THE SHINE FROM MIAMI

LVMH Watch Week kicks off the year's calendar of watch events in sunny Florida. Here, Prestige's watch expert talks about her top picks from the show.

- LYNETTE KOH

Since its debut in Dubai in 2020, LVMH Watch Week has become a key event that kicks off the horological calendar each year, with the fair held at strategically important markets for its stable of watch brands.

Last year, it was held in Singapore. This year's edition took place in Miami from Jan 28 to Feb 1.

Here are highlights of the novelties from the four largest participating brands: Bulgari, Hublot, Tag Heuer and Zenith.

BULGARI

BULGARI BULGARI

Distinguished by the BVLGARI BVLGARI double inscription on its bezel, the Bulgari Bulgari watch is a horological icon with unlikely beginnings: In 1975, it started life as a digital watch with a quartz movement.

Cased in yellow gold and featuring a woven rope strap, it was created as a gift for the brand's top clients. Over the years, Bulgari Bulgari has been produced in a multitude of sizes and materials, becoming a firm celebrity favourite along the way.

Getting a head start before its 50th anniversary next year, the Roman jewellery and watch brand launches four new Bulgari Bulgari timepieces.

In a nod to the original model, two of them are housed in yellow gold - a versatile 38mm, self-winding watch powered by the calibre BVL 191 and a dainty, vintage-leaning 26mm quartz model. Both come with contrasting black dials and black alligator straps.

Also available in 38mm or 26mm case sizes, the other two models are housed in pink gold, complemented with silver opaline dials and brown alligator straps.

OCTO FINISSIMO AUTOMATIC 

A collector favourite since its launch in 2014, the ultra-slim, octagonal Octo Finissimo channels an industrial-chic aesthetic with its signature grey, matte titanium case. This year, Bulgari presents two new Octo Finissmo models that put a fresh spin on traditional horological style.