With 2024 drawing to a close, Hegid Paris is poised to introduce a new automatic calibre manufactured for the Maison in France and the launch of a new version of their currently sold-out Expedition line by year-end.
Meanwhile, the brand’s founders will also reveal news of their proprietary EVOL, which they describe as a dressing complication for mechanical watchmaking, at the upcoming Geneva Watch Days.
Co-founded by brothers Gregory and Henrick Gauché with Emeric Delalandre, the latter sowed the seed for the brand. Emeric had a summer job where Henrick was a retail chain director managing major watch brands and asked him why he was putting so much effort into growing other businesses when he could be investing in his own. The idea took hold and when Henrick was ready to launch, he reached out to Emeric, who was just completing his engineering studies, and his brother Gregory, a technical engineer in the automotive industry to establish the brand. They launched Hegid Paris at Baselworld in 2015.
“We patented a system of modular watches, and Gregory played a big role in that. You can buy different components when you want to and change the make-up of the watch quickly and easily without tools. We work with independent watchmakers, but all the engineering and design is in-house,” says Emeric.
He highlights the significance of launching Hegid when the market is ripe for innovation “and people are waiting for novelties. We bring something a bit new to this watch world.”
This timing and their innovative approach have allowed Hegid to carve out a niche in the competitive watch market. Hegid’s deep French roots are also a point of pride, with the brand embracing its Parisian heritage. Emeric remarks, “Paris is famous worldwide for luxury and fashion houses.” Hegid leverages this reputation to position itself as a brand that combines French luxury with cutting-edge watchmaking.
Inspired by the creativity of notable Parisian fashion houses, Hegid Paris’s concept allows people who like to have fun with their watches to customise their look by mood and occasion. They can change the strap, carrure (watch’s body), and capsule (which houses the movement). “So, this is the idea behind Hegid, to be able to make up your watch yourself as a way of expression, kind of like a touch of style,” says Emeric.
Hegid was born from active imagination. Henrick started by mixing several watches to create one that was more his style – eventually getting to the invention of EVOL, i.e. evolving watchmaking, in his quest to find something to match his hair colour, he joked in conversation recently in Geneva.
The brand’s unwavering commitment to quality ensures craftsmanship that competes with well-established Swiss watchmakers. Henrick proudly states, “We produce almost everything in the watch in a small area between the French and the Swiss border… We strive to match the quality of [the top brands], and we offer that new feature to appeal to a different kind of client, the creative one, who wants a unique watch. Okay, you don’t want to have the same watch as your neighbour or your cousin? Then create one yourself. You just need your brain and your fingers as tools. It’s a little bit like Steve Jobs with the iPhone, you know?”
From design to production, Hegid chose a local ecosystem from the beginning. This choice was motivated by patriotism and common sense, inspired by France’s role in the luxury sector. Apart from the Swiss movements sourced from a factory in La Chaux-de-Fonds, the watches are mostly produced by craftsmen on native land.
As for their design, this is attributed mainly to Hegid’s artistic director, Jerôme Coste. Take the Mirage, for instance. First revealed in 2020, Coste imagined it as the ultimate road companion cruising the Riviera in a transalpine supercar, the Lamborghini Miura. The new iteration of the line, the Mirage Soleil, features a radiating textured dial that “sublimates equally well under the piercing beams of the Mediterranean sun as it does under the flashes of the paparazzi attending the coveted parties.”
The Mirage Soleil retains the same profiled, satin-finished steel case as the original and the distinctive character of the Virage quilted strap in Nappa leather, also made in France. But its new faceted dial adds more fun – telling time is a guessing game. After all, who needs to be anywhere precisely when you’re in cruising mode?
The brand’s launches in 2024, such as the Vision sports watch line, have further solidified Hegid’s place in the market. The Vision sports watch has been modernised with enhanced legibility, maintaining its challenge-ready specifications and strengthening its status as a perfect tool for professionals. The new face of the Vision is characterised by its dynamic curves, sophisticated dial and indexes, which are unprecedented in many respects.
Consistent with the evolutionary principle of Hegid timepieces, the elements composing the various models in all the lines are available separately and can be adapted to earlier creations.
As an independent French brand, Hegid faces challenges competing with the marketing power of more prominent, established watchmakers. However, their unique approach, unwavering commitment to quality, and innovative spirit have allowed them to stand out in a crowded market. Emeric encapsulates this sentiment by saying, “Being different is sometimes hard.” Still, this difference makes Hegid an attractive option for those seeking something new and customisable in the world of luxury watches. With our innovative spirit, we are constantly pushing the boundaries of watchmaking, promising you exciting and unique timepieces in the future.
For those considering a Hegid watch, the allure lies not just in the superior quality and craftsmanship, but also in the brand’s ability to provide a personalised and adaptable timepiece that can suit various styles and occasions – a distinct proposition in today’s watch market.
A Hegid Paris watch is the ultimate accessory – a quality mechanical timepiece competitively priced and designed to last for generations. Parts are presented in a watchmaking coffret or wardrobe – a lacquered and varnished wooden box, custom-designed for an expanding collection that can accommodate nine to 16 scenarios.
The watches in Hegid’s range are available on hegid.com and in boutiques, including the Hegid showroom at 8 rue Volney in Paris. Hegid Paris offers a journey through time like no other for watch enthusiasts seeking innovation and tradition harmoniously intertwined.
