Swisswatches recently headed over to Hamburg in order to see and celebrate the official launch of Tudor’s second ever mono-brand boutique. Our editor Catherine Bishop reports back on what the space has to offer Tudor clients from far and wide.
When one hears Tudor, one thinks of David Beckham, the All Blacks, and of course being ‘Born to Dare’. Its hardy watches tend to be available from retailers, however the brand does also have a few mono-brand boutiques in locations such as Cologne, Dubai, and London. Most recently, the adrenalin-fuelled watchmaking company opened a new boutique in the very heart of Hamburg. The city is revered as one of Germany’s most attractive shopping cities nationwide, making this opening a fairly big deal for several reasons.
Location, Location, Location
The new boutique is based within Hamburg’s most popular luxury shopping district, Hamburger Neustadt. Its high-profile neighbours include the likes of Cartier and Porsche Design. People come from far and wide to shop in this area, including from neighbouring countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands. That is what makes the introduction of this modest-sized boutique so important: it will be visited not only by locals, but will be a crucial point of sale for those wanting to experience a Tudor boutique from further afield.
The space is located on Poststraße 3-7, which perches close to one of Hamburg’s many canals. This particular one is called Bleichenfleet, and is known for its scenic reflections of the luxury stores surrounding it in the evenings. The well-placed boutique has been created in collaboration with the prestigious Juwelier Rüschenbeck, which deals in both luxury watches and jewellery since the opening of its first jewellers in 1904, called Zur Goldecke (the Gold Corner).
A special collaboration
The opening is also important for another reason: Tudor boutiques remain rare. As Rémi Corpataux, Managing Director of Tudor Germany, explains, “The mono-brand boutique in Hamburg is our second boutique in Germany, alongside our shop in Cologne. Together with Juwelier Rüschenbeck, we are further expanding the brand network and thus continuously strengthening Tudor’s presence in the German market.”
Meanwhile, Wilhelm Rüschenbeck, Managing Director of Juwelier Rüschenbeck, was also present at the launch event for the new boutique. He had his own thoughts to add. “Highest quality, high recognisability and innovative spirit are the criteria that a brand must have for us. Tudor combines these characteristics like almost no other. Nothing could therefore make more sense than to give the Tudor world its own stage.”
A typical TUDOR experience
The new boutique is typical Tudor: the minimalist black shelves on the walls are adorned with rugby balls, books relevant to the brands, and a couple plants that benefit from the light exterior. Naturally, a sizeable poster of David Beckham takes over a portion of the back wall. Additionally, a life-size statue of a diver stands peering through the display window, wearing a Black Bay watch.
The two huge sheets of glass adorning the entrance fill the modest space with light, allowing for optimum viewing of the watches. Upon entering the store, one is currently greeted by the Tudor Black Bay 58 bronze, although the manager of the boutique explains that the watches on display are constantly on rotation.
Nevertheless, the use of bronze is important to Tudor, given its common use on watch cases – aka the Black Bay. Therefore, one entire section of the boutique is dedicated to an educational display about the creation and use of bronze by the manufacture. Customers can touch, feel, and turn over the bronze pieces in its various states in order to learn about how the cases are created.
Visiting the space
The Hamburg boutique has four well-informed employees who tend to work in twos or threes every day. Footfall varies from tourists to locals to the aforementioned shoppers from further afield, and the Tudor team offer these visitors individual advice, sales and service. The boutique is open every day, aside from Sundays, from 10:00 am to 19:00.
The Breitling Navitimer B02 Chronograph 41 Cosmonaute Limited Edition celebrates the Manufacture's connection with space flight. Today, Breitling is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Mercury Atlas 7 mission, during which astronaut Scott Carpenter wore a special Navitimer on his wrist as he circumnavigated the Earth three times. In fact, Breitling has therefore officially claimed…
At a time when the battleship Royal Louis of the French Royal Navy had to fight for its nation’s defence in the 18th century, its crew had to rely on precise navigation tools to calculate their position. They used marine chronometers – also called longitudinal clocks – because the determination of the longitude on the sea…
From complicated Chinese calendars and ground-breaking diver's watches to serene Villeret moonphase models, Blancpain has long been a master of not only horological finesse, but also design. Now, the brand is opening a new chapter with the introduction of three new Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Quantième Complet Phases de Lune variations, alongside additions to its three-hand…
Montblanc is a brand with a great tradition. So is its Minerva manufacture, the maker of historic and once extremely sought-after monopusher chronographs. Ever since Minerva became part of Montblanc, new monopusher watches have become amongst the most stylistic, defining, and successful models of the house. The latest reference is also very much in line…
Anniversaries always provide a nice opportunity to pay attention to important milestones. Swiss watch manufacture Breitling has such an anniversary coming up: one of their most important chronographs, the Premier, is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. Of course, Breitling wouldn't be Breitling without a surprise guest. With that, we can turn our full attention…
At the time when the collection was first launched in the 1960th it was still called Admiral’s Cup, named after the legendary sailing regatta that took place from 1957 to 2003. The collection soon became famous as the ‘nautical-legend’ and was the first ever waterproof square wristwatch. In the 1980th the dial received its striking flags that are…
It is a touching tribute to his father: as Philippe Stern turns 85 on 10 November, his son, Thierry Stern, will introduce the world to the Reference 1938P-001, limited to a mere 30 pieces. Thus, the current President will pay homage to the Honorary President of the manufacture, while its employees likewise honour the man who…
One thing is clear: Chopard is the maison for watches and jewellery. A brand that is just as closely associated with the history of the Mille Miglia as it is with the Cannes Film Festival, Swiss precision and a love of products meet cosmopolitanism and charisma. The fact that this status quo seems so familiar,…
To name a brand after a ‘long meadow’ sounds just as fairytale-like as the history of the watch brand Longines. The brand from the idyllic village ‘Les Longines’ in Saint-Imier literally means ‘long meadow’. Established in 1832 by Auguste Agassiz, the brand has headed skywards just as consistently as the long meadow-grass of the lush…
The history of the Omega Speedmaster is a tale of remarkable achievements, an impressive heritage, and some of the finest timepieces Omega has ever produced throughout its long-standing history. In this article, we will take an in-depth look at the origins of this iconic model, which holds such significance for the brand, and introduce some…
Rolex's new Land-Dweller watch model's movement presents a novel escapement that is well worth a closer look. What are its key features – and which inherent limitations of the Swiss lever escapement does it aim to overcome? Understanding escapements The escapement in a mechanical watch is essential: without it, the mainspring would cause the gear…
It must be the power of strong brands and manufactures: a good 50 watches have already been created for and with Bucherer BLUE, which sees itself as the in-house innovation lab of Bucherer – one of the largest and most renowned watch and jewellery retailers in the world. All of its models are united by…
Omega is known for its moonwalking Speedmaster, deep-diving Seamaster and sporty, elegant Aqua Terra. Stylish, historic, reliable: that's the best way to sum up Omega. But the brand is also known for having produced several significant technologies in the watch industry. With the industrial production of the Co-Axial escapement in 1999 and the introduction of the Co-Axial calibre in…