TAG Heuer
The rare Heuer Leonidas Easy Rider chronograph
An obsession with precision has characterised the past 100 years of Heuer watches.
By Olivia Pinnock on Wednesday 1st February, 2012
TAG Heuer, the avant-garde watchmaker, is a company built around an obsession for precision.
They are the only brand to offer watches correct to 1/1000th of a second and this year they celebrate 150 years in the business.
The luxury watch makers was founded in Switzerland, a country known for its horology skills, by Edouard Heuer and his two sons Jules-Edouard and Charles-Auguste in 1860.
Their legacy of entrepreneurship, innovation and a love of prestigious sports live on today.
Their watches have adorned the wrists of Steve McQueen, Lewis Hamilton, Tiger Woods, Leonardo DiCaprio and Maria Sharipova.
One of their classic pieces is the 1916 Mikrograph, the world’s first mechanical stopwatch accurate to 1/100th of a second. This stunning achievement led them to become the official timekeepers for the 1920 Olympic Games. Heuer also pioneered electronic time keeping in the 60’s.
The Autavia model from the 70’s is much loved for its variety of designs. This popular design continued to be produced into the 80’s with various different straps, colours and metals.
Another iconic watch is the Formula1, a sporty style that was first produced in the 80’s when the TAG group acquired large stakes in the company (changing the name from Heuer to TAG Heuer). This watch represents this new direction and has become highly collectible.
In more recent times, the Carrera Calibre 360 Chronograph has been marked out as a highly covetable piece. Voted Sports Watch of the Year at the 2006 Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix, it also came out in three limited edition styles: steel, rose gold and white gold.
In the 80’s Tag Heuer established six features that every watch they produce should have. As a result, designing their watches can take two to three years as they ensure they are all water resistant to 200 metres, have a unidirectional bezel, screw in crown, sapphire, a double security clasp and luminous markings.
So technically brilliant, and not to mention aesthetically beautiful, are the watches that John Glenn wore his in the first U.S. space orbit in 1962.
They also have a close partnership with the F1 team, Maclaren.
In 2008 they opened their own museum dedicated to the history of these luxury watches. The Tag Heuer 360 museum is based in Switzerland and documents its history from “heritage to innovation.”
TAG Heuer is currently owned by luxury goods company, LVMH. They have a dedicated following and also produce eyewear and mobile phones.
