STYLE | Watches
TIME to go
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Units 3&4, Royal Opera House, The Piazza, Covent Garden WC2E 8HD +44 (0) 20 7952 2040
Make your countdown to carbon neutral as stylish as possible, says Simon de Burton
F
ew things work harder for their place on Earth than a mechanical wristwatch. After all, how many other objects not only operate reliably 24 hours a day, 365 days per year (with minimal care and maintenance) but can also last several lifetimes and do no harm to the planet in the process? Clockwork watches may seem an anachronism in our digital age, but one of the reasons for their burgeoning revival in popularity is that they’re almost unique in their sustainability – a fact that led Bucherer, one of the world’s largest watch and jewellery retailers, to introduce a ‘certified pre-owned’ offering at its Geneva store in late 2019. Now the concept has been brought to the UK with the opening of the new Bucherer flagship boutique in London’s Covent Garden, where a significant amount of floorspace has been given over to pre-owned watches from the 35-plus brands retailed by Bucherer, plus its own Carl F. Bucherer dial name.
In addition to making the most of the longevity of well-made watches, the service aims to give buyers the chance to find discontinued models and difficult-to-source limited editions. It also gives those on a smaller budget the chance to get on the luxury watch ladder for less than the cost of buying new. Each pre-owned piece is thoroughly checked over and serviced by Bucherer’s in-house watchmakers to ensure its authenticity, condition and functionality, before being issued with a certificate that verifies it as genuine and ‘good to go’. The available selection changes on a regular basis as watches are sold and replaced by others, giving the boutique a magnetic attraction for horophiles such as me, who are always looking for ‘one more watch’. And if you can’t visit in person, all the pre-owned pieces can be seen and purchased through the online shop. bucherer.com
F O U R E C O - F R I E N D LY W A T C H B U Y S IT’S ID-EAL FOR THE PLANET Panerai says 98.6 per cent of the weight of its new Submersible eLAB-ID dive watch is made from recycled elements, including the Eco Titanium case, fabric strap and even the SuperLuminova dial. The brand is keen to collaborate with other dial names on ‘circular’ watchmaking. eLAB-ID, £54,000. panerai.com
THAT’S A CULE(M) FOREST CuleM, launched by British entrepreneur Matthew Cule in 2018, plants 100 trees and protects six acres of rainforest for every watch the brand sells. In its short history, it has already financed the planting of 12,769 mangrove trees in Madagascar. Lights GMT, £1,195. culemwatches.com
WHAT A WOKE WATCH French brand Awake claims its AW.01 model is ‘the most ecoinnovative watch ever made’. This affordable timepiece is said to be made exclusively from reengineered, bio-degradable components. Cases are made from a material called RE:FN-S1, a polymer produced from old fishing nets. AWAKE .01, €280. awakeconcept.com
STRAP IT ON IWC is offering new TimberTex sustainable straps on four of its models. Made from plant fibres sourced from trees certified by the FSC, the straps are crafted in Italy before being padded with recycled microfibre and coloured with plant-based dyes. Portugieser Automatic 40, £6,450. iwc.com
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