It takes a brave man to delve into the depths of the ocean – or a very well-built watch. Many call themselves watch collectors, but only those who genuinely like to go above and beyond know the value of a luxury dive watch. The notion of sustainability has quickly moved from being an agenda to a standardised practice in every industry and sustainable luxury watches are the new norm. Leading brands are coming forward to do their bit and make a difference. Here are the best eco-friendly dive watches in the market.
The most recent one is Hublot and Nespresso’s Big Bang Unico Nespresso Origin 42mm. It is the first timepiece made with recycled coffee grounds and capsules, and will come in a brand new Hublot case created entirely from oak, designed to be a reusable item.
Gucci Dive Watch
Photo Courtesy: Gucci
Stylish and functional, Gucci’s new gender-neutral dive watch collection is one of the most on-trend eco-friendly dive watches in the market. The sporty watches are all made from sustainable bio-based rubber and recycled steel and use Swiss-made automatic movements. Encased in a 40mm case made from a rubber-like substance, it combines classic and contemporary performance elements. While the classic iterations are made with fabric, rubber and steel, the luxury house’s bio-based counterparts feature a rubbery plastic as its main material, with recycled steel used for the crown, buckle and case back.
The sustainable material, which is also used for straps, is part of Gucci’s ongoing commitment to reduce its ecological footprint and generate positive change. The watch comes in a variety of colours including a transparent model, matte white, aquamarine and moss green. These eco-friendly dive watches are water resistant upto 200m.
Alipna Seastrong Diver
Photo Courtesy: Aplina
Alpina has teamed up with sustainable startup Gyre Watch to create a new variant of the Swiss brand’s Seastrong Diver. The Sea Cleaner is one of the new eco-friendly dive watches that use recycled material from gyres, which are naturally occuring circular ocean currents that trap waste. The Alpina Gyre’s 44mm composite case is made up of 70 per cent fishing net-sourced plastic and 30 per cent carbon fibre.
The blue mother-of-pearl dial with applied silver indices is protected by a scratch-sapphire crystal that’s water-resistant up to 1,000 feet. Two other versions are also available with a light blue dial and different straps made from recycled plastic and apple waste. Each of the three Alpina Gyre colourways will be limited to just 1,883 pieces.
The Oris Ocean Trilogy
Photo Courtesy: Oris
There are few manufacturers out there as committed to protecting against global pollution as Oris. Keeping this ideology in mind they launched a trio of special editions from their Aquis series. Truly being one of the luxury eco-friendly watches, shares of the profits from each are donated to different conservation charities, all as part of Oris’s own Ocean Project. The set comprises The Great Barrier Reef Limited Edition III, limited to 2,000 pieces. Proceeds will go to the Reef Restoration Foundation. The Clean Ocean Limited Editionwhichis an elegant three-hander with a recycled PET (polythene terephthalate) case back medallion, again with only 2,000 made; and The Blue Whale Limited Edition, with just 200 pieces being issued. Revenues from the sale of the three-register chronograph will help fund Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), the leading charity protecting endangered marine mammals.
Breitling Superocean Heritage II Chronograph 44 ‘Ocean Conservancy’ Limited Edition
Photo Courtesy: Breitling
This latest addition to Breitling’s popular SuperOcean range is the Heritage II Chronograph 44 Ocean ConservancyLimited Edition. A smart-looking watch, this comes in a new colourway of silver and blue. The strap on the ‘Ocean Conservancy’ Limited Edition is primarily made from recycled fishing lines that were removed from the ocean making it part of the luxury eco-friednly watches list. The 44mm watch features a silver dial and blue bezel, additional blue accents are found on the chronograph seconds hand and the numerals of the minute and hour totalizers. Individuals can pick between the two NATO-style straps, woven from a special yarn made from recycled nylon waste, mostly from fishing nets found castoff in the world’s oceans. Called ECONYL (from Eco-friendly and Nylon) the SuperOcean comes in a choice of all blue or blue stripe.
Panerai Submersible ‘Mike Horn’ Edition
Photo Courtesy: Panerai
Panerai’s Mike Horn edition features two luxury eco-friendly watches that are visually almost identical and limited to just 19 units. Beyond the colour of their straps and their respective luminescence, nothing distinguishes the watches.
The timepiece is sturdy 47mm, both retain that familiar cushion-shaped case and iconic crown guard and are water resistant up to 300m. The pair are also crafted from the same material, namely 80 grams of EcoTitanium. It is a recycled metal alloy that Panerai has been pioneering for several years now, working hard to bring it to the industry. On the Mike Horn, this eco-friendly metal makes up the case, bezel, back, crown, and guard. The strap is also environmentally friendly, again made from PET salvaged from plastic drinks bottles. And the watches are manufactured and assembled in Panerai’s base in Neuchâtel, Switzerland which is designed for zero carbon emissions.
