The holidays are all about magical journeys, inward and outward, and this season Rado is taking watch lovers on a unique, celebratory excursion. In its latest ad campaign, the Swiss luxury house invites watch aficionados to hop aboard a nighttime cable car high above a snow-capped mountain peak. Amid an enchanted swirl of golden anchors, each bubble transports shoppers to an “impossible” Rado dream store perched alongside a steep summit. There, three Rado watches that embody the holiday essence of gratitude, celebration and love await: Captain Cook, True Square Open Heart and Centrix Open Heart Super Jubilé.
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Each timepiece is special in its own way, but the three are united by key elements. The first is its ceramic construction. Rado has long been heralded for its luxury materials, evident when this Master of Materials turned an ultra-high-speed aircraft material — high-tech ceramics — into a groundbreaking fashion statement in 1986. Second is the intricate skeleton dial, which serves as a metaphor for the season. The spirit of the holiday brings out openness, honesty and sincerity, and Rado’s openwork dials allow wearers to literally peer deep into the soul of each timepiece and see the transparent dedication to craftsmanship. The anchor is another through line. This symbol is featured twice on all of Rado’s automatic watches, once on the dial and again on the crown, identifying and anchoring the centuries-old tradition.
Watching the ad spot, the three watches tick precise rhythms with parts or elements cast or carved from chosen minerals beneath the Earth. Sometimes, elements are sprinkled down from the stars, as in the case of Rado high-tech ceramic – forgotten cosmic dust shaped by fire, intelligence and creativity.
The latest incarnation of the sporty Captain Cook style is depicted in the ad as carved right out of a mountain, featuring a matte black, high-tech ceramic case and bracelet with stainless-steel bezel and crown finished in warm PVD rose gold shade. The style’s famous box-shaped sapphire crystal sits this time over a softly smoke-tinted skeleton dial, which reveals the R808 movement, Côtes de Genève decoration and 25 jewels. The automatic watch offers reliable accuracy for up to 80 hours, unattended.
For the holidays, Rado’s True Square Open Heart focuses on a bright white monobloc ceramic model in a softly rounded square format, which is easy on the eyes and skin. The style continues the collection’s high-tech ceramic construction right down to the anchor crown. Inside, the acclaimed R734 Open Heart movement is showcased. The caliber can also be observed from the underside of the timepiece because of a second sapphire crystal in the titanium case back.
The movement holder is finished with Côtes de Genève and the caliber has a lovely, pearled surface, in perfect harmony with the other components like the oscillating weight, jeweled pivot points and other fine workings. A lightweight bracelet in matching white features the silky feel that made Rado high-tech ceramic famous.
The festive trio concludes with the elegant Centrix Open Heart Super Jubilé, a model that brings evocative and poetic elements to the celebration with its rounded shapes of bridges across worlds and sparkling precious stones.
Modeled after an ancient fable about two young lovers who meet year after year on a bridge under the stars, the dial features a splash of 86 full-cut top Wesselton diamonds over an arched bridge, with 12 additional stones to mark the hours so the lovers won’t lose their way. The timepiece features a harmony of colors, from the warm rose-gold-colored PVD treatment on selected stainless-steel components, to the brown high-tech ceramic elements on the case or central row of the bracelet. Beneath the rounded sapphire crystal, a state-of-the-art R734 automatic movement with Nivachron™ hairspring and pearled components provides 80 hours of power reserve.
The festive season is a time of gratitude, celebration and love, where gentle hearts rejoice in places of unlimited dreams. A simple wish is enough, sometimes, for a whole new world to appear, full of shimmering brilliance, joy and peace, along your own little cable-car journey to a festive holiday wonderland. Celebrating that spirit, each Rado watch is truly a work of art, full of passion and creativity, for the holidays and forever onward.