... the L'Evolution Collection!

The L’Evolution collection was meant to open a new, younger, more active clientele. Accordingly, the watches are ‘louder’ than the rest. We haven’t seen much, but what caught our attention was the new Ref. 0222 Carrousel Saphir Volant Une Minute.



It comes in a tantalum/white gold case for CHF 242'000:




While the sapphire Carrousel is not new, this is very special: the sapphire sports a mystical nano-tech coating with mesmerising, mother-of-pearl like effect:



The entire magic of the dial is revealed if you look close...



... very close (note the microscopic pattern on the glass – right, that’s a ‘JB’!):



Another novelty is the Ref. 8850 Grande Date Automatique with a new brushed case, which emphasises the details of the case nicely:





Price is CHF 19'100.

Unfortunately, we could not take look at the Ref. 8822 Tourbillon Grande Date with Power Reserveon the Rotor (CHF 148'000):



Oli:
To me some strong/strange design features outshine the qualities of the collection. There are some really nice and interesting solutions shown, but does the final product fit to the brand, their history, the current product line …? To me evolution is the wrong word for it and I would call it a small revolution instead. At the moment it is neither fish nor flesh, from my point of view. If they really would like to push so called avant-garde technology together with fine art of horology, I would expect more. Their benchmark should be Renaud & Papi (AP and Richard Mille) or DeBethune. Funds shouldn´t be a big problem (Swatch-Group!), but I miss the full commitment to show something really cool …



Magnus:
I was and still am critical towards the L’Evolution collection and I am not convinced it’s a ‘Blancpain’. This notwithstanding, being a scientist I like the way Blancpain utilised novel technologies, with an obvious (appearance) and a hidden (pattern) effect. The sapphire Carrousel is a marvel and an overall very well done piece, now moved up to an entire new level!

 

... the Specialities Collection!

A  new Specialities watch this year is the ‘Lambo’-inspired Ref. 560STC Flyback Chronograph. It’s a new iteration of the relatively new series of watches. Limited to 285 pieces and available for CHF 18’000.







Note dial and rotor, can they be more appropriate for a watch paying homage to a car?



Oli:
A newly styled watch, with a well-known (and tiny) movement inside. Too big for my wrist but to me it looks better than some of its predecessors. At least one watch in the collection that explains/shows the strong commitment to car racing, somehow.



Magnus:
The ‘Specialities’ appears to be a kind of an ‘odd-bin’ for Blancpain, an assemblage of watches where the company does not really knows what to do with it.



I find the mix of octagonal and round subdials confusing, as they are not implemented with logical consistency (octagonal: hour counter, round: continuous seconds and minute counter?). Nevertheless, the new watch is the heretofore most appealing implementation of the Lamborghini theme. The new design strengthens the character of this collection in a most welcome way.

 

... What to make out of this? Here we offer our conclusion!

To be honest, as Blancpain connoisseurs we are a bit worried about the latest developments of the brand. We are still interested in what is coming as for both of us Blancpain represents an important milestone in our horological upbringing, and we have/had the pleasure of owning several of their watches. The length and intensity of this article testifies for our affection with the brand.

Looking at the novelties of the past years, we identified the following trends with Blancpain:

1. A rather uninspired introduction/mix of design elements took place across all collections, e.g. the widespread introduction of guilloched dials (isn’t that Breguet?), which have no compelling history with the brand.
2. The new movements, based on the landmark piece Cal. 13R0, were also introduced in all collections. While these are excellent constructions with a proven track record in terms of timekeeping and robustness, they do not come without consequences:
3. Their introduction in the Villeret line effectively means the demise of the ‘ultra-flat’ watches, which is (was?!) a core value of the collection.
4. The new movements show a techno-affine instead of artistry-enabled approach. While finishing is beautiful on the first view, it has been economised in terms of design complexity, multitude & variety of surfaces requiring finishing etc.
5. The various collections are no longer clearly differentiated. As outlined in this article, the former distinction in terms of robust/refined, aesthetic elements, complications, size is no longer followed.
6. There is no consistency and long-term follow-up in marketing efforts, partnerships etc.

The tragedy is that we cannot blame the individual watches, which are great offerings. It is the overall picture that is disturbing. For the observer it is increasingly difficult to decipher the current philosophy/strategy behind the brand. Instead, there seems to be a lot of trial and error approaches followed. It appears to us that particularly the Villeret line, the nucleus and core of the Blancpain brand, suffers most.

Blancpain was such a gem, a small brand with a clear philosophy that had all the ingredients of an admired collector’s brand. It has been watered down over the years tremendously so that we fear that is soon reaches the state of a ‘Jack of all trades’ brand. If we look at some competitors in Switzerland and Germany it is really saddening for us to realise this, having in mid what could have been accomplished.

On top of this comes the recent significant price increases, but that is another topic…

But we guess that as long as the sales figures are good, no one really cares. A pity and a big risk for the brand itself – in the long term!

We hopy you enjoyed this rather challenging and comprehensive report. We promise twice: (i) we will continue our series, and (ii) th next installment (Part III) will be more digestible!

Cheers so far,
Oliver & Magnus