Hublot Combines Heritage Design Resets With High-Profile Strategic Advisory Appointments

The Hublot Classic Fusion Tributo returns to Carlo Crocco’s original 1980 design, when Hublot was the name of a watch made by MDM Genève. The Tributo’s 38 mm gold case restores the original 12-screw bezel, while a Zenith-derived automatic replaces quartz beneath an austere black dial. The yellow gold variant sticks close to the original design, while its white gold sibling pairs a black onyx dial with blackened bezel screws for a high-contrast monochromatic look. While today Hublot is almost synonymous with the Big Bang and other large, sometimes extravagant watches, the brand’s origin as a single model made by MDM Genève is rooted in Italian elegance. The original quartz-powered model from 1980 was the first watch to pair a precious metal case with a rubber strap, a then-unheard-of configuration that was nonetheless perfectly suited to la dolce vita in the Italian sun. The Classic Fusion Tributo honours founder Carlo Crocco’s original design, complete with 12 bezel screws and a low-profile feel on the wrist, while being sized up to contemporary standards and equipped with a competent automatic movement courtesy of sister brand Zenith. The white gold version’s onyx dial, an upgrade relative to both the original and the black lacquer of the 2023 remake, is another difference that taps into the ongoing stone dial trend. But it does so in a low-key way that makes sense for the des

Hublot has broken the watchmaking mold again, a tradition that began in 1980 when the Swiss label became the first to put a gold case on a rubber strap. That spirit continued yesterday, when Hublot and Jeff Koons released Classic Fusion Balloon Dog, a timepiece inspired by the artist’s infamous Balloon Dog. The outlines take their shape from the Classic Fusion collection, using the 42 mm dial, but the gleaming “puffy” style is quintessential Koons. Three models in red, blue, and steel are available in limited editions of 200 each. All three feature a padded metallic leather strap that merges seamlessly with the dial and the case. Harder surfaces have been reshaped into domes that, like Koon’s metal ballon animals, appear weightless. The stainless watch is polished to a mirror-like finish, while the red and blue versions were achieved using anodized aluminum. Look closely, and the second hand has a tiny balloon dog on the counterweight. “Translating Balloon Dog into the language of the Classic Fusion required far more than fusing an artwork with an existing watch. The challenge was to fundamentally reinterpret the architecture of the Classic Fusion through the visual and sculptural language of inflatable forms,” stated Koons, continuing, “Traditionally defined by its sleek and relatively flat profile, the Classic Fusion was entirely re-engineered to create the illusion of inflat

François-Henry Bennahmias, the former chief executive of Audemars Piguet, has joined Hublot as a consultant. In an internal memo to Hublot staff, the brand says Bennahmias “will be working with us as a consultant… giving Hublot the benefit of his strategic insight.” The pairing is an unusual one: Bennahmias spent nearly 30 years at one of watchmaking’s best-known family-owned houses, and Hublot sits in LVMH’s watch division, which is run by Jean Arnault. François-Henry Bennahmias, Audemars Piguet's chief executive from 2012 through 2023, has joined Hublot as a consultant. An internal memo to Hublot staff says he will give the LVMH-owned brand "the benefit of his strategic insight." Julien Tornare remains Hublot's CEO, with Bennahmias advising alongside him. Beyond that description, Hublot has not detailed the scope or length of the arrangement. Julien Tornare remains Hublot’s chief executive, and Bennahmias’ role is an advisory one, alongside him. This month, the brand unveiled the Classic Fusion Tributo , a gold-and-rubber homage to its 1980 original. What Hublot gains, then, looks less like a new boss than a seasoned outside voice, and one with a long record of results. Bennahmias never planned to become a watch executive. When he sat down with Haute Time in 2014 , he explained that he came from the fashion business and owed his career to a vacation in St. Barths, where he be

Introducing The Louis Erard x Vianney Halter Futur Antérieur Introducing The Porsche Design Chronograph 1 Utility – Limited Edition for Hodinkee Hublot is looking back in Tributo, while moving forward. " The first two days, almost nobody came to see us. We were very anxious," Carlo Crocco, the founder of Hublot, tells us, casting his mind back to Baselworld in 1980, when he stood in a booth with a single window displaying a single gold-cased watch on a black rubber strap. "On the third day, we realised that everyone was speaking about us, because it was really something different from all the other watches." We are sitting together in Milan on the eve of the Classic Fusion Tributo launch, which Hublot presents as a return to that very first design. After spending time with it in the metal, I would argue the most interesting thing about it is how firmly it refuses to be a reissue. At a time when brands can reproduce their back catalogues down to a 3D-scanned dial, Hublot has presented an evolved expression of its first watch, combining it with a design language that's taken shape over four decades. That decision makes more sense when you consider where Hublot stands today and why this watch is arriving now. Since Julien Tornare took over as CEO in late 2024, the brand has been working through a deliberate reset, investing in its Nyon campus and its movement strategy and reworkin