Chanel
- Founded
- 1910
- Based in
- Paris, France (watches made in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland)
- In our catalog
- 2 watches from $4,200 to $8,000
Chanel's watches are easy to underestimate. The house is best known for fashion and perfume, but since the late 1980s it has built up a real watchmaking operation in Switzerland, and its J12 is one of the most successful designs of the last twenty-five years. It also holds stakes in several respected independent watchmakers.
History
Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel opened her first shop in Paris in 1910. The house's first watch, the Première, arrived in 1987, designed by Jacques Helleu, Chanel's longtime artistic director. Its octagonal case echoes the stopper of the No. 5 perfume bottle and the shape of Place Vendôme in Paris.
Helleu also designed the J12, launched in 2000 in black high-tech ceramic, a material then rare in watches. A white version followed in 2003 and became a phenomenon. Chanel built its own watch factory in La Chaux-de-Fonds and in 2019 updated the J12 with an in-house-developed caliber produced with Kenissi, the movement maker in which it is a shareholder alongside Tudor. Chanel also owns minority stakes in F.P. Journe and Romain Gauthier, as well as Bell & Ross.
Signature models
- J12 38: The ceramic sports-chic watch in black or white, with a matching ceramic bracelet. The current version has an automatic movement with a 70-hour power reserve.
- Première Édition Originale: The 1987 design, a small octagonal watch on a chain-and-leather bracelet that's as much jewelry as watch.
- Boy·Friend: A rectangular, slightly masculine watch inspired by men's tailoring.
What it's known for
The J12's glossy, scratch-resistant ceramic has aged remarkably well, and the shape is instantly recognizable. Chanel's watchmaking has become more serious each year, and its high-end pieces, made in collaboration with independent watchmakers, are respected by collectors who don't otherwise follow fashion brands.
Price and positioning
Chanel watches start around $4,000 for a Première and run to about $7,500 and up for an automatic J12, with jeweled and complicated pieces much higher. That puts them in the same range as Cartier and Hermès, the other luxury houses with a serious watch side.
Chanel watches in our library
- Chanel Première Édition Originale ($4,200 to $4,800)
- Chanel J12 38 ($7,350 to $8,000)