The pink gold watch debuted today at the Concourse of Elegance Germany at Lake Tegernsee, reinforcing A. Lange & Söhne’s focus on partnerships with international Concours d’Elegance competitions.
There’s a new Zeitwerk Date in town. A. Lange & Söhne launched the new timepiece today to coincide with the opening of the second annual Concourse of Elegance Germany at Lake Tegernsee. The watch, crafted of pink gold with a gray dial, is the latest introduction to the now-iconic Zeitwerk family.
“The Zeitwerk is a very contemporary watch,” says A. Lange & Söhne’s CEO, Wilhelm Schmid. “I believe you can play very nicely with contrast, because the watch is a lot about contrast. It displays the time very much in contrast to all ‘normal’ watches, because it’s not working with hands, but with numbers and discs.” Speaking about the decision to introduce a pink gold model Schmid says, “A. Lange & Söhne is not about too much in your face, it’s pretty clear that we will never go too extreme. Pink gold with a gray dial gives a little bit more color than I would say the plain white gold and gray [the first Zeitwerk Date watch launched in 2019]. However, it’s still very much in line with the discreetness of our watches.”
For Schmid, launching a new timepiece at a Concours d’Elegance makes perfect sense, because the people who attend concours have a deep interest in mechanics. “I believe that if somebody is attracted by a mechanical art on wheels, it’s probably a lot easier to introduce them to mechanical art on the wrist,” he says. “We see this as a common denominator when we talk to people from the car world.”
But a Concours of Elegance is not your typical vintage car show, Schmid says. “It’s not a general vintage car show because that could be anything and everything,” he says. The concours competitions feature “cars from basically all eras competing to determine which is the most elegant, the most unique and so on.”
Essential Elements
The cars on display at a Concours d’Elegance share three elements that are important to understand, according to Schmid. “One is a very rich history; you will not get any car in if it doesn’t have a proven great history.”
The cars have also been preserved and cared for by hand. “Hardly any of them has seen a machine,” he says, “they are cared for by very skilled people, not only mechanically, but also aesthetically, from the leather to the coach work to the roofs, everything is usually done by skilled craftsmen.” The third element is the cars’ design. “It’s a design language that has survived all the odds of time, they’ve all kept something that even today, when people see them, they look beautiful. The cars have heritage, craftsmanship and design that survives the odds of time.”
These same characteristics reflect the values of A. Lange & Söhne. “Heritage craftsmanship and design that survives the odds of time is very much what we think is also true for our language, so that’s why we like this platform. The people who attend Concours d’Elegance share this set of values, even though cars are a lot bigger than watches.” Bigger or not, Schmid sees the types of cars shown at concours and the brand’s watches as a perfect fit.
One at a Time
Lange has transitioned from introducing new watches once annually to several releases over the course of a year. “We wanted to have a structured approach throughout the year,” Schmid says, “and, of course, it always makes sense if you combine two events.”
“In this case, in Tegernsee, we use that platform to launch a watch as well. It’s a synergy that we want to create, because anyhow we have the team there, we have the press there and we have customers there. And, of course, you communicate immediately not only to the watch society, but you also communicate to the vintage car lovers, the ‘petrol heads,’ he says. “With one event, you serve both target groups.”
Beauty in Motion
First introduced in 2009, the Zeitwerk watch collection is in its 16th year. “Originally, it was never thought to become a family. In the beginning, we thought it’s a unicorn, and we will not create a family. And then, bit by bit, we realized you can do a lot more with the Zeitwerk,” says Schmid. The process of expanding a collection with additional complications, especially one with the Zeitwerk’s unique dial design, is not easy or straightforward.
“I always remind people that a strong design is very important for recognition, but on the other hand, it’s the greatest challenge for every designer. If you want to expand the family without losing that very typical face, you apply a lot of restrictions to the constructors of the movement and to the designers,” Schmid says. “A strong face is very important. However, for designers and for the movement constructors, that is giving additional headaches.”
Lange is partnered with two additional concours this year, the Concourse of Elegance at the Hampton Court Palace in the UK and the Audrain Newport Concours d’Elegance. Will additional watches be introduced at those events? “What I can share with you is that we have more surprises throughout the year,” Schmid says, “there’s no question. Rest assured, there is more. It’s not the last watch that we’re going to launch this year.” Stay tuned.