The Top Five Watch Designs by Eric Giroud

Watch designer Eric Giroud has contributed his creativity and skill to a number of well known luxury watch companies. You can find examples of his designs in collections offered by Swarovski, Constantin, MB&F, Vacheron, Tissot, Van Cleef and others. He has earned distinction for his creativity and ability to find the design flaws within a watch and create a masterpiece out of what was once a near disaster. This is the man who can be seen wearing his personal favorite, the Heuer Carrerra reference 1158CHN circa 1970s. the watch no doubt has sentimental value to the horologist as it is from the collection of his wife’s uncle Jack Heuer, famed watch maker himself.

Giroud is a freelancer who renders his services for a variety of companies, detecting flaws in the design of watches that are basically good, but in need of a few minor tweaks. His philosophy on watch design includes the belief that minor adjustments have a major impact upon aesthetics, comfort and function, and that the historical integrity and features which tie the watch to the heritage of its line must be preserved when considering options for change.

We’re pleased to present the top five watch designs by Eric Giroud for your consideration.

1. MB&F ZR012 Watch

This watch is the result of the combined efforts of MB&F, Eric Giroud and Uwerk. It is an experimental and greatly complex item which will only be produced in the limited quantity of twelve pieces. The team consisted of Martin Frei and Felix Baumgartner of Uwerk who were responsible for the creation of the movement. The MB&F group included Serge Kriknoff and Max Busser along with Eric Giroud for the final development of the watch.

Technical and complicated components found in the “Wankel engine” power the watch which also includes the addition of nitroglycerin in its development. The function uses geometric shapes in the drivers with the hours and minutes indicated by two rotors. Much time and effort have gone into the wonderfully complicated piece and it is listed at a retail price of $110,112.74. The watch must be pre-ordered and a deposit of $33,000 is required to begin the purchasing process.

2. Swarovski Crystallium Automatic Watch

This example was revealed to the public at Baselworld in 2013 and earned Giroud the distinguished Red Dot Award for Best Product Design for the year. This award represented a two for two win for Giroud who had worked for Swarovski on an earlier watch earning the same distinction for his brilliance. The first design was for a ladies watch and the second, for a men’s design. He shared that his inspiration for the Crystallium Automatic came to him a few weeks after being brought on board for the project.

Since men enjoy sports, the stadium shaped crystal would set the tone for the piece. the 48mm case and bezel were crafted of a aluminum with the addition of steel and black PVD. Four crystal covered Arabic numerals adorn the dial with jet crystals overlaying the rest of the hour markers. The finished product bears a remarkable resemblance to an arena made of crystal. The Swiss movement is viewable via the sapphire crytsal caseback of the watch that is water resistant for up to one hundred meters. The retail price for this watch is $1084.00

3. Tissot PRS 516 7750 2004

This example was Eric’s first assignment with the Tissot watchmakers. He used his creativity to design the PRS 516 which features a 45mm case made of black stainless steel. The dial is black carbon material that is complemented with black ends. The dial type is analog. The hands and markers are luminescent. The PRS 516 is powered by a Tissot Calibre A05.H31 and is an automatic movement. The power reserve is fifty four hours. This piece is water resistant up to three hundred and thirty feet. The functions include, hour, minute, second, date and a chronograph. I retails for $1,245.

4. Manufacture Royale 1770

The Manufacture Royale 1770 was originally built by Marc Guten and David and Alexis Gouten. Their original efforts resulted in a watch that lacked in elegance and fluidity and instead came across as a clunky and awkward piece. It was Eric Giroud who used his innovation to change the case into a more curvy wrap around that took on a more orb-like form. The curves are gently polished and change form under the right lighting and viewing angle. He added hands in the shape of swords with subtle hue for the dials to give the watch more of a classic ambiance. The tourbillon allows for sneak peeks into the movements for added eye appeal. Post re-design, the value of the Manufacture Royale 1770 is $58,000.

5. MCT Sequential One S110

The SEquential One S110 is a piece that bears the design of Giroud in a contemporary yet classic revelation. Giroud took his inspiration from a previous edition of the watch that needed a facelift. The redesign gave it a moe sporty appearance, yet maintained the complex features of the dial. The skeleton type dial allows for the free viewing of the complications which rely upon a rotating disc ordering the minutes and the hours being controlled by triangular prisms neatly packaged within a complex system.

The X shaped dial is one of Eric’s more contemporary contributions and shows his ability to discern how much change is required and which elements must be retained. He manages to preserve the essence of the watch’s heritage while making improvements in form and function. The sapphire crystal which separates the watch into two parts is also a nice touch. The movement features a total of four hundred and seventy one parts and is an in house version with a power reserve of forty hours. the hand sewn strap is crafted of black leather with a sleek surface, made from calfskin featuring a lining that is hypoallergenic. The strap is available in lack, red or gray. The price of this watch remains in the $100,000 range.

Final thoughts

Eric Giroud has made many significant contributions to the luxury watch industry. He has a magical way of transforming flaws found in high end watches into magnificent examples of his amazing talent. It doesn’t take more than a few small changes to produce an enhanced piece, at least not for Giroud. We hope that you enjoyed the five top watch designs by Eric Giroud.

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