aunched at Watches and Wonders 2024, the Promenade collection was born from the desire to create a chic and truly modern watch, as a canvas for creative expression, not solely a timekeeping instrument.

Like many developments at Czapek, there was no straight line from the idea of creating a new collection to the result. Rather, ideas morphed and evolved from the initial intention of developing a women’s watch with a collector-quality mechanism to the desire to make a chic and modern watch that would appeal to those with an eye for style and appreciation of mechanical sophistication – regardless of gender.

“We have always believed that gender divisions in watchmaking are largely artificial,” says Xavier de Roquemarel, CEO of Czapek & Cie. “Beauty and creativity unite men and women; making a beautiful watch cannot be reduced to a gender split. A beautiful watch will please men and women equally, in the same way that a beautifully tailored smoking [tuxedo suit] looks equally wonderful on men and women.”

Presented in a slim 38mm case, Promenade expresses a relaxed and quietly confident sophistication, injected with playfulness and joie de vivre. The signature of the Promenade dial is asymmetry: the designs radiate from the small seconds dial placed at 4:30, producing a sense of dynamic tension. In 2025 Czapek introduces a new dial – Plissé (pleats) – in three colours.

Promenade looks to fashion as a frame of reference – from Marilyn Monroe’s chic-and-sexy white pleated dress in The Seven-Year Itch to Issey Miyake’s futuristic pleats (for men and women) and light-as-air silks that marry couture tradition and high technology, and Yves Saint Laurent’s eternally modern le smoking – created in 1966, the OC of androgynous style.

Inspired by textiles, the Plissé dial is the result of a complex stamping process that gives the impression of fabric being pushed aside by the weight of the sub-dial to bunch up into pleats across the dial. This creates an intriguing play of light and shade and the illusion of flowing, dance-like movement across the dial as the wearer moves his or her wrist.

The new stamping technique was developed in partnership with Czapek’s regular collaborator, Metalem. An added challenge in developing the Plissé dial was to integrate the applied indexes within the contours of the pleats. Plissé is presented in three colours: Ivory, Pearl White and Rose, the latter equipped with a Milanese mesh steel bracelet. Production of each colour will be limited to 18 pieces.

Allowing the decoration to take centre stage, the timekeeping indications are pared back to a minimum: fine, semi-skeletonised arrow-shaped hands and applied indexes with diamond-cut angles to reflect the light.

The imperative for Promenade was that the 38mm case should be slim, which called for a micro-rotor movement. Thus, Czapek translated the strengths of its in-house calibre SXH5 into this new identity, playing with its architecture to achieve the desired dial aesthetics.

The Promenade case is a modern evolution of Czapek’s icon – the original Quai des Bergues model – recognisable by the recessed and sand-blasted case sides, the curved crown protection, and a slim, rounded bezel.

The Promenade Plissé will be available at the maison’s official retailers worldwide, the Czapek boutique in Geneva, Switzerland, and at Czapek.com.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

FUNCTIONS

• Hours, minutes, small seconds at 4:30

MOVEMENT

• Caliber SXH5.1 : Czapek’s in house self-winding mechanical movement with small seconds
• Diameter: 30 mm – 13 lines 1⁄4
• Height: 4.2 mm
• Number of parts: 127
• Jewels: 26
• Swiss lever escapement, variable-inertia balance fitted with four gold inertia-blocks
• Frequency: 4 Hz – 28800 VpH
• Power winding system: microrotor with a recycled platinum mass
• Power-reserve: 60 hours on a single barrel
• Barrel torque: 8 Nmm

FINISH

• Open ratchets, sandblasted black bridges, bevelling, straight-grained sides, six hand-chamfered inward angles

CASE

• 38mm stainless steel case
• Height : 10.8 mm
• Lug to lug (12h to 6h) : 42 mm
• Sapphire crystal glass-box with anti-reflective treatment
• Sapphire case back with anti-reflective treatment on the inner side
• Water resistance: 5 atm

DIAL

• Stamped brass dial, galvanic treatment.
• Applied indexes
• Exclusive and registered flinqué ‘Plissé’ (pleated) pattern
• Created in collaboration with Metalem

BRACELET

• Nubuck leather strap in grey
• Alternatively, Milanese mesh bracelet in stainless steel