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Concord
A bold renewal

Concord is returning to the centre of the watch-making stage by redefining itself with a bold new philosophy, aggressive positioning and innovative, unexpected product design. Backed by the MGI Luxury Group and invigorated by an enthusiastic new team, the brand is undertaking a bold new repositioning strategy. A new face is giving clear expression to Concord's personality and ambitions: to affirm its legitimacy in the high-end watch segment, while adopting an original iconoclastic approach.

The vision of the MGI Luxury Group is to create a bold, contemporary brand in the exclusive luxury segment. Following a comprehensive makeover, Concord embraces a sharp new identity, derived from its roots and traditions - bringing its own unique, edgy dimension to the international watch-making sphere. The metamorphosis reveals a brand with a clear-cut and uncompromising character.

Today, Concord is placing an emphasis on international development, while pursuing the strategy deployed over recent years, especially in the Middle East and Asia. The active development of a selective network of distributors and privileged partners is reinforcing the emergence of a brand which has nurtured a strategic vision targeting ambitious, long-term goals.

Pursuing an innovative strategy, Concord is significantly upgrading its collection while capitalizing on its distinctive assets. History demonstrates that this brand, launched at the beginning of the 20th century, built a successful reputation among the public and its competitors based on its distinctive product creations. After numerous successes in the first part of the century, as an accredited supplier to the most prestigious jewelry houses in Europe and the United States, Concord created a new chapter in history in 1979, with the introduction of the Delirium, the slimmest watch ever produced. Today, the brand is continuing to demonstrate its know-how in the construction of exceptionally complex cases and, through its focus on quality, setting strict standards that govern each step of the conception and manufacturing processes.

Moreover, this relentless passion for reliability and technology is further enriched by useful watch-making complications and highly innovative, ambitious design that is fresh, bold and highly unexpected.

Concord watches embody cutting-edge technology - each execution is based on an original and demanding approach: watch design process has been stripped down, taken entirely apart so that each of its elements and components can be rethought in its own right.

C1, is the first application of this new approach. Radical in many ways, it defines the new Concord profile -- a sophisticated, refined and technologically advanced.

On the eve of the brand's 100th anniversary – Concord is cultivating uniqueness, reinventing performance and making exclusivity a principle.

COSC Certified C1 Chronograph
Expect the unexpected

Forceful, C1 shows its ambitions in a monumental steel case measuring 44 mm in diameter and 16.70 mm thick, featuring a powerful design. Its strikingly modern graphic look heralds a structural watch utilizing an innovative approach to materials. Its radical construction gives it a rugged durability that leaves behind established standards.

Water-resistant to 200 meters and comprising 42 parts, the case benefits from a revolutionary assembly method, which absorbs shocks and thus optimizes the sturdiness of the watch. A metal protective ring coated in rubber and fixed laterally by self-blocking screws is enhanced by eight decorative elements straddling the bezel. These bastions protect a spectacular 3.30 mm thick sapphire crystal, which literally emerges from the case. The structure of the crown adds an additional complex touch. No fewer than three materials are required to manufacture it: rubber, composite and steel are clever combined to form one dense and highly resistant entity. Built according to the same technique, the pushers also make their contribution to the strong personality of the timepiece.

The CI is a visionary model that redefines the high-end chronograph. Drawing upon the brand's know-how, the watch's original and boldly unconventional construction proves that creativity can be expressed in many different ways: from technology to aesthetics, from materials to decoration and from function to emotions. Certified by the official Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC), this forceful, ultra-masculine watch is a concentrated union of performance and innovation. Before earning the highly coveted title of official Swiss chronometer, its self-winding movement underwent a series of detailed tests in one of the COSC laboratories, for two complete weeks.

The perfectly readable dial has a distinctive layered construction with a depth and perspective that are accentuated by the subtle effects of shade and light. Made of carbon fiber and machined metal, it is encircled with sunken applied hour-markers, filled with luminescent material, that are flown over by equally luminescent, athletic hands radiating a sense of determination and purpose. Partially hollowed out, their alternating solid and open parts create a fascinating asymmetrical effect through a real interplay of force on the central stem, calling for a particularly demanding assembly process.

The 30-minute and 12-hour counters face each other majestically at 12 and 6 o'clock. The surprising small seconds display at 9 o'clock aspires to capture time: its display, controlled by a disc in permanent rotation, represents a new technical prowess on the part of the brand's watchmakers. The first quarter of the minute circle matches the Concord blue color of the sweep seconds hand. Finally, the date display, progressively revealed in a semi-transparent manner, specifies the measurement of time.

