BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
One of the most talked about brands in the Carré des Horlogers at Watches & Wonders Geneva was and, well, always is, Czapek & Cie. This brand came to light in the mid-teens of this century, springing from the roots laid down by Franciszek Czapek, who built watches in Switzerland with Antoine Patek (yes, that Patek) in the early half of the 19th century before going his own way. The name disappeared from the history books in 1871 and reappeared in 2012 with its first watch, the Quai des Bergues, coming in 2015.
Czapek has now revisited its dress watch designs with a new collection called the Promenade. Three models exist and we got photos of the most popular model, the Promenade Goutte d’Eau.
The Promenade Goutte d’Eau, a dress watch with its asymmetrical grande feu enamel dial, represents a bold and innovative direction for Czapek. Its contemporary design is truly eye-catching. The dial, adorned with blue ripples, mirrors the gentle undulations of a water droplet, hence the watch’s name (goutte d’eau meaning water drop).
Measuring 38mm x 10.8mm, this watch is a versatile companion, suitable for any non-sporting activity, it even has a stainless steel case. Its small size means it’s quite comfy, and the blue nubuck leather strap certainly helps with that. With a water resistance of 50 m, it offers a level of protection from water ingress, although it’s not designed for rough water sports like a DateJust might be. However, its elegance more than compensates, especially with the blue dial, which eschews traditional markers. After all, who needs to know the precise time to the minute ?
Still, this is a precise watch. The self-winding calibre SXH.1 is made in-house by Czapek and features a micro-rotor, a 4Hz beat rate and 60 hours of power reserve. It’s a surprisingly modern-looking movement for a watch made in Switzerland, where tradition usually takes precedence. The Promenade Goutte d’Eau is all the better for it.
This watch is a limited-edition piece of 100 examples which, unfortunately, have now sold out. However, two other versions of the Promenade were also released during Watches & Wonders, and they have particularly eye-catching sunray finishing on their dials; I’d check them out if I were you. The price for those is CHF17,350 before taxes.
