Profile Lady Elegance
Ten years ago when Montblanc launched its first watch collection and exhibited at Geneva’s SIHH, many people believed that the company was wasting its time and energy by adding watchmaking to its established businesses of writing instruments, leather goods and jewellery.
However, the watch brand quickly won friends when the first collections followed the established path of traditional watchmaking and craftsmanship. Today, the watch business counts for 15% of Montblanc’s annual turnover, which is already quite an achievement given that the 100 year-old ‘Meisterstück’ business accounts for 30% of the company’s revenue.
Jean-Marc Pontroué, Montblanc’s International Marketing Director, explained that the watch brand is selling particularly well in the USA, Mexico, China, Italy, Russia and India and that in terms of quantities of watches sold, it was already alongside Baume & Mercier, another of the Richemont’s Group’s brands. He added that the Montblanc watch business benefits from the development of the company’s boutiques around the world – 260 to date – to which has to be added some 1,800 points of sale.
For the first six years of its existence, Montblanc concentrated on men’s timepieces and the first series of its Star Collection in 1997 met with instant success. This was quickly followed by the Sport Collection, the Summit Collection and the highly popular TimeWalker Collection.
Having established its credentials in the men’s watch domain, Montblanc tested the ladies’ watch segment three years ago at the SIHH with its first Lady Profile Collection. The result is that today, ladies watches now account for 25% of the brand’s watch sales.
Profile Lady Elegance Diamonds, Profile Lady Couture
2006 Ladies’ Collection
The new watches in the ladies’ collections are Profile Lady Elegance, a stainless steel rectangular watch (23 x 35 mm) with a mother-of-pearl dial and diamond-set Roman numerals which delicately extend onto sections of the bezel. This model is equipped with a quartz movement and the crown is set with one of the patented star-shaped Montblanc diamonds (0.055 carats) with 43 facets that was created especially for Montblanc’s 100th anniversary.
The Profile Lady Couture is a slightly smaller (23 x 30 mm) understated model in stainless steel with different stylish black and white fabric bracelets and a quartz movement.
The ladies’ showstopper, however, is the Profile Lady Elegance Diamonds model. In 18 carat white gold (23 x 35 mm) the watch and bracelet are set with 628 diamonds (Top Wessleton VVS, 4.21 carats) and 136 baguette rubies (Top Birman, 7.14 carats). With its domed anti-reflection sapphire crystal and mother-of-pearl dial, and a star-shaped Montblanc diamond set in the crown, this timepiece is designed to dazzle. It is produced in a Limited Edition of 3 pieces.
Sport Chrono Automatic, Star Perpetual Calendar
2006 Men’s Collection
The Star of the men’s collection is without question the Limited Edition Star Chrono GMT Perpetual Calendar. After three years of development, Montblanc’s first Grande Complication watch emerges in a Limited Edition of 100 pieces as a C.O.S.C. Certified Chronometer in 18 carat rose, yellow, or white gold and platinum versions.
The watch (43 mm) is equipped with an automatic chronograph movement with perpetual calendar (day, date, month) and a second time zone indicator. There is a domed non-reflective sapphire crystal and a sapphire crystal caseback, and a silvered dial. The crown is set with the distinctive Montblanc diamond (0.055 carats). The watch is water-resistant to 30 metres and comes with a black alligator leather strap and a deployant buckle in 18 carat rose gold.
The other watches in this year’s collections are the Star Chrono GMT, a stainless steel chronograph (43 mm) equipped with an automatic movement and a second time
zone indicator at 12 o’clock. This C.O.S.C. Chronometer has sapphire crystals front and back, an anthracite-coloured dial with date aperture at 3 o’clock, a stainless steel bracelet and it is water-resistant to 30 metres. The crown is set with the Montblanc diamond (0.055 carats).
The Star XXXL Chrono GMT Automatic (42 mm) is in stainless steel and is equipped with an automatic chronograph movement. It has sapphire crystals front and back, a silver dial with three chronograph counters, a date aperture at 4 .30 and a central second time zone hand with an arrowhead tip. The watch is water-resistant to 30 metres and comes with a black alligator strap.
There is an addition to the established TimeWalker Collection - the TimeWalker Chrono Automatic Pilot (43 mm). It is a stainless steel model with two chronogaph counters, a date aperture at 6 o’clock and a red-tipped central seconds hand. The watch has a domed sapphire crystal, a black dial, a stainless steel bracelet and it is water-resistant to 30 metres.
Finally, something strikingly different, the Sport Chrono Auto-matic. This stainless steel 3-counter chronograph (42 mm) is shock-resistant and water-resistant to 200 metres. Equipped with an automatic movement, the bezel is engraved with black numerals and indices, there is a brown dial, a date aperture at 3 o’clock with a magnifier, a protected crown decorated with the Montblanc symbol and a brown alligator leather strap with a deployant buckle.
Like the Montblanc’s ‘Meisterstück’ fountain pens, much ink is being used to write about the brand’s watches. This young and creative brand should go far if it listens and learns as it travels along the well-trodden path of traditional watchmaking.
Star Chrono Automatic, Time Walker Chrono, Automatic Star Chrono GMT
Source: Europa Star April-May 2006 Magazine Issue
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