Reviews
How Much the Carrera Heuer-02T Doesn’t Cost
Reviews
How Much the Carrera Heuer-02T Doesn’t Cost
In part one of the interview, Mr. Biver and Wei start off taking about how, from the get go, at Basel this year — there has been a running theme in the industry, which also in turn happens to be a lesson that the industry is having to learn in its stride given its present economic climate. It is a theme that Mr. Biver himself has spoken about with the greatest of urgency since day one at Basel.
The word that best describes this theme that I speak of is: Value. In Mr. Bivers words, the challenge in 2016 is to continue to create great products, which bear “a perceived value that is twice its price.”
The Carrera Heuer-02T was first announced in 2015, at Basel, with one image for impression’s sake and a few words from TAG Heuer outlining its intention with the watch. Now, mind you these were days long before the present economic climate had hit. Then you consider the time prior to the announcement in 2015 that TAG Heuer must have spent in order to bring the Carrera Heuer-02T to fruition — and then we are able to comprehend what an immense man of foresight, Mr. Biver is.
Because the Carrera Heuer-02T, therefore, wasn’t created as a solution hoping to capitalize on the market in troubled times, but really with messianic purpose to bring to market a product that redefines what we understand to mean when the word “value” is uttered.
It was a very valid response because it is generally the norm in how much it takes to create a, basic, tourbillon timepiece. But on hindsight, we know now that Mr. Biver was challenging the team to think out of the norm and, therefore, create a tourbillon watch that, as a result of how they were producing it — would cost half of what its perceived value is.
Announced at Basel 2015 (that’s right, they announced the price first in 2015) the Carrera Heuer-02T, of course, bears the astounding starting price tag of 14,900 CHF. That’s not even half of 45,000 CHF — moreover, the Carrera Heuer-02T is not just a tourbillon watch but a COSC certified, tourbillon chronograph.
At this point you attain an odd sort of enlightenment, and suddenly realize that it doesn’t matter how much the watch does cost — but what matters is how much it doesn’t cost. How is it that TAG Heuer has managed to go against its own understanding of how much a tourbillon watch should cost?
It would appear, again as explained very animatedly by Mr. Biver in his chat with Wei, TAG Heuer’s not necessarily found some magical new tourbillon that’s easier and costs lesser to produce, but rather it is the process of producing the timepiece that was their point of innovation.
As you take time to wear the Carrera Heuer-02T, you will without doubt recognize that TAG Heuer has managed this feat with ZERO compromise made to the build quality of the watch, and to the point that the watch stood up to the challenge of the COSC certification. Inspect its finer aspects, for example the point of focus, the watch’s tourbillon and its carbon top section and titanium middle components, which all bear the quality and level of finish that is expected of the TAG Heuer name.
There in, I implore you, let’s stop speaking about how little the Carrera Heuer-02T does cost and instead focus on how much this incredible accomplishment of horology should cost — but does not.