Race To The Top

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Race To The Top - TAG Heuer
3 minutes read
Catherine Eberlé-Devaux, Heritage Director at TAG Heuer, sits down with WorldTempus to talk about the new partnership between TAG Heuer and Porsche

Tell us about the challenges of creating this first collection in this partnership — the balance of reflecting the modern companies vs celebrating the shared history.
We really wanted to create a product that connected the two brands. So Carrera was a natural choice for our first creative product collaboration, as the iconic name has been associated with TAG Heuer and Porsche for generations and the Carrera products are still icons in our both offers today and constantly developed to remain contemporary.

The biggest challenge in its development was I think to stay true to both brands’ DNA while making this product uniquely special. We spent a lot of time with the Porsche teams to understand what were the important details to highlight on this product to make sure the essence of both brands shined through. We wanted to make sure the product design would express the real fusion between both brands and we are quite excited with the result. This first product creates a clear link between both “Carreras”.

Race To The Top

There is such a rich shared history between TAG Heuer and Porsche, how difficult was it to choose specific elements or moments to make reference to?
We did not really had to choose. It was a natural process following the moments of our histories which have intertwined in intricate, intriguing ways over half a century. We followed our amazement on realizing how much similarities we had and still have. It is the first time that two heritage departments work so close with each other to nourish the legacy of this beautiful « wedding » of  two of the world’s most iconic brands. 

Race To The Top

Most car-watch brand partnerships don’t go much further than limited editions and events — how will TAG Heuer reflect the deeper nature of their partnership with Porsche?
What’s exciting and unprecedented is that this partnership is all-encompassing, a true 360° project so there are many aspects we are excited about and we want to work on for many years to come. A first important step in this holistic global brand partnership was the joint start in Formula E in 2019. Here, we perfectly combine tradition and innovation. The series has developed greatly in recent years and offers the greatest competition among manufacturers. 

Of course, this partnership will entail joint communication and a variety of projects on a brand level, with very popular platforms we will support together especially in motorsports, but also golf and tennis where both TAG Heuer and Porsche have been involved for a long time. We really want to build unforgettable events and experiences for both our customers and fans as soon as the circumstances allow. The purpose of this partnership is to bring creativity and innovation to the world that is only made possible through the connection of both brands. The new TAG Heuer Carrera Porsche Chronograph is a first step and glimpse of what we could achieve together.

Race To The Top

Both Porsche and TAG Heuer have evolved significantly as companies over the years, but which are the historical elements and values that have been maintained, strengthened, and that are reflected in these new partnership models?
We both have not only a rich common DNA in motorsports, illustrated through decades of powerful moments on the track, we also share the same mindset. We are both disruptors at heart, always in pursuit of high performance and very passionate about what we are doing. Since the early days of our entrepreneurial founding fathers and their visionary descendants, the pursuit of progress has been the driving force behind every product, and for us both this progress had tangible benefits for the customer and society overall: precision timekeeping for Heuer, in smaller and smaller increments which served athletes but also medicine, transport, industry, and today a digital lifestyle. For Porsche it was speed, power, reliability, pleasure, for racing and everyday drivers alike. We value beautiful design of course, but instilled with pragmatism, our objects are to be used and enjoyed by all. So our innovation efforts are focused on adding real value to our customers’ lives. And now together, we will create what they love the most: authentic heritage, thrilling sports events, unique life experiences and the fulfillment of dreams. We both strive to create unique experiences for our community.

Race To The Top

Give us a one-word or one-phrase hint about what we can expect to see next from this partnership.
You can expect real innovations from a movement perspective and drawing inspiration from automotive technologies from the Porsche world in the future… as well as many exciting events to come once the sanitary situation allows.

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