On Wednesday the 26th of June, TAG Heuer and global brand ambassador Chris Hemsworth, officially launched the AUTAVIA collection in Australia with an adventurous aviation and automobile inspired media lunch at the iconic Catalina in Rose Bay, Sydney.
The event opened with a small Q&A with the Aussie Hollywood Heartthrob about his relationship with TAG Heuer and his thoughts on the new AUTAVIA collection. “The Carrera that I was given years ago was fantastic, but I have to say the Autavia is pretty lovely. It has a good adventurous, outdoor quality to it that suits my lifestyle”, said Hemsworth.
TAG Heuer Managing director South-east Asia and Australia, Amelia Sillard and Chris Hemsworth
Hemsworth’s starring role as 1970’s McLaren driver James Hunt, fierce rival to Niki Lauda in the 2013 film, Rush, depicted TAG Heuer’s DNA in motor-racing as being one of the first brands to partner with the Formula 1. It was here that the relationship between Hemsworth and the prestigious Swiss watch brand strengthened; this naturally evolved with Chris officially joining the family of global brand ambassadors in 2015 with a launch event in Bennelong.
During the course of the afternoon, TAG Heuer showcased the new AUTAVIA collection and a few heritage pieces which were flown down from Switzerland specifically for the event. Towards the end, guests were treated to an exhilarating seaplane ride over the beautiful Sydney Harbour.
Marking a new chapter for the original TAG Heuer heritage model first produced by the Swiss watchmaker in the 1960s, the new stand-alone Autavia collection for TAG Heuer makes the most of innovative watchmaking technology to appeal to a new generation of adventurers. The range boasts the versatility, ruggedness and reliability that characterized the original Autavia timepieces. Making use of the carbon-composite hairspring technology that distinguishes each piece as an Isograph, the avant-garde watchmaker builds on its heritage to continue to saga.
When we think TAG Heuer we think Formula 1, sports watches, Carrera, Monaco and so on. Clearly these collections seem to be the pillars of the brand. However, way back in the 1960s, the AUTAVIA collection was quite popular. At the time, AUTAVIA watches exuded a unique design code, the genesis of which can be found in the name itself- the combination of automobile and aviation. In fact, even before that, from 1933 to 1957, the AUTAVIA was a dashboard instrument used in racing cars and aircraft. The name of this dashboard timer was used for a chronograph wristwatch in 1963. The rest, as they say, is history.
