CH24.PLCH24 Watch of the Year – 15th anniversary edition!
Already for the 15th consecutive time CH24 selects and awards the most interesting new timepieces form the past […]
2024 Watch of the Year – Swiss Road Trip with competition’s statuettes (part 1)
Celebrating the jubilee, 15th edition of the CH24 Watch of the Year, the competition jury set off on a long journey to Switzerland to personally present the awards to the winning manufacturers.
Over the past 14 years, we have been gradually developing and evolving the formula of the CH24 Watch of the Year competition. The project, which was created as a desire to democratically reward the most interesting watch premieres of the year, has undergone a real metamorphosis before our and your eyes. Like a growing child, it has changed and developed from a modest model in 2010 to the festive an elegant galas of the last few editions. Without a shadow of exaggeration, we can say that the CH24 Watch of the Year is the most important industry event in our local watch-scene, which does not mean that we have decided to rest on our laurels.
During one of the many heated (but constructive) debates between the jury members, preceding this year’s 15th edition (the results of which we announced in October during a gala dinner in Warsaw), an interesting idea emerged – to change the script in 2024 and reverse the roles. Instead of inviting representatives of the winning brands to Poland, we decided to go to Switzerland and present the statuettes directly to the awarded manufacturers, in order to honor them even more. After all, this is where the timepieces that we reward together are made.
So set off with us – and the five-person-strong jury team (Tomasz Kiełtyka, Kristian Haagen, Miguel Seabra, Jan Lidmansky and Łukasz Doskocz) – on a 1,600 km (one way) journey to Geneva, crowning the anniversary edition of the CH24 Watch of the Year. On a unique journey, because in a car… with a fully electric drive.
Porsche Taycan Turbo S Turismo
Courtesy of our long-term partner – Porsche Polska – we set off to Switzerland in an electric Porsche Taycan. The car is beautiful, but its fully electricity-powered engine initially made us a little apprehensive. We had never driven an electric car before, and here we are embarking on a route covering a total of some good 4,000 km.
The Taycan in the Turbo S Turismo version, the most complex and powerful variant, has a maximum power of over 950 BHP(!). This means that it accelerates from 0 to a 100 km/h in 2.4 seconds and reaches over 260 km/h top speed. So you can imagine how great it is on the road. And the battery charging itself? It is more enjoyable than we could have imagined. Thanks to the optimized system and fast charging stations, the car “refuels” from about 20% to 80% of the battery in less than 20 minutes! In addition, it has a navigation system on board that precisely calculates the next stops and locates the necessary chargers – the whole process is therefore intuitive and unexpectedly convenient. Our initial concerns disappeared practically with the first stop, giving way to pure driving pleasure. And this is a Porsche after all – in automotive terms, the dream of almost every little and big boy alike.
Day 1
Furlan Marri (Geneva) – „Men’s watch priced up to 3,500 euro”
First stop on the Swiss Road Trip took us to Geneva, or more precisely to the less popular watchmaking shore of Lake Geneva. The statuette for the best “Men’s watch priced up to 3,500 euro” this year went to one of the most interestingly developing independent, boutique brands on the market. The duo of Furlan (Andrea) and Marri (Hamad) focuses on timeless classic and inspirations from historical, designer treats. A great example of this philosophy is the category winner – the Disco Volante model, or rather Disco Verde, with a green dial enclosed in a round, lug-less case, which in its shape resembles a flying saucer.
At the brand’s Geneva headquarters, Andrea Furlan and his team welcomed us and collected the CH24 WOTY (CH24 Watch of the Year) statuette. The spacious, two-levels atelier houses the entire team and, of course, the showroom, where you can see the complete collection. Furlan Marri has far-reaching plans for the near future, and although we can’t reveal much, an intuitively operated model with a Perpetual Calendar and an exceptionally beautiful version of the Disco Volante will soon see the light of day.
Daniel Roth (Meyrin – 10 km from Geneva) – “Special Jury Prize”
In the history of watchmaking, only a few names have been written in golden letters. One of them is undoubtedly Daniel Roth – an iconic watchmaker and the creator of the brand bearing his name, which has presently been part of the LVMH group for some time. Under the leadership of the young but ambitious Jean Arnault, clearly passionately in love with watches, the Daniel Roth brand has returned to the public consciousness, focusing on faithful reproduction of the master’s classic models. The revived company debuted with the exceptional Tourbillon Souscritpion, and at next year’s Watches & Wonders it will present a second, equally interesting watch.
The award for Daniel Roth was received at the headquarters of La Fabrique du Temps by Jean Arnault himself (Director of Marketing and Development of Watches at Louis Vuitton). He also promised, that the statuette will go to Daniel Roth himself, and the brand will be further developed with exceptional care and attention to represent the highest level. We keep our fingers crossed for that!
Jaeger-LeCoultre (Le Sentier – 60 km from Meyrin) – “Men’s watch”
The last stop of Day 1 of our Swiss Trip took us through the picturesque, twisted roads of the Swiss mountains, to the town of Le Sentier in the Jura. The Taycan felt great on such a demanding route, glued to the asphalt with a view of beautiful landscapes. On the watchmaking map, Le Sentier is known, among others, as the maison of Jaeger-LeCoultre manufacture. It is here that the brand’s watchmakers, supported by a team of designers and an exceptional ability to create high-end mechanical calibers, designed a new, refreshed Duometre line, from which comes the category winner – the Duometre Quantieme Lunaire. Wrapped in steel, with a beautiful, dark blue dial.
In the hospitable abodes of the manufacture, in the room called “Maison d’Antoine”, the CH24 WOTY statuette was received, from the hands of the jurors, by Lionel Favre (Product Design Director) and Matthieu Sauret (Product & Heritage Director). As this was the last stop on the first day of our Swiss Road Trip, we couldn’t do without a toast with a glass of champagne and a few exceptional watches. In addition to the award-winning Duometre, we were also given a preview of the Reverso Tribute Chronograph wrapped in rose gold – you can see some live photos of it HERE.
Day 2
Chanel (La Chaux-de-Fonds – 100 km from Le Sentier) – “Ladies watch”
Although in the vast and rich world of luxury the Chanel brand absolutely needs no introduction, in watches it is a company that is still (unfairly) underestimated and unreasonably treated as a fashion brand. Of course, Chanel originates from the world of fashion and it was thanks to Coco Chanel that it entered the imagination of millions, but its watchmaking activity cannot be underestimated. Almost 480 people work on timepieces and their components – led by the advanced process of manufacturing and processing ceramics – in the modern G&F Châtelain factory (which we had the opportunity to visit briefly during the visit).
The award on behalf of Chanel, granted to the J12 Automaton Caliber 6 model (with an automaton representing Coco Chanel) was accepted by José Alberca (Sales & Development Manager). He was accompanied by Romuald Boillon (Quality & Inovation Development Director), Gérôme Marguet (Project Manager) and Amaury Bonin (Watchmaker).
Continue reading: 2024 Watch of the Year – Swiss Road Trip with competition’s statuettes (part 2)
