STYLE Edit: Hublot unveils 2 new meaningful luxury timepieces at LVMH Watch Week 2023 – an update to its debut Classic Fusion Original, and a Big Bang Unico Sorai for rhino conservation

Jan 30 , 2023

Hublot Big Bang Unico Sorai. Photos: Hublot

The Swiss luxury watch brand released 2 new and meaningful models at the recent LVMH Watch Week 2023 – one that nods to its past and the other which focuses on the future

Carlo Crocco’s 80s original gets an update as the Classic Fusion Original, while the Big Bang Unico Sorai repped by cricketer Kevin Pietersen supports Save Our Rhino Africa India

Hublot unveiled two meaningful timepieces loaded with significance at LVMH Watch Week 2023, one that echoes its past and another that points us towards a hopeful future.

In an homage to its creation story, Hublot introduced the Classic Fusion Original, an update of the first-ever timepiece created by the Swiss house. The rule-breaking design is known for marrying two contrasting materials: a precious gold case was paired with a simple black rubber strap, in what was an unthinkable combination back in the 1980s when Carlo Crocco first revealed the brand’s namesake watch. The round case is inspired by a ship’s circular porthole, called hublot in French.

The Hublot Classic Fusion Original timepiece pays homage to the brand’s first-ever watch

The 2023 Hublot Classic Fusion Original is a slightly more pared down version compared to the original, with six screws in the bezel instead of the original 12. It is available in a selection of yellow gold, titanium and ceramic, with 42mm and 38mm cases powered by the automatic Hublot HUB1110, and also in a 33mm quartz version.

Hublot Classic Fusion Original wristwatch

In another exciting release at LVMH Watch Week 2023, Hublot revealed the Big Bang Unico Sorai in support of Save Our Rhino Africa India. Since 2019, Hublot has been working with the wildlife organisation, founded by Hublot ambassador and former international cricket star Kevin Pietersen, donating part of the proceeds from sales to the organisation.

The latest dedication to the endangered animals is the 44mm Hublot Big Bang Unico Sorai crafted in micro-blasted and polished grey ceramic, and created in a limited edition run of 100 pieces. The watch is resplendent in colours of orange, pink and purple, inspired by both the dusk and the dawn skies across the African plains. The brand hopes that the colours can simultaneously remind us of the rhino’s most vulnerable time when poachers come out at nightfall, as well as its most hopeful time when they are able to see a new sunrise.

Inside the Big Bang Unico Sorai beats the MHUB1280 UNICO 2 Manufacture self-winding flyback chronograph movement with a 72-hour power reserve. The funds raised by the watch will go directly to essential anti-poaching facilities such as surveillance cameras and on-the-ground rangers.