“A pair of limited-edition watches prove the brand is having a damn good time,”
Jonathan Evans, Style Director at Esquire.
The world of watches is, by and large, a pretty conservative place. Sure, you’ve got brands like Swatch playing against type by combining Swiss provenance with playful provocation. And upstart microbrands aplenty are no doubt having a lot of fun shaking things up. But when you get into the space occupied by century-old (or older) makers with deep catalogs of historical references, you’re generally less likely to encounter a penchant for messing around with the classics—especially with outside collaborators.
One notable exception to that is Zodiac, which was founded in 1882 in Le Locle; introduced one of the first commercially available dive watches, the Sea Wolf, in the 1950s; and was acquired by the Texas-based Fossil Group in 2001 (keeping production in Switzerland, naturally). On iconic designs and new models alike, bold color pairings—think flamingo pink and white or mint green and orange—have become something of a signature in recent years.
“We strike a balance by honoring Swiss watchmaking tradition and our archives while pushing creative boundaries,” says Ryan White, creative director of Zodiac, who credits eBay with “preserving our legacy to collectors and introducing the brand to new generations.”