“We want HUBLOT to be as popular as football”
Hublot having become the Official Timekeeper for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Ricardo Guadalupe, CEO of Hublot tells Hiren Kumar Bose that he is driving the brand ‘up in the wish list’ of the people around the world through football
It has been 10 years since Big Bang arrived on the horology horizon and changed the way we perceive watches. From the combination of gold with rubber to the use of Osmium Hublot journey has created landmarks. Where does this dynamism and energy come from?
It comes from our core philosophy of “Art of Fusion” which guides us to keep innovating in terms of materials, colours, designs and yet keeping the DNA of the brand intact. At Hublot, we strongly believe that today people are not buying just a watch that looks good on their wrists, but they are buying something that is an extension of their personality. If someone chooses a bold design like Hublot, it means that the customer is a powerful man and wishes to be recognized for the same. And the same goes for different materials, colours and our limited edition theme watches. And when others try and ape our designs, in a way they are paying a compliment to Hublot and we don’t mind it at all.
The structure of Hublot watch has not changed much—the trademark features including visible “H-screws”, a distinct bezel and of course a sculpted case continues. Is it a conscious decision not to change come what may?
Yes it is a very conscious decision not to change some of the key elements of our watches. Like the H shaped screws that are very visible on the bezel, on the case and on the fold over clasps. The bold bezel that enhances the overall beauty of the watch and makes it very distinctive in its look gets recognised from far. Because they not only give our watches a distinctive persona but also allow us to experiment with different materials and colours. It gives us flexibility in creating new themes without having to spend too much time in developing new shapes. So we do not intend to change the pillars of our design, however, rest can always be experimented with.
Hublot continues to be a contemporary watch offering its dial to present-day artists. Is it prompted to do so because you don’t want to tamper with the watch’s genetic structure and yet offer something new to the collectors?
Yes, we realised that deep down, we at Hublot have been inclined to use a lot of art in our boutiques as well as watches, so why not extend the same to engage contemporary artists and create altogether new pieces of art for the wrists? After all, Hublot Loves Art
Lately Hublot, in fact, post its World Cup Soccer involvement Hublot has tied up with several soccer clubs/events spread in Europe. Looks like people will start believing soccer means Hublot.
If that happens, I shall consider a big objective achieved. Currently we are striving towards that. In fact, we want Hublot to be as popular as football as a sport, yet remain exclusive in terms of reach and ownership. So we are driving the brand ‘up in the wish list’ of the people around the world through this sport.
Hublot is a young brand in its thinking and aspirations with golfers, supermodels and socialites as its brand ambassadors. Curious to know, does celebrity sponsorship help in popularising a brand?
Celebrity endorsement only helps when the brand itself is strong and celebrities pay to acquire the brand in a normal, natural way. Iif there are 100 celebrities wearing Hublot, having few celebrities as official endorsers will only enhance the brand imagery. However, these partnerships have to be chosen in such a way that the overall association gets enhanced and the brand is always in news.
What surprising horlogical marvels do we expect in the coming years? Will it be in materials used, movements or introduction of new shapes?
You can definitely expect further development and newer materials from Hublot. As that is a part of our DNA and we shall continue to strive to achieve newer things there. Some time back we introduced the UNICO movement which is developed in house, and with our newer bigger manufacturing facility, it will be further strengthened.
Three years ago, we had introduced new shape in the form of “Spirit of Big Bang” which is now very well accepted around the world and it is a part of our core range now. A new shape in the near future is something that only time can tell.
