Bulgari

One of the first appointments of this Basel fair, and it already gave us quite the full message: evolution instead of revolution. Notwithstanding the Carillon, Bulgari revisited their classics and added subtle improvements and/or expansions. The company played its full strength of expertise and resisted the desire to show off something spectacular.

In our view a most welcome change. It gives customers the confidence that today’s watch is not obsolete tomorrow, and it also allows a better appreciation of the many subtle design and technology tricks implemented by the designers.

On the haute horlogerie side Bulgari made an impressive statement with the Carillon. Design, execution and performance are in a rare state of harmony, which is even more amazing given this watch is a kind of début for Bulgari in terms of repeating watches!

Magnus

My personally favourite was - surprisingly - the Diagono. I have never inspected this watch before and therefore cannot comment on the development of the line, but I was taken by the massiveness of the watch, the confidence it exudes while at the same time being stylish and distinctly Bulgari. A watch I could easily live with. It’s a good sign if the most affordable watch triggers such feelings!

Oliver

My personal favourites are the Serpenti Tubogas (simple steel version) for its very appealing look and the all over touch and feel. It shows special skills of Bulgari and feels like jewellery, but can be worn on casual and formal occasions. It is appealing and special, but does not shout. I see that watch especially on wrists of younger woman with an urban lifestyle. 

My other favourite is the Octa Maserati, which surprises me. Never was a big fan of the somehow “bulky” Octas, but this one is an exception. It is a massive watch, with lots of strong and sharp lines/details, but it doesn´t shout (too) loud. There is no visible Maserati logo, when you put it on your wrist and you have to be a real Maserati connoisseur to see the relationship. To me it is a very Italian watch, which fits perfectly to their kind of “La Dolce Vita”. The feeling when using the pushers of the chronograph is not what I really like, but hey we are talking about Italian and not German lifestyle … ;-)

In general I am pleased with the latest developments, especially when it comes to the all-over quality impression of the watches. Bought my first watches from Bulgari (Diagono collection) in the late 90´s and still like them a lot, but was not convinced with some of their later watches or evolutions and the strap quality. So what I saw in Basel was more than welcome and I am looking forward to their future developments – especially because of their positive evolutions instead of (loud) revolutions. They cover the basis and develop more sophisticated pieces – in-house. When it comes to the integration of DR and GG and to the evolution of their own Bulgari lines, one can see a strategy behind. Someone did his homework, properly.