Watches of Switzerland Unveil New Novelties for Geneva Watch Days

Watches of Switzerland carries a wide variety of watches in the prestige segment, many of which have loyal fanbases. For Geneva Watch Days, many brands showcased their array of new novelties to the market, including updates to existing collections. Brands like Doxa, Frederique Constant, Louis Erard, and Sinn brought forth plenty of new watches to during Geneva Watch Days, which took place earlier this month.

Doxa introduced SUB 300T along with a host of others in a new colourway; as for Frederique Constant, they introduced two limited-edition pieces and even brought an update to the Carrée Small Seconds in three different variations. Louis Erard also unveiled the Le Régulateur in four different forms alongside German watchmaker Kudoke. Lastly, there’s Sinn with two new watches that took its looks after its predecessor, the 155 series.

Doxa

Swiss watchmaker Doxa has come out with a host of new novelties for Geneva Watch Days like the SUB 300T Aristera, the brand’s first automatic dive watch designed for left-handed users, with a crown positioned on the left side of the case. ‘Aristera’ means ‘left’ in Greek, which also echoes the brand’s origins as ‘Doxa’ is the Greek word for ‘glory’. With the crown at 9 o’clock and the date window at 3 o’clock, this meant that Doxa had to rotate the movement 180 degrees inside the case to achieve this.

The SUB 300T Aristera features a bezel with an aluminium insert that gives off a subtle, elegant matte silver hue. The 42.5 mm case is carved from a solid block of 316L stainless steel as it protects the bright orange dial with help from the scratch-resistant sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment. Super-LumiNova coating is also evident for the indexes and hands while the watch is held together with both the legendary ‘beads of rice’ stainless steel bracelet and a lighter-weight, more casual NATO-style strap.

Aside from bringing out a new creation in the SUB 300T Aristera, Doxa has since also decided to bathe many of its watches with its vibrant ‘Sea Emerald’ green shade. First introduced during last year’s Geneva Watch Days, it was intended to be exclusive for the SUB 200T collection. Due to an overwhelming response, Doxa has announced that ‘Sea Green’ is the eighth official colour for the SUB family. It will now be available in the following models: the SUB 200, SUB 300T, SUB 300, SUB 600T, and SUB 300 Carbon.

Frederique Constant

The Tourbillon Manufacture now comes with an aventurine dial to go with a 39 mm 18k white gold case. Like the other variations of the Classic Tourbillon, the new variant will feature the Manufacture’s signature Heart Beat aperture at 6 o’clock on the dial. You will also find the seconds hand revolving within the tourbillon while the hour and minute hands glide over the hour markers in the middle of the dial. Powering the new Classic Tourbillon Manufacture is the in-house FC-980-4 automatic calibre with a silicone escapement, which will protect the watch from magnetism and temperature changes.

The Classic Moonphase Date Manufacture marks the most dramatic revamp for the series since its inception, which now includes an 18k white-gold case at 40 mm to go with a jade green malachite dial. At 6 o’clock on the dial are the two merged complications: the date as well as moonphase in one sub-dial. The hands and hour markers of the watch have also been updated that also features a traditional sector-dial minute track. At the heart of the new Moonphase Date Manufacture is the FC-716 calibre fitted with an exclusive barrel that required reworked bridges as well as having its power reserve doubled from 36 to 72 hours.

Lastly, there’s the Classics Carrée Small Seconds in three exciting variations. These new creations take on an Art Déco-style that was made famous in the 1920s and 30s as Frederique Constant has since reintroduced square and rectangular watches with these three new Carrée Small Seconds. They are powered by a quartz movement that comes with a two-year battery life to go with a silver-finish on the dial with two central hands alongside its small, off-centred seconds hand just above the “sector dial” minute track.

Louis Erard x Kudoke

This limited series by Louis Erard x Kudoke brought out the best from both watchmakers – Louis Erard’s iconic regulator-type display is moulded together with Kudoke’s technical and aesthetic perspective angle to create four watches in exceptional colourways. Each watch is framed with a 42 mm polished stainless-steel case with its respective dial featuring a different colour while maintaining Kudoke’s distinctive watch face elements.

The nameplates of both brands can be found on the dial, which are satin-finished and rhodium-plated to go with the railway track chapter ring alongside two counter sub-dial rings. The 12 o’clock counter is adorned with a Clous de Paris hobnail pattern and a Roman numeral ring with the iconic infinity-shaped hours hand, which are blued steel like the rest of the watch’s other hands. The lower dial also has its own grained finish for a frosted effect that ticks away at the seconds of each day.

Each watch is powered by the automatic regulator-type Sellita SW266-1A calibre that has a special, openworked oscillating weight with a black lacquered Louis Erard symbol. There will also be a power reserve of approximately 38 hours and water-resistant level of 50 m. The movement can be viewed through the transparent case back, which is seen through the domed sapphire crystal glass with anti-reflective treatment much like on the front of the watch.

All four watches from the Louis Erard x Kudoke collection will be a limited and numbered series with each model bearing an engraved case back.

Sinn

Historical pilot chronographs have been Sinn’s bread and butter as the German watchmaker fuses tradition with modernity to introduce the 156.1 and the 156.1 E, an upgrade to its predecessor, the 155 series. The 156.1 will now have the latest in-house SZ01 chronograph calibre, which was based on the Valjoux 7750 movement. However, the SZ01 automatic movement was designed specifically for the watch to have a jumping 60-minute stopwatch hand from the centre.

The 156.1 also took a page out of the predecessor’s book with a 43 mm case shape and size while the SZ01 movement is integrated into a newly designed case with a screw-in back. The 156.1 will now feature sapphire crystal glass, known for its scratch-resistant properties as opposed to acrylic glass. A captively connected bezel to the case to allow for rotation without detent makes an appearance on the 156.1 chronograph while also being exceptionally durable with the help of TEGIMENT technology.

To differentiate between the 156.1 and 156.1 E, the former comes dressed in black with plenty of white accents on the indexes, sub-dials, and even the bezel markings. However, Sinn has also included splashes of red on its seconds and stopwatch hand alongside the stitching on its strap. Speaking of the 156.1 E, it features a similar construction in terms of its design and aesthetic. It comes with the same SZ01 automatic movement and the same 43 mm sliding case, complete with sapphire crystal glass at both ends. TEGIMENT technology makes an appearance for the 156.1 E as well for Black Hard Coating application.

The luminescent coating can be found once more at the 12 o’clock striking point of the bezel for easier readability. But it’s on the dial where the 156.1 E differs from the 156.1 as its numerals, as well as its hour and minute hands, are coated with an ivory-coloured luminescent. The 156.1 E also has a unique date window at 3 o’clock, reminiscent of the Kollsman window of a barometric aviation altimeter, which is used to set the reference air pressure.