EXCLUSIVE: Chanel Reissues Iconic Première Watch to Mark 35th Anniversary
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PARIS — To mark the 35th anniversary of its first timepiece and starting point for its watchmaking division, Chanel is unveiling the Première Original Edition reedition.
“The Première was the first page in our watchmaking history. It was born out of an absolute freedom of creation,” said Arnaud Chastaingt, director of the Chanel watchmaking creation studio, who wanted the Première watch to “find its place again and to put it at the heart of [the house’s] collection” as it represents its “DNA and a Chanel code through and through.”
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Launched in 1987, the original design was imagined by late artistic director of four decades Jacques Helleu, who intended it to be strong, unique and “an eternal reference,” he would later say, according to Thames & Hudson’s volume on Chanel’s watchmaking.
“Far more than a watch, the [Première concept] is a lesson in style,” Chastaingt said of this pairing between an octagonal watch case modeled after the stopper on the brand’s bestselling No. 5 fragrance, itself taking after Place Vendôme, with the interlocked leather-and-chain strap of its handbags.
Its bracelet-like form factor, with hands floating on a black lacquer dial featuring no numbers and set in a gold case, would contribute to the watch’s critical acclaim and lasting success, despite only being available in three variations.
The Première’s creation led to the opening of Chanel’s first two dedicated watch boutiques the same year, on Avenue Montaigne in Paris and Geneva’s tony Rue du Rhône.
Photographed by Guy Bourdin and Karl Lagerfeld, worn by then-house ambassador Inès de la Fressange, before being regularly spotted on supermodels from Claudia Schiffer to Soo-Joo Park, the style became a must-have until its retirement in the early 2000s, overtaken in popularity by another Helleu creation, the sportier J12 model — also reworked by Chastaingt, in 2019.
For its 2022 incarnation, Chastaingt wanted to keep the spirit and aesthetic of this model by reworking “minute details” to distinguish the initial Helleu design from its Original Edition descendant while keeping the new version “true to itself.”
Among the updates are technical evolutions to the clasp and gold plating, now also in a softer shade of gold, chosen to match the current color of those on the house’s famous handbags, which he also pointed out as slotting in harmoniously with jewelry creations in yellow and proprietary “beige” golds.
Released on Oct. 1, the Première Original Edition is priced at 5,500 euros and will be available from Chanel stores globally.
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