In 2022, Omega and Swatch amazed the world by presenting the MoonSwatch. This innovative Swatch-key reinterpretation celebrates the first watch to go to the Moon, Omega’s Speedmaster Moonwatch.
It was on July 20, 1969 when the lunar module of the Apollo XI mission landed on the Moon. At 02:56 GMT the next day, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set foot on the lunar soil for the first time. The Omega Speedmaster Professional, nicknamed ‘Moonwatch’ after this event, was on the wrists of the astronauts as an essential component of their equipment.
Omega’s most famous model was born in 1957 as a chronograph for sports car racing. However, its history is destined to change when in 1965, NASA chose it as the official watch for manned space missions and extravehicular activities (EVA). The preference of the American aerospace agency fell on the Omega chronograph because it managed to successfully pass a series of strict and extreme tests and was the most reliable and accurate compared to other models of different brands.
A RETURN TO THE PAST
Since the announcement, MoonSwatch has aroused not always favourable reviews. However, collaborations between brands have always existed; in particular this Omega-Swatch partnership makes more sense than ever. It’s simply a return to the past.
During the Great Economic Depression, several brands had to join forces to survive. For this reason, in 1930, from the merger of Omega and Tissot, the SSIH (Société suisse pour l’industrie horlogère), was born. Later, in 1932, it expanded by acquiring Lemania. The Lemania 321 calibre is precisely the result of this union. Instead, in 1931, ASUAG (Allgemeine Schweizerische Uhrenindustrie AG), a holding company formed by numerous factories and brands such as Longines, Mido, Certina, Rado and ETA, was founded.
In the 1970s, Swiss companies, always considered at the forefront with their timepieces considered the best and most accurate on the market, began to suffer from the growing competition from cheap Japanese quartz watches. The Swiss mechanical watch industry had underestimated quartz timepieces, considering them a passing fad. To save the entire sector, they needed a new product.
THE RESCUE OF SWISS WATCHMAKING
The task was entrusted to Nicolas G. Hayek who began his career in the late 70s in today’s Swatch Group as a consultant for the two ASUAG-SSIH companies. Subsequently, in 1985, Nicolas became a majority shareholder and finally, in 1986, President and CEO.
Under his leadership, the Swatch project was perfected. In particular Nicolas G. Hayek was in charge of developing a winning marketing strategy and recovering from the banks the funds necessary to carry out the project. In less than two years he managed to pay off the debt.
ETA was the company in charge of creating the first Swatch. Within the same ASUAG-SSIH group, another company in the past had already made revolutionary watches with unconventional materials for the Tissot time. From its laboratories came the Bullhead (1969) with a fibreglass case and manual calibre Lemania 761, a variant of the 861 and the IDEA 2001 (1972), that is, the first plastic watch.
In those years Tissot was an experimental department of the SSHI group. And it is precisely for this reason that the collaboration between the companies of the Swatch Group makes more sense than ever.
In 1981 the first prototypes of Swatch were made.
On March 1st, 1983, in Zurich, Swatch presented a collection of 12 models that it marketed at the end of the year.
In 1983, Nicolas G. Hayek merges the two companies SSIH and ASUAG and in 1985 changed the company name giving life to the SMH (Societè suisse de microélectronique et d’horlogerie) which, in 1998, will be renamed The Swatch Group.
The name “Swatch” is the abbreviation of “Second Watch”, because the Swatch timepiece can be a second, a third and a fourth watch. To say better, thanks to the low price, everyone can have more than one model. In this way, the watch is not only a tool for measuring time but also a fashion accessory that through colours allows you to express your personality.
The Swatch was a huge commercial success right away. Within 5 years it became the best-selling watch in the world. The success of the project was dictated by the fact that Swatch watches were always different, cheap and collectable.
MOONSWATCH COLLECTIONS
This partnership has given rise to several MoonSwatch chronograph collections.
Mission to MoonSwatch: it was the first collection released on the market in March 2022. The eleven models, all of different colours, are inspired by the celestial bodies of our solar system.
Mission to Moonshine Gold: eleven different models released every month on the occasion of the full moon phenomenon. These watches each have a particular second hand covered in Omega’s Moonshine™ Gold.
Mission to Moonphase: formed by the black New Moon and the white Full Moon models. Both chronographs are equipped with the complication of the moon phases represented by the Snoopy character depicted lying on the lunar phase disc. Snoopy since the 1960s, has been the ambassador for the security and success of NASA’s manned space missions.
Mission on Earth: the collection, with the Lava, Polar Lights and Desert models, is dedicated to the Earth and three extraordinary natural phenomena seen from space: the lava flows of an erupting volcano, the sky coloured by the northern lights and the stretches of sand of a desert.
Mission to the Super Blue Moonphase: a chronograph with lunar phases and bezel with pulse scale that celebrates the blue moon of August 19, 2024.
Mission To Earthphase: model with moonphases and for the first time with earthphases.
These models all have the same features as Omega’s Speedmaster Moonwatch, including the design with the three recessed metres, the iconic “dot over ninety” on the tachymetric scale and the 42 cm asymmetrical case.
The MoonSwatch line is made with an innovative material, Bioceramic, a unique composite material. This mixture, consisting of two-thirds of zirconium oxide ceramic powder, and one-thirds of castor oil: it allows you to have a material with unparallelled strength and softness.
In addition, the Bioceramic is extremely light, the MoonSwatch weighs 29 g. Obviously the removable velcro strap and the ETA G10.211 quartz calibre (strongly) affect the weight of the watch. As with the Omega Speedmaster, all MoonSwatch have the Maison logo, in the centre of the glass, in this case, you can see the letter S of Swatch.
Each Omega X Swatch watch is contained in a box with information and technical references concerning the celestial body or the natural phenomenon to which it is dedicated.
Like 40 years ago, Swatch shakes up the world of watchmaking: the legendary Omega model gone to the moon becomes known and accessible to everyone.
The wave of enthusiasm that has formed around this collaboration has certainly moved a market that had flattened in recent years.
According to data released by the company, in 2022, the year of its launch, Swatch’s sales were 25 percent higher than the previous year.
It is not difficult to believe that these timepieces have become collectable watches that young people like but also Omega enthusiasts. In short, MoonSwatch is a huge success.
You must be logged in to post a comment.