Dominating racetracks worldwide for almost a century, TAG Heuer is overtaking its rivals for high-end connected watches with the help of 27-year-old Frédéric Arnault
Founded by Edouard Heuer in the Swiss municipality of St-Imier in 1860, TAG Heuer has always seen itself as ahead of the curve. Indeed, the initials TAG stand for 'Techniques d'Avant Garde' and the watch manufacturer has stayed true to its name with a series of horological world firsts.
In 1882, when the company was still known simply as Heuer, they patented their first chronograph. Just five years later, they invented the 'oscillating pinion', a system still incorporated in many of the finest chronograph watches to this day.
After pioneering the world's first dashboard chronograph – used in cars and aeroplanes – in 1914, Heuer introduced their first wristwatch that same year. Since then, chronographs have been in the DNA of the Swiss manufacturer. After dominating the racetracks with their Autavia, Carrera, Silverstone and their legendary Monaco model, TAG Heuer continues to take firsts when fast cars make it over the finishing line.
However, since November 2015, TAG Heuer has also dominated the luxury market for connected watches.
The new TAG Heuer Connected Watch Calibre E4. Photo: Tag Heuer
That was when charismatic industry veteran Jean-Claude Biver, the brand's then-CEO, introduced the Carrera-style TAG Heuer Connected watch. At the time, Biver explained that the modular concept behind the connected watch offered the possibility to trade in an old mechanical counterpart for a new connected timepiece, as both used the same strap due to equal lug width. This flexibility showed that Biver was an avid supporter of mechanical watchmaking's without being afraid to embrace a connected future. "It's a revolution," Biver told the New York Times in 2017. "It will change the face of watchmaking.
The move was clever was a clever one, and the TAG Heuer Carrera Connected watch was successful: 56,000 Carrera Connected watches were sold in 2016 and 150,000 the year after.
Frédéric Arnault. Photo: Tag Heuer
Today, TAG Heuer is under the helm of 27-year-old Frédéric Arnault. And the successes have kept coming.
Frédéric is the fourth child of Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton), who purchased TAG Heuer in 1999. He assumed the role of CEO of TAG Heuer in 2020 and has since taken the famous old brand to new heights.
Arnault is part of the generation partly brought up on smartwatches and has thus fully embraced TAG Heuer's move into connected watches. He recently told Vogue Business that, "Connected watches represent around 15 per cent of the business, which may grow, although mechanical watches will remain the core of the business. We believe in [connected watches] a lot."
Photo: Tag Heuer
Arnault has taken over where Biver left off and has continued the idea of offering a trade-in programme, including older models of its Connected watches as part of the deal. This means that customers of the Connected watch can visit select boutiques and benefit from trade-in credit toward the purchase of the latest generation of the Connected watch. This protects the Connected watch from becoming an obsolete product on the wrist as updates on smartwatches are almost as frequent as New Year's Eve.
TAG Heuer's latest edition is fourth generation, called Calibre E4. A name related movements is usually reserved for mechanical watchmaking, but is used here to introduce the most recent smartwatch range from the brand.
The TAG Heuer Connected Watch Calibre E4 is an entirely new generation TAG Heuer Connected Watch collection. For this new generation, TAG Heuer released two models, each of which highlights an aspect of TAG Heuer's Connected identity and is built to deliver ultimate elegance and sporting performance. Inspired by TAG Heuer's long-standing heritage in the sporting world, the larger 45mm model offers a striking redesigned sporty look. The 42mm, a premiere within the collection, provides a slimline look designed for elegance.
The new model also offers a curated selection of fresh watch faces highlighting different aspects of TAG Heuer's Connected universe, such as the new 'Riverside' watch face which is animated with an immersive futuristic effect of time elapsing.
The new TAG Heuer Connected Watch Calibre E4 watches. Photo: Tag Heuer
There's also an all-new feature of guided workouts, a function developed for on-the-go users to stay fit without having to keep a smartphone nearby. On-screen prompts guide users through exercises with animations on the screen and no need for a phone or TV.
Calling the 42-millimetre version with a 1.28-inch high-definition display "an elegant watch" and the 45-millimetres with a display of 1.39 niches "the sporty choice," TAG Heuer offer the Calibre E4 Connected watch with ultra-resistant sapphire glass and unmatched readability.
The new watch faces offer mechanically-inspired displays and mix elegance, connectivity and performance. And as TAG Heuer has been known to be a sporty manufacturer for decades already, it is no surprise that the functions of the Connected watch offer reading for the swimmer, the runner, the cyclist and everyone in between these active sports.
No matter the size, the TAG Heuer Connected watch is designed for performance and is ready for everyday use, while also looking elegant on the wrist of the wearer.