutilainen x Phillips Calibre 135 Observatoire – our collaboration with Kari Voutilainen; this could be one way of reinterpreting classicism within this collection. This year, Pilot will play an important role and will probably represent the third engine of the brand.
Isn’t the Pilot very integrated with Zenith’s history?
Yes, indeed; but also think about the Defy. Defy came back bringing a lot of contemporary spirit and modernity to the brand. Today, it is a laboratory for creativity and innovation; when briefing my team about the Defy, I tell them that they have an open invitation to do what they want. They then come back with numerous projects; sometimes, I give them a go-ahead, other times, I refuse, but the creativity is limitless. With the Chronomaster, our approach is a little different as it already has a few codes that are iconic to it.
As for the Pilot, after the strong comebacks of the Defy and the Chronomaster with its much more modern version, Pilot is still very vintage – with a very big crown, in bronze or steel. I personally like it and own a Pilot, but it is time for Pilot to move in a new direction. We are taking our time, because it has a history, and we want the best design for it as well as the right approach. We do not want it to take a fighter pilot approach as we do not think war is the right thing to talk about in today’s world. Nor are we planning a commercial jetliner approach; we will come with our own distinctive approach as this is extremely important for us.
How restrained by history do you feel, as a brand’s history can both be a strength and a constraint?
Simply put, for me, it is zero constraint; history and heritage should be a source of inspiration. In the Swiss watchmaking industry, there are a few brands that have a long history and they are stuck on that history, repeating the past and getting a bit dusty in their offerings. They stand a clear risk of losing generations X, Y, and Z because the new generations would not like to buy a watch that resembles something that their grandfather had; vintage watches are an altogether different topic. You also have brands that have very little history but are innovative, a bit crazy, and they have been great success stories over the last few years.
At Zenith, we have the past, we have the heritage, we have a very authentic Manufacture, and we are one of the last few brands that can say that every Zenith we produce always has an improvement. These two are very important and translates into a contemporary approach and this has been key to our success over the past few years. That was what was missing in Zenith; when I came onboard, we already had a history, but the branding was weak and dusty. That was what we have been working hard at, over the past few years.
We have been working on our fundamentals; we worked on our watches, of course, as that is what we sell at the end of the day. But we also worked on the brand platform, the strategies, the ambassadors, the website, the social media, the e-commerce, and so on. This is the huge workplace that we have been putting together and now this is paying off as the perception of the brand is totally changed. We have rejuvenated our clientele by almost 10 years over the period of five years.
The Revival line aimed at watch collectors that you began a few years ago is doing really well; where do you see the line in the future?
If we have to visualise our product strategy, I would put Chronomaster and Defy at the top; at a slightly more tactical level, I would place the Pilot and the Elite. I would place the Revival so that it cuts across all product lines. We have a Revival in Defy – the Defy Revival A3691 – this is in addition to the one we brought out last year. We also have quite a few Revivals in Chronomaster. We plan to someday bring in a few Revival models in the Pilot and the Elite families. The Revival editions are souvenirs of our heritage, a re-edition of iconic watches that we have had in the past.
The Zenith Icons, on the other hand, are not reproductions but vintage watches that we restore. I consider Zenith Icons also as part of our product portfolios, an important part of our history. The Revival strategy will be across all the product lines.
