Movie Magic
Inspired by the futuristic vision of contemporary architecture in Fritz Lang’s 1927 German expressionist film Metropolis, Gergé Swiss’ latest Type M-Metropolis collection was unveiled at the Couture show in Las Vegas in June. The limited-edition
collection—priced at $4,900 to $33,400—will be available in September in three functional variations, each distinguished by a transparent 15-piece construction. Set in steel, titanium, or rose gold and
titanium, models include the Type M3 automatic-chrono COSC, with mono pushbutton and date; Type M2, with automatic-chrono movement and date;and the Type M, with automatic day and date movement. —CS
Watching Out
Bill Davila/Startraksphoto.com
Kelsey Grammer and Jay-Z make time to chat at the auction.
Swiss watchmaker Audemars Piguet and the Tony Awards teamed up May 17 for the Time to Give auction, which raised money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS with the sale of 27 celebrity-autographed timepieces. A live auction for 13 of the watches was held in New York City and raised $816,000 for the cause from a group of invitation-only guests. Online bidding brought the grand total to $1.3 million.
A Royal Oak Offshore Las Vegas Strip signed by Jay-Z was the evening’s top seller, bringing in $220,000. Other moneymakers included a Millenary Astrologia by Meryl Streep for $100,000 and a Jules Audemars Chronograph by Kelsey Grammer for $45,000. Other celebrities who signed timepieces included Vanessa Williams, Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, Daniel Radcliffe, and Liev Schreiber.
François-Henry Bennahmias, AP’s North American president and CEO, presented the $1.3 million check to BC/EFA president Paul Libin at Radio City Music Hall at the June 13 Tony Awards. Libin then threw his own watch to the floor, stomped on it, and vowed never to wear anything but Audemars Piguet. —Cherilyn M. Sajorda
Virtual Reality
Tissot’s new web application allows customers to try on products, thanks to virtual reality.
Swiss watch brand and Swatch Group subsidiary Tissot is letting customers try before they buy—virtually, that is. In a first-of-its-kind augmented reality advertising campaign, Tissot launched a 3-D web application enabling consumers to sample a virtual wristband from its new Touch collection. Visitors to tissot.ch/reality can “try on” watches by holding their wrist in front of a webcam and choosing various models, colors, and styles.
The technology also allows users to experiment with inventive new elements, like a touch-screen feature for diver functionality (on the Sea Touch model) and various chronographic functions on the wider ranges. Videos streaming detailed information on these special features run alongside each of the 28 style variations. —CS