The Swiss luxury watchmaker and London-based fashion house has introduced a one-of-a-kind collaboration, creating the Chronomat Automatic 36 Victoria Beckham Collection.
Earlier this month, some of the biggest names in fashion gathered in New York City for an intimate celebration, as both Victoria Beckham and CEO of Breitling Georges Kern unveiled the latest Chronomat Automatic 36 Victoria Beckham Collection.
This special event brought together a host of VIP guests, including this Victoria Beckham Collection campaign star Annemary Aderibigbe, and top models, including Frida Aasen, Lara Worthington, and Helena Christensen. Actor Katie Holmes was also in attendance, along with author and TV personality Derek Blasberg and famous America ballet dancer/celebrity spokesperson Misty Copeland.
Victoria Beckham shared her sentiments about working alongside Breitling and also how proud she was of the final product by stating, “It was a real exchange. Working closely with Breitling’s expert craftsmanship and know-how and bringing in my aesthetic was exciting. This is the perfect watch for women who are looking for something versatile. It’s elevated and chic but still has a relaxed feel to it. The mix of masculine and feminine has always been how I like to dress myself, and I am quite a minimalist at heart.”
CEO of Breitling Georges Kern shared a similar opinion, with the Chronomat being the perfect starting point for this collection: “The Chronomat is already a versatile watch with a classic form. With Victoria Beckham’s signature style, this collection is a modern, radiant expression of that timepiece.”
Victoria Beckham’s vision was to create an all-purpose timepiece for women, bringing the best of both worlds: fashion and function. The design of this latest Chronomat timepiece portrays exactly how Victoria Beckham says she likes to dress: a mix of masculinity and feminine features while having a minimalistic aesthetic.
At first glance, the Limited-Edition Chronomat 36 Victoria Beckham Collection is precisely that. We get the Chronomat’s more sophisticated and masculine features with the sharp lines of the case and bezel, while the dial design and its different colours portray more feminine features. The metal rouleaux bracelet, which has been retained from the existing Chornomat, follows a similar pattern, with a mixture of curved links and sharp horizontal lines, showcasing strong masculine and feminine aesthetics.
For this collection, Breitling offers the 36mm case size in either a choice of stainless steel or yellow gold. Yellow gold is a material that’s rarely used for this timepiece and has been specifically revived for this special collaboration. While the materials themselves stand out, especially the yellow gold, the chosen dial colours are what instantly pique the interest of the wearer.
The refined new colourways have been inspired by Victoria Beckham’s new Spring/Summer 2024 colour palette, which includes the colours peppermint, midnight blue, dove grey and sand. The dove grey colour is exclusive to the stainless steel model, while the sand colour is exclusive to the 18k yellow gold. Both of these exclusive colours were created to have a more subtle appearance, matching the case materials nicely. For those with more daring and bold personalities, the midnight blue and peppermint colour choices offer more vibrant aesthetics.
The stainless steel colourways have lab-grown diamonds on each of the 12-hour markers, giving the models a more luxurious and elegant appearance. The dials also include the inscription “One of 400” for each of the stainless steel colour variants, while the 18k yellow gold models get a “One of 100” inscription, referencing the limitation of each timepiece. Two notable references to Victoria Beckham are also included. The first is on the dial, with the end of the constant second’s hand having the “VB” logo, while the bracelet includes the “VB” and “Victoria Beckam” engravings.
Both the stainless steel and 18k yellow gold variants come with Breitling’s calibre 10 movement. Measuring at just 3.6mm depth, it allows the overall case to be slimmed down to a total thickness of just 10.01mm. The movement doesn’t fall into Breitling’s in-house calibre’s as it uses a base ETA 2892-A2 movement. However, the movement still functions at high accuracy with a frequency of 4hz (28,800 VpH), whilst also giving out a power reserve of approximately 42 hours.
Final Thoughts
The Chronomat is one of Breitling’s ladies’ models that best serves as a base template for Victoria Beckham to work her magic. The timepiece itself already has a mixture of masculine and feminine aesthetics due to the angular lines and sharp design. The beautiful colour palette Victoria Beckham chose for the collection complements the models well, and brings forth the feminine aesthetics of each individual timepiece.
My favourite from the collection has to be the 18k yellow gold with the midnight blue dial. While all the colour variants are indeed great as they showcase their own personalities, the midnight blue contrasts exceptionally well against the 18k yellow gold material, along with the gold hour indices and hands standing out beautifully against the blue as well. Adding the peppermint colour to this collection is a bonus, too. Instead of the traditional silver, black and blue, we are offered a much more exciting colour palette that will suit the more subtle to the bold personalities!
Reference: A103801A1C1A1, A103801A1G1A1 or A103801A1L1A1
Specification
- Case: 36mm diameter x 10.01mm thickness
- Case Material: Stainless Steel
- Dial: Midnight blue, peppermint or dove grey with lab-grown diamond hour markers
- Crystal: Cambered sapphire, glareproofed on both sides
- Water resistance: 100m (10 Bar)
- Movement: Breitling Calibre 10
- Movement Frequency: 4Hz (28,800 VpH)
- Power reserve: 42 hours
- Bracelet: Stainless-steel Rouleaux bracelet with butterfly clasp
Australian Recommended Retail Price: AUD $7,990 for Midnight Blue and Peppermint ref. AUD $8,490 for Dove Grey Colour.
Availability: Limited Edition models. Each colourway is limited to 400 models. Available for purchase through Breitling authorised retailers and boutiques or through Breitling.com.au
Reference: K103801A1C1K1, K103801A1L1K1 or K103801A1A1K1
Specification
- Case: 36mm diameter x 10.01mm thickness
- Case Material: 18 k yellow gold, solid, screwed. Crown: 18 k yellow gold, non-screw-locked, two gaskets. Bezel: 18 k yellow gold, unidirectional, ratcheted.
- Dial: Midnight blue, peppermint or sand
- Crystal: Cambered sapphire, glareproofed on both sides
- Water resistance: 100m (10 Bar)
- Movement: Breitling Calibre 10
- Movement Frequency: 4Hz (28,800 VpH)
- Power reserve: 42 hours
- Bracelet: 18 k yellow gold Rouleaux bracelet with butterfly clasp.
Australian Recommended Retail Price: AUD $42,790
Availability: Limited Edition models. Each colourway is limited to 100 models. Available for pre-order through Breitling authorised retailers and boutiques or through Breitling.com.au
