In my 30 years of covering watches, I can’t say I’ve ever come across a Canadian edition. There have been plenty of U.S. editions, Tokyo editions, Dubai editions, Mexican and even Grand Cayman editions, but to my knowledge, there has never been a tie-in with Canada in the luxury watch industry. Until now.
Hublot is the first, proving once again that it is game to try anything, including recognizing watch collectors in one of the world’s smaller watch markets. According to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry’s 2023 report on value of exports by market, Canada stands at number 18, just below Australia, Taiwan and The Netherlands. We’ve got a lot of land up here, but not a lot of people.
As its name suggests, the Big Bang Unico Carbon Canada has a black carbon case, with highlights on the dial and flecks in the case in red and white to represent the colors of the Canadian flag. Our flag is dominated by a red maple leaf on a white background. The white accents, says Hublot, represent Canada’s snowy landscapes, and the red, its autumn foliage—the same could be said for New England, of course, but we’ll take it! All in all, says Hublot, the watch represents “an homage to the Great White North,” and calls it “a fusion of Hublot’s innovative craftsmanship with Canada’s rich heritage and national identity.”
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The Hublot Big Bang Unico Carbon Canada.
As a Canadian, this got me thinking: What is our national identity?
It’s been a topic of discussion here in the homeland for decades, as we strive to differentiate ourselves from Americans, and I can’t help wonder if any of the usual tropes were discussed during the development stages of the Canada Carbon. How best to capture the essence of Canadian culture? Did anyone, for example, do a deep dive into Canadian idioms. We say “eh” a lot .. why not put a big red “eh” instead of a big red 8 on the hour index? What a nice, subtle nod to a time-honored Canadianism. We also say “sorry” a lot for some reason (pronounced soar-y). As the joke goes: “How do you make a Canadian say ‘sorry?’ Step on his foot.” Wouldn’t it be be fun to put that word somewhere on the watch? Say, at the bottom end of a power reserve index. Sorry, out of power, eh?
The Hublot Big Bang Unico Carbon Canada.
We are also known for the northern lights, and that could be nicely represented by multi-colored gem-setting, a big thing now in luxury watches and not unusual for Hublot.
Another Canadian cultural symbol is the loon. Our one-dollar coin depicts the soulful-sounding, duck-like bird who inhabits our northern lakes. The coin is nicknamed “the loonie.” There are soda machines throughout the land with signs that say “Loonies Only.” But that could be easily misconstrued. What about a funny watch? Lots of famous comedians are from Canada: Seth Rogan, Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Jim Carrey, Howie Mandel, Ryan Reynolds, Michael J. Fox, Lorne Michaels. Maybe the watch could tell jokes. “A Big Bang, a Classic Fusion and an MP15 walk into a bar ….”
The Hublot Big Bang Unico Carbon Canada.
There is a maple leaf on the caseback, and again on the packaging, which is just enough. Putting a maple leaf on the dial would have been too kitschy for sure. Even the blue leaf that represents the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team would have seemed like a cheap souvenir, and might leave more erudite watch collectors wondering “why isn’t it Maple Leaves?”
And while Hublot didn’t emblazon the watch with our national flag, given that Canadians are low-key, a minimalist design might have worked a bit better. British/American novelist Lee Child described Canadians in one of his books as being somewhat “hapless,” which means unlucky, though in the context of his narrative, I think he meant “unremarkable.” But, hey, we helped the Allies win the second World War in a big way, and we did have the gumption to repatriate the Canadian Constitution from the UK back in the early 1980s, thereby ending our status as an outpost of the Commonwealth, along with our subservience (on paper) to the Queen. But I digress….
All in all, I think the subtle salute to the red and white Canadian maple leaf flag was the best way to go. I don’t understand the black carbon, other than the fact that the alliteration “Canada Carbon” has a nice ring to it. There are plenty of gold mines in Canada, and quite a few steel mills too, but that’s true in many countries, so a gold or steel case wouldn’t have done much to identify it as Canadian. The camoflage pattern remains a mystery, but I’m guessing it’s really just the matrix in the carbon that occurs when infused with other colors.
As for functionality, the chronograph is good for timing the three periods of a hockey game, or tracking times in the penalty box. It contains a Unico movement with a 72-hour power reserve.
Hublot elaborates: “Both of our boutiques (Toronto and Vancouver) have allowed us to reach further northern communities of luxury shoppers, watch collectors and enthusiasts and develop more personal connections with them as they discover and experience the Hublot brand,” says Natacha Lamour, president of North America & Caribbean. “As we have been building and strengthening our relationship with our customers, we found that there was a growing interest to have an exclusive timepiece for Canada that we couldn’t ignore.” Fair enough, and reason enough to do a Canada edition.
The Big Bang Unico Carbon Canada is a limited edition of 50 pieces and available exclusively at Hublot boutiques in Toronto and Vancouver. It is priced at $37,200 in Canadian dollars. $29,900 US.
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