In mid-November, the 10th edition of West Bund Art & Design was held in Shanghai, marking the 10th year of West Bund Art in Shanghai and the first year of collaboration with Breguet, a luxury watchmaking brand. Lionel A Marca, CEO of Breguet, is confident about the partnership and is confident that West Bund Art & Design visitors will be filled with a passion for Breguet's craftsmanship. Part of this confidence comes from Lionel Marca's nearly 20 years of experience in watchmaking. From a pure watchmaker to CEO, we were curious about the CEO and the development of the brand itself, so on the eve of leaving for the West Bund in Shanghai, the House of Watches was the first to meet Lionel Marca in Beijing. Let's see what we all talked about. 
Lionel A Marca, CEO of Breguet).Home of Watches: You were born in Switzerland and have been working in the field of watchmaking. Today, at the helm of Breguet, he is arguably one of the few watchmakers at the helm of a Haute Horlogerie brand. What do you think are the "requirements" that the change of identity puts forward for you?
Lionel Marca:At heart, I consider myself a watchmaker by nature, so I am very interested in the culture of watchmaking as a whole, and I have always adhered to it. Now that I'm CEO of Breguet, I'm naturally more interested in Breguet, but I'm also very concerned about the innovations of other watchmaking brands. For me, I ask myself to always be a watchmaker's curiosity.
Home to watches: Breguet has recently launched two new Classique 3358 Tourbillons. Compared to the tourbillon creations in the Classic Collection, I found these two tourbillon watches to be more flamboyant and feminine. Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the new product?And what are Breguet's expectations for the future of the women's complication watch market?
Lionel Marca:First of all, I would like to emphasize that the inspiration for each piece is never the result of a single person, but the result of a team working together. These two new models are based on very classic models, and the tourbillon movement used in the watch has been developed for more than 20 years, so this time we wanted to highlight the shape of the tourbillon. Unlike the classic round shape of the past, this new model uses an oval shape to create a tourbillon cage, thus highlighting its elegance even more. Accentuated by a jewel-set look, both new models feature diamonds on the tourbillon cage and a blue spinel and ruby. Speaking of which, the new product came from my wife, who I found out that she usually wears a smartwatch with many complications, which made me realize that women can use complications very well. This answers your question about Breguet's opinion on women's complications, which in my opinion is not that women don't want or dislike complications, but that they don't find the right complications for women. For Breguet, we've been creating women's complications that are more feminine and interpreted from a feminine perspective. 
Breguet's new Classique 3358 Tourbillon).
Home of Watches: Everyone knows that the tourbillon mechanism was created by Monsieur Breguet, and that the outer plate of the Breguet tourbillon is one of the hallmark features and at the same time a difficult place to handle. But we see a difference in this new product, how did Breguet deal with it this time?
Lionel Marca:The Breguet tourbillon bridge, which may have previously been more of a purely technical element, "serious", this time we have combined technology and art to make this mechanism more poetic and highlight its beauty. If you've seen the new products, you'll see that the tourbillon plate of one of the watches is shaped like a shooting star, echoing the "night sky dial". On the other model, the tourbillon plate is curved and looks like a smiling face when it is paired with the hour and minute discs. 
Home of Watches: We found that Breguet has a very deep relationship with art, and many famous writers, painters, and artists in the past have mentioned Breguet in their works. In what ways does Breguet have artistic achievements?As a Haute Horlogerie brand that values its heritage, what is Breguet's heritage?
Lionel Marca:Monsieur Breguet was one of the first artistic designers in the world of horology, such as Breguet hands, Breguet numerals, etc. At that time, Breguet was already thinking about communicating the message of time to people in the most simple and pure way possible. When designing the dial, although the dial has different functions, Breguet's ultimate goal is to make it easier for people to read the time.
Throughout its centuries-long history, Breguet has pursued a combination of aesthetics, design, art, craftsmanship and technical excellence. For example, the familiar Breguet engraving, many people see its aesthetic value, but few people know that the Breguet engraving process is also the anti-reflective function of the dial of the earliest watches.
West Bund Art & Design – Breguet's Liminal Time showroom
Breguet Classique 7337 Date beautifully hand-engraved "Paris stud pattern" guilloché on the dial) Home of Watches: Defined by some as the "King of Watches", readers at the House of Watches describe Breguet watches as "works of art in watchmaking". What do you think are Breguet's core competencies?Lionel Marca:I think the biggest core strength of Breguet is to stick to the original intention and be yourself. Breguet has contributed many complications, such as the tourbillon, the most well-known of all. That's why I often say that if you want to buy a tourbillon, you have to buy Breguet, because it was Breguet who brought it into the world. On the other hand, people wear Breguet not only as a watch, but also as a part of history and the process of human culture. As we talked about earlier, many famous figures in history, such as Napoleon, Alexandre Dumas, Churchill and so on, these brilliant figures have used Breguet and become part of Breguet's history, and Breguet has become a part of their history. I believe that all those who truly love watches will one day buy Breguet. Home of Watches: Breguet is about to celebrate its 250th anniversary, what big moves will the brand make?
Lionel Marca:There will be. There will definitely be many actions in technology, technology and marketing, and of course, there will be new products, after all, the 250th anniversary is a big year, and we will definitely grasp it. But I'm sorry, I can't reveal too much right now, so please look forward to how Breguet performs.
Summary:Meeting Lionel Maca shattered my stereotype of the role of a watchmaker, who was humorous, conversational and loved to share stories with visitors. As Lionel Marca said in an interview, the change of identity does not change the DNA of his "watchmaker", which is in some ways very similar to the development of the Breguet brand. Whether it is a "watchmaker", a "master of artistic creation" or a "watch king", the most important thing for Breguet is that it has always adhered to its original intention to be itself and be Breguet. (Interview with Zhang Lu, the home of the watch).