If you’re an avid horse racing fan, chances are you’ve seen the winners bolt across the finish line at the Kentucky Derby or other Triple Crown races with the Longines clock in the background timing the win. Or, if you’re a horse breeding or jumping competition aficionado, you’ve spotted Longines as a title sponsor of some of the most important equestrian events.
In addition to its loyal following in the horse world, Longines boasts a robust roster of Ambassadors of Elegance and multiple watch collections that span from traditional complications to sporty and elegant watches. Even with all this in its repertoire, Longines continues to innovate and expand, especially in the U.S. market.
“From its very earliest moments, much of Longines’ significant history has been written in the United States—from timing equestrian races in the 1880s and serving as the official timekeeper of numerous historic flights to producing timepieces for U.S. railroads, the Navy and the Army,” says Matthieu Baumgartner, Longines vice president of marketing. “The United States has always been an important market to us, and we have been investing much time and effort in developing it. … Our aim is to accelerate our growth in the country with stronger efforts in communication, distribution and specific product development.”
One timepiece emblematic of the brand is the HydroConquest Ceramic. Water-resistant to about 300 meters, this dive watch features a highly functional unidirectional rotating bezel with a colored ceramic dive-indication inset. With SuperLumiNova hands and markers, the watch can weather the depths and the elements of the sea, but still looks great on land.
Other crowd favorites include the Longines Skin Diver and Longines Heritage Military watches. With the vintage craze in full swing among enthusiasts, these sporty timepieces—based on historic 1940s models—are taking the market by storm. Longines also knows some connoisseurs prefer a touch of elegance. The brand’s recently released Longines Master Collection Moonphase watch boasts a simple complication, yet is a highly functional and precise COSC-certified chronometer.
Longines takes technology to all-new heights with the Conquest V.H.P. GMT Flash Setting timepiece. Designed for frequent travelers, the watch incorporates an easy-change system for crossing time zones. While the GMT function can be set manually by hand, it can also use the smart technology Flash Setting system that uses flash pulses (similar to Morse code) to set the watch to the new time zone.