The bracelet in black vulcanized rubber with a brushed matte finish produces a striking contrast in materials. The chronograph is also available with a metal link bracelet, completely integrated with the case by an original system of articulation, for which a patent is pending. The conception of the attachments ensures perfect adjustment to the shape of the wrist.

The synergy between light and textures reinforces the visual language of the watch. The case finishing – polished-brushed, satin-brushed or mirror-polished for the screws – and the rounded angles at the corners, embody technical assertiveness and a unique inspiration. The transparent case-back reveals the beauty of the mechanism and a decorated oscillating weight. It is also engraved with the Concord seal, which will serve as the Company's signature on all of its creations from now on: "Audacity – Know-how – Avant-garde".

The C1 chronograph embodies cutting-edge design and technical mastery, expressed through a strong identity that turns traditional watch-making conventions upside down through its style and functionality. Intended for a discerning audience with a taste for rare objects, it offers a chance to view time measurement from a completely new angle.

The C1 Big Date automatic, also steps onto the watch-making stage. Its construction also represents a major technical feat, exuding a bold aesthetic. In addition, a ladies' model is offered in stainless steel or 18-karat pink gold, enhanced by several variations of gem-setting. The settings feature original combinations that play on the materials and colors. All of which provide ample proof that the new Concord C1 timepiece, beyond its function as an instrument for time measurement, is a stylish and exclusive object conveying an exceptional attitude, character and presence.

C1 Chronograph

Technical characteristics

Movement

- Mechanical self-winding, Calibre A07.211 (Valgranges), 16½ lignes, chronometer-certified by the COSC (Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute)

- Frequency: 28,800 vibrations/hour, 4 Hz

- Power reserve: 48 hours

- Parts: à confirmer

- Jewels: 25

- Thickness: 7.90 mm; 2.39 mm of hand-fitting

- Diameter: 37.20 mm, of which 36.6 mm casing dimensions

Functions

- Hour, minute, small seconds on permanent turning disc (1/10 mm thick)

- Central sweep seconds hand, 30-minute and 12-hour counters

- Date

Case

- Round, stainless steel

- Diameter: 44 mm

- Thickness: 16.70 mm

- Protective ring in rubber-coated steel, screwed in laterally, enhanced by eight decorative elements on the bezel

- Sapphire crystal 3.30 mm thick

- Crown in steel, rubber and composite

- Rotor engraved with Concord logo, case signed with the words: Audacity - Know-How - Avant-garde, stamped in relief

- Transparent sapphire crystal case-back

- Water-resistance: 200 meters

- Also available in 18-karat pink gold

Dial

- Carbon fiber. Also available in polished metal (polished steel? Should state type of metal)

- Hour-markers with SuperLuminova luminescent material SLNC1

- Hour and minute hands in steel, asymmetrically hollowed out, filled with SuperLuminova luminescent material SLNC1

- Steel counter hands

- Concord blue sweep seconds hand

Bracelet

- In vulcanized rubber with Concord folding clasp

- Also available in stainless steel with Concord folding clasp

Concord

100 years of history

1908 Foundation of the Concord Watch Company SA in Biel.

1909 Establishment of an affiliate in New York.

1915 Launch of the first luxury private label watches with gemstones and precious metals.

1945 During the Potsdam Peace Conference, American President Harry S. Truman gives Concord watches to his counterparts, including Churchill.

1946 Introduction of the first coin wristwatches

1968 On the request of the New Yorker Magazine, an independent organization conducts a survey to assess consumer awareness of watch brands in the luxury segment. Concord ranks sixth.

1970 Gedalio Grinberg takes over the presidency of Concord Watch Company SA and associates the brand with the North American Watch Corporation, headquartered in New York.

1979 Launch of the Delirium, which makes world headlines. The slimmest analogue watch ever made and the first to be less than 2 mm (1.98 mm) thick. This event marks the beginning of a trend towards ultra-thin watches.

1980 Launch of the Delirium II, the thinnest skeleton watch in the world (less than 1.5 mm thick). Launch of the Delirium III, an ultra-thin ladies' watch. Launch of the Delirium IV (0.98 mm thick).

1986 Birth of the Saratoga collection.

1996 The North American Watch Corporation becomes Movado Group, Inc. (MGI).

2006 Transfer of Concord's international head office to Biel, Switzerland.

2007 Launch of the C1 chronometer.

2008 A century of history heralds the beginning of a new story…