A surprisingly chic and sportive daily watch.
IT IS A BRAND NEW COLLECTION FROM HERMÉS
The Hermés H08 isthe company’s first new men’s collection for a number of years, and it is somewhat of a revelation. While the brand used to stir horological interest with handcrafted artisanal dials, or erudite, retrograde-based complications with unconventional displays that forces one to ruminate on the concept of time, the H08 is a lot more straightforward with instant, easy appeal. The three-minute pop hit equivalent of a watch, as opposed to the thought-provoking, slow-burning sonatas that Hermés usually dishes out.
IT IS IN THE SHAPE AND FONTS
Crafted in the mould of sports watches with easily identifiable shapes, the H08 comes in a 39 × 39mm cushion-shaped case, its sensibly proportioned dimensions, soft edges and smooth curves accentuated by a satin brushed bezel and mirror polished chamfers. Creative typography is always a thing to look out for with Hermés watches and on the H08, the specially developed typeface echoes the shape of the case, with a bit of intellectual musing included for good measure. ‘The ‘’ numeral embodies emptiness, while the horizontal figure 8 symbolises infinity’, explains the brand in its press communiqué.
IT IS STYLISH AND VERSATILE
Even if that doesn’t register, the H08’s aesthetic coherence makes it’s a very easy watch to like and wear. The case shape, beautiful hour markers, harmonious dial display centered by an inner ring of hour markers and minute railway track, spiked with a tiny orange arrow seconds hand amid the monochromatic shades of grey combine delightfully. In any of the watch’s iterations – graphene-filled composite with ceramic bezel; satin-brushed titanium with ceramic bezel and bracelet or rubber strap; and matt black DLC-coated titanium with ceramic bezel and rubber strap – the H08 is casually luxurious, sporty and chic all at once.
IT IS IMBUED WITH AUTHENTIC TECH
As for the ribbon at the top, the H08 is driven by Hermès’ in-house Caliber H1837 automatic movement. Named after the brand’s founding year and introduced in 2012, the H1837 was conceived in collaboration with Vaucher Manufacture, a movement making facility that Hermès has had a significant stake in since 2006 in a bid to verticalise its watch production. The movement itself is a proven performer – an engine with double barrel that offers 50 hours of power reserve and has been served at the heart of many Hermès collections, including the Arecau and Dressage lines.
