When I heard that Julien Tornare had been appointed CEO of Hublot, I honestly couldn't help but feel that he was right. Having successfully restructured Zenith, he seems like the perfect fit for Hublot at this point in time.
Photograph by Yu Mitamura
Masamasa Hirota (this magazine): Interview and writing
Text by Masayuki Hirota (Chronos-Japan)
Edited by Yukiya Suzuki (Chronos-Japan)
[Article published in the July 2025 issue of Kronos Japan]
Hublot must differentiate itself from other brands in every way
CEO of Hublot. Born in Switzerland in 1972. After graduating from the University of Geneva, he earned a Master's in Business Administration. After working at Raymond Weil, he joined Vacheron Constantin in 2000. After serving as head of the Swiss market, he became president of the North American market. Later, as managing director, he successfully developed the Chinese market. In May 2017, he became CEO of Zenith. He has held his current position since September 2024. His mission is to restore Hublot's innovative spirit.
"After taking over, I met with the company's founder, Carlo Crocco, and heard how revolutionary it was to combine gold and rubber in 1980. Jean-Claude Biver's innovations are well known, but I want to further strengthen them. Hublot has a special role to play in the watch industry, and we must differentiate ourselves from other brands in all aspects of marketing, products and distribution."
His emphasis is on innovation.
"Hublot has grown rapidly, but it may have become a bit ordinary. That's why we want to accelerate our differentiation. Our new advertising campaign is completely different from anything we've done before, and we're introducing a new hospitality program at the new Manufacture we're building at our headquarters in Switzerland that will offer our customers an exceptional experience."
The cornerstone of his strategy is product, which is no surprise given his success in streamlining the lineup at Zenith.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Big Bang, a symbol of Hublot's innovation. To commemorate this, a reissue of the first model has been released. The exterior finish has been dramatically improved, and the movement has been replaced with an in-house Unico. This new model, with its emphasis on classic style, is typical of Hublot today. Automatic (Cal. HUB1280). 43 jewels. 28,800 vph. Power reserve of approximately 72 hours. Titanium case (43mm diameter, 13.2mm thick). Water resistant to 100m. Limited to 500 pieces worldwide. Price: 2,849,000 yen (tax included).
"Honestly, I think we've had too many limited edition models in the past. So, going forward, we'll firmly establish a base collection and then add special, carefully selected limited edition models. In order to maintain rarity and luxury, we'd like to limit annual production to 4 to 5 units." He then goes on to talk about the importance of the movement.
"Hublot is known for its innovation in marketing and materials, but its watchmaking technology is not fully recognized. Therefore, over the next few months and years, I will be enhancing Hublot's movement strategy. We will increase the number of high-quality movements and improve the finishing of three-hand models. Next year, we will revamp the Classic Fusion and introduce a new model with a thin and elegant appeal." This means that we will likely see the emergence of an attractive movement like this year's "Meca-10." And the MP series, which is a symbol of Hublot.
"The possibilities for the MP series are endless. Next year, we will launch a very special and innovative MP model in collaboration with a famous contemporary artist. We plan to continue releasing two to four highly creative and exclusive MP models per year."
Hublot has grown up, for better or worse, as a result of its huge success. Under Julien Tornare, who proclaims a return to innovation, we look forward to seeing it undergo yet another disruptive evolution.
