Good news for the watches fans who live in Paris or those who visit the capital city of France: Zenith has just opened its pop-up store located at the 23 place Vendôme. These premises were previously used by Louis Vuitton who transferred its watches offer inside the new flagship store which can be found at the number 2 of the very same square. So, as you can understand it, this location remains within the LVMH perimeter. Zenith will stay in this boutique till end of March and will be replace in April by another brand.

You may think that the opening of a pop-up store is not a big news. But actually, it is a significant step for Zenith. The brand has to face the reality: it is well known among the watches lovers or connoisseurs but not by a larger audience. We can find a lot of reasons explaining this situation. But I would like to highlight one: the lack of an iconic watch. The strenght of Zenith is also its weakness: the star is the movement, the star is the El Primero. But people know and buy watches not movement. Zenith expects in the future that the Zenith Defy El Primero 21 and Defy Lab would bridge this gap and put again the brand on the right tracks.

In this context, the opening of the pop-up store in a very strategic area is key: a lot of visitors, clients are walking on the Rue de la Paix to reach the place Vendôme and since the Ritz have re-opened its doors recently, there is an increasing activity on the most prestigious square of Paris. The lay-out of the boutique gives the ability to offer several shop windows on the Rue de la Paix and on the place Vendôme. So, I'm pretty sure that this boutique will contribute to the image of the brand.

Obviously, the boutique was not fully renovated taking into accounts its ephemeral nature. But it is a very comfortable and warm boutique with two thick carpets, warm woodworks and even a wall decorated with eel leather! I appreciated its lay-out and I also liked the presence at the bottom of the boutique of a room which can be privatized for a better confidentiality or to welcome VIP clients. The displays are logically and efficiently organized, by collection.

The main room of the boutique is deep, along the Rue de la Paix while the main entrance is located on the place Vendôme:



The room located on the left side of the entrance is dedicated to displays:



The displays are organized by collections. For example, the full open pieces:



Or the Range Rover ones:



Without forgetting the colored dials offer of the Pilot Type 20 Extra Special:



The visit of the boutique yesterday gave me the opportunity to see again some key pieces of the Zenith offer.

The Academy Georges Favre-Jacot in titanium is the meeting point between classic watchmaking and contemporary design:



I prefer the pink gold version. This watch doesn't symbolize the new strategy of the brand but it remains very appealing. It is one of my fav Zenith watches of the decade.



It is not the same story with the Defy El Primero 21. This watch is key for the ambition of the brand. The star is the movement and it is highlighted by the ability to measure 1/100th of second and the second hand behavior which does a full dial revolution in one second.



The Pilot Type 20 Extra Special with bronze case is now available with a chronograph:



One of the colored dials of the Pilot Type 20 Extra Special:



The Chronomaster Heritage 146 is a very seducing watch, especially with its blue dial. I like its neo-retro style and its overall balance.



The Heritage 146 has a 38mm case and it gives the proof that again, this size is the suitable one for the caliber El Primero due to its own diameter. And the Chronomaster El Primero or the Chronomaster Full Open only confirm this feeling.




I have to confess that this watch is high on my wish-list!



The boutique will be officially inaugurated the 28th of November with the presence of Julien Tornare, CEO of Zenith.

I would like to thank a lot the team of the Zenith boutique and I wish them the best for the next months.

Fr.Xavier