By Jovan Krstevski
As far as I remember, TAG Heuer occasionally allows non-watchmakers or artists to create designs on their watches. Personally, I believe that this is just one of those marketing gimmicks but of course truth be told, something unique gets created in the process. So in this article, I will talk about a new watch called the TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Fragment Limited Edition designed by Hiroshi Fujiwara. This is pretty much a reinterpretation of the iconic Carrera chronograph as interpreted by Hiroshi Fujiwara, the founder of the innovative label Fragment.
Hiroshi Fujiwara of Fragment
So what is Fragment? It’s a hip brand and it has entered many highly hyped collaborations with huge brands like Converse, Levi’s, and Nike just to name a few. With this said, I believe it’s not that difficult to assume that this is quite a successful design brand in its own right.
As to the why of TAG Heuer and Fragment collaboration, we can only make a story on our own. Of course, with a bit of an educated guess, I believe it’s all about getting to the right audience for TAG Heuer. Fragment is popular to the young and having something that reflects the persona of this targeted audience is a plus for TAG Heuer, so there’s my take. Anyways, whatever the real reason is, it’s part of TAG Heuer’s quirky tactics. Contrary to hardcore watch snobs out there, there’s money in the millennial arena. I personally like the brand’s unique approach to marketing and of course the novelty of the watches.
Moving on, the new Carrera Heuer 02 Fragment Special Edition comes in a 39 mm stainless steel case. It’s a classical size but it packs a lot of information on the display while maintaining impressive legibility. The build of the watch is also superb allowing it to have a water resistance of up to 100 meters.
The glass box anti-reflective sapphire crystal over the black dial brings back the original 3–6–9 counter layout from 1963 in the order of chronograph minutes and hours at 3 and 9 o’clock and the permanent small second at 6 o’clock. The luminescent hands and markers carry Fujiwara special decorations. And there’s also the obvious Fragment text at 4:30 and the twin lighting bolt logo at 12 o’clock.
The Fragment lighting bolt logo also looks cool imprinted on the sapphire caseback that exhibits the in-house designed TAG Heuer caliber 02 incorporating 168 components, including a column wheel and a vertical clutch.
The movement operates at 4 Hz or 28,800 vph and makes 75 hours of power reserve stored in a single barrel. Moreover, this is the very first movement to be encased in a classic Carrera model after being developed for the sportier Carrera Heuer 02 models.
The watch is limited to 500 pieces and engraved with a unique limited-edition number. Price for the TAG Heuer Carrera Heuer 02 Fragment Special Edition is set at Swiss Francs 7,900.
Finally, the watch wears on a Bund-style black alligator strap. It also features a NATO fabric strap with black/grey stripes. Visit TAG Heuer here.
