Among guests attending the opening night celebration hosted by Omega for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Cindy Crawford and her daughter Kaia Gerber brought an extra note of glamour to the evening. Crawford is a long-standing partner to the brand, from the time the women’s Constellation watch launched in 1995 with its succinctly memorable “My Choice” slogan. Since then, the supermodel turned actress and entrepreneur has been Omega’s choice. In fact theirs is the longest ever partnership between a celebrity and a watchmaker. Like mother, like daughter: in 2021 Kaia Gerber became the face of the Omega Tresor line, then Deville and… Constellation.

Staying with the 1990s, while the decade was a golden age for catchy slogans (“Always Coca-Cola”, anyone?), watchmakers were just dipping their toes into the advertising pool. With one exception: the campaign Patek Philippe launched in 1996 telling us that “You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation”. Still going strong, the ad has never been fronted by a single face. Omega has taken a different tack, not least when helmed by a certain Jean-Claude Biver (author of the unequivocal “Since 1735 there has never been a quartz Blancpain watch. And there never will be”). The Constellation’s image would be so closely tied to that of the brand’s global ambassador that it became known simply as “Cindy’s watch”!

Omega’s decision to associate the Constellation with a celebrity went against the grain of the industry’s usual practice of focusing on the product and its technical characteristics. In a market flooded by more accurate, cheaper, fashion-forward quartz, the fading appeal of a mechanical timepiece was unlikely to capture consumers’ imagination. Cindy Crawford, on the other hand… The American embodied a particular lifestyle, success and values that were important to Omega. She also gave the Constellation its image of a luxurious, practical but equally glamorous watch, perfect for busy, independent women. Omega’s Swatch Group stablemate Longines appears to have looked and learned: in 1999 the brand introduced its “Elegance is an attitude” tagline, spearheaded by Audrey Hepburn, star of Roman Holiday, a celebration of la dolce vita, another theme Longines has embraced.

The 1990s thus marked a turning point in how watches were promoted. Whereas previously a timepiece sufficed in itself, buoyed by its own legend and the occasional, always male, hero, from James Bond to Steve McQueen, growth opportunities were now expected to trigger fresh ideas, in particular in the women’s segment. This role fell essentially to the “faces of” and behavioural mimicry: a strategy intended to provoke purchases in response, often subconsciously, to social stimuli. Who better to initiate these stimuli than the women gazing out from magazine covers and movie screens. Initially chosen for their appearance and aura, these “ambassadors” would quickly prove essential, as brands realised that women enjoyed watches too… and not just for the number of diamonds on the dial.

There are those who, legitimately, question whether the impact of seeing Julia Roberts wearing Chopard, Serena Williams in Audemars Piguet, Michelle Yeoh in Richard Mille or Jessica Chastain in Piaget is sufficient to justify their six-figure contracts. Judging by their rising population at brands, the question answers itself. Women brand ambassadors are everywhere, from disciplines that go beyond the fashion runway to include film and sport, beauty contests and royal families. They are even moving into traditionally male-dominated areas. Breitling, for example, makes a point of featuring inspirational women in its squads. The likes of actress Charlize Theron, alongside women surfers and triathletes. Year after year, Richard Mille welcomes new members to its extended “family” of elite female athletes from the worlds of motor racing, golf, skiing or track and field, as does TAG Heuer. Meanwhile, Hublot is busy in the kitchen, alongside Michelin-starred chefs Anne-Sophie Pic and Clare Smyth. The days are gone when these women were chosen solely for their physical appearance. Today’s brand ambassadors are singled out for their achievements, creativity and sense of purpose, as demonstrated by the explorer and artist Zaria Forman, who has joined Vacheron Constantin’s “One of Not Many” talents.

This diversity goes beyond disciplines and is also geographic. As brands’ sphere of influence has spread to the five continents, consideration for local values and cultures has become a factor in choosing who represents their products. Given that every watchmaker has had its sights firmly on Asia these past years, brands have recruited among the continent’s most popular personalities. Examples include the Korean actress Han So-hee at Omega, Chinese actress Liu Yifei at Bulgari or Korean singer Suzy at Longines, alongside Chinese star Zhao Liying. There is a reason brands appoint Asian stars to represent them. Peter Xu is a Chinese blogger with several million fans on Weibo. Speaking at Watches and Wonders, he explained how “the people with the greatest influence in the luxury sector are the celebrities who promote brands.” Henceforth, ambassadors form a vast international community where it’s no longer unusual to see one or the other flit from brand to brand. At brand level, a change in commercial strategy can result in a revolving door of ambassadors, at the risk of confusing customers. A long-running relationship such as that of Omega with Cindy Crawford is rare.

The practice of sticking a famous face, even a sweaty, out-of-breath one, on a watch appears to be losing traction as brands search for more imaginative ways to engage a wider audience; in particular younger generations more inclined to purchase a smartwatch over mechanical. One solution has been to borrow a tried and tested formula from the fashion industry and launch collaborations (collabs for short). As one half of a joint creative process, these personalities bring a fresh perspective, new audiences and an instant following for their watchmaker partners. During his time at the head of TAG Heuer, speaking about the brand’s collaborations, the inimitable Jean-Claude Biver declared “not only do I want to continue to reconnect the brand with young generations, with Millennials, I also want to open up new areas for expression, from products to marketing, communication and distribution.”

After the wave of collaborations in the largely predominant men’s watch segment, collabs are making strides in the women’s segment, too. Audemars Piguet worked with jeweller Carolina Bucci for its Frosted Gold and with fashion designer Tamara Ralph on a limited-edition Royal Oak. Staying with the fashion world, haute couture designer Yiqing Yin brought her aesthetic to the Égérie moon phase which Vacheron Constantin unveiled at Watches and Wonders Geneva 2024, alongside The Pleats of Time concept watch whose strap is microencapsulated with a specially created fragrance. At Breitling, Victoria Beckham’s couture house co-developed the Chronomat 36 Victoria Beckham collection. As for Jacob & Co, Rihanna gave her input for the watch she sported front-row in Paris, at Pharrell Williams’ debut collection for Louis Vuitton. Her diamond-laden tourbillon, which she wore on a choker, made fashion headlines around the globe. Quod erat demonstrandum!