Tying in to cigars and turning up the heat, Frederique Constant recently announced its partnership with Cohiba at one of New York City’s most exclusive clubs: Club Macanudo – and unveiled its automatic Frederique Constant for Cohiba Limited Edition watches. Cigars were smoldering all night long – making those who don’t like the smoke leave the premises. Those of us who enjoy a good cigar, however, hung around and indulged – and got to take in the new watches, too.
Not the first brand to tie in with cigars (Cuervo y Sobrinos and Franck Muller, among others, have done this well in the past), Frederique Constant nonetheless pulled out all the stops by opening up Club Macanudo, flying key retailers in from around the US to witness the launch and staging a line-up that included execs from the Club and Cohiba. Cases around the Club were filled with Frederique Constant
Each watch is built in a limited edition of 188 numbered pieces in each of the two finishes, and each is sold in its own select-wood humidor, along with 25 Cohiba cigars. The steel version sells for $1,650, while the rose goldplated model sells for $1,750. The watches naturally are only being sold through authorized Frederique Constant boutiques and are limited to US sales only. Of course, due to the nature of the product, Club Macanudo is also offering the watches for sale.
The project was eight months in the making and was the result of a simple suggestion to Frederique Constant by a loyal fan and follower, who also knew that Cohiba was looking to partner with a watch brand, says Ralph Simons, president of Frederique Constant USA, who notes that they then all got together to discuss the concept and it came together with smoking success.
The watches? They look sophisticated, they house good movements, they are perfectly priced, sell in a humidor with 25 cigars to celebrate and – best of all – hold both the Frederique Constant and Cohiba names. The drawback? There are only a limited number….
Other notes on Frederique Constant:
Family owned and operated, Frederique Constant was conceived of and founded by Peter C. Stas, an astute businessman with a passion for watches. His goal was to create an affordable mechanical wristwatch. In 1988, when Stas met Aletta Bax, the two mutually moved forward with the watch brand concept and created a name from their respective family histories: Frederique ( Aletta’s great-grandmother); Constant ( Peter’s great-grandfather, who had made clock dials). The brand was officially born. Its first automatic watches were revealed in 1992 and success ensued.
In addition to this exciting new venture with Cohiba, Frederique Constant is also a sponsor of the Peking to Paris vintage auto rally, which left from Peking in early September and is winding up in Place Vendome, Paris, in mid-October. The brand is also a charity supporter with its own fund and recently acted as an official partner and sponsor of the Par Coeur Gala 2010 in Paris, which helped Eva Langoria’s charity, Eva’s Heroes, to improve the lives of less fortunate people worldwide.