KITH's TAG Heuer Formula 1 watch collab is the culmination of a marathon, not a sprint. Or maybe a better comparison is that it's more like Le Mans than F1 itself, if only because this partnership is a long time coming.
Ronnie Fieg, KITH founder and collector of fine watches, began his personal timepiece stash with a TAG Heuer Formula 1. Fieg's eye was drawn to the classic timepiece's inherent contrast: tasteful curves and explosive colors that live up to the Formula's speedy inspiration. His personal edition is a stark red and black.
“There’s a part of me that truly believes our partnership with TAG Heuer was fate," Fieg tells Highsnobiety. "I just so happened to be sat next to Frederic Arnault at a dinner, which led to us discussing watches and me telling him the story of my first-ever watch being a TAG Heuer Formula 1. This conversation then evolved into our brands working together to bring back that same watch through a modern lens."
And so, KITH's 10-piece TAG Heuer Formula 1 collaboration encompasses nearly a dozen colorways that run the gamut from classic — all-black, no-nonsense silver — to the intrepid — some particularly bold flavors are realized in knowingly brash primary hues, with daring rubber straps to match (or contrast).
This isn't merely statement for statement's sake: these are thoughtful nods to some of the rarest Formula 1 watches TAG Heuer ever produced. Mario Kart this ain't (though those do exist).
For instance, red, green, and yellow iteration riffs on a barely extant watch made in partnership with Ukyo Katayama, a retired F1 driver and manager (one of TAG's many Japanese-inspired timepieces)
And, because this is KITH partnership, no expense is spared or record left unbroken. KITH becomes the first company to ever combine its logo with TAG Heuer on each watch face, a unique emblem realized above a callout to the inimitable KITH mantra: "Just Us."
Under the hood, everything is equally exacting. In a press release, TAG points out that it sought out the original Formula 1's mold and even the manufacturer of the 1986 edition's case. It almost feels minimizing to merely call this a collab: this is Fieg's love letter to the Formula 1.
Fieg, an avid collector of retro timepieces, is well aware of the Formula 1's collectability. Original Formula 1 watches released during the watch's initial 1986 run are rarer and often more vivid than their younger counterparts, you see.
Thus, KITH is also offering the collaborative timepieces as a complete set.
Each individual watch is itself plenty covetable, of course, made even more exclusive by their specific release parameters.
Seven of the 10 Formula 1 watches launch at KITH's stores and website; steel-braceleted blue and green bezel editions offered in an edition of 350 and high-vis color-crazy models that reflect the Formula 1's high-octane origins, of which there are only 250 of each.
TAG Heuer itself will only offer 825 pieces of the black-bezeled blue and green Formula 1 watches, beginning May 3 at its Miami flagship before seeing wider release on May 6, the day after F1's Miami Grand Prix.
And then there's a single model made available at both KITH and TAG Heuer outposts, which numbers 1,350.
Each KITH x TAG Heuer watch is $1,500 apiece and is packaged in a thoughtful case deserving of its impassioned production.
Now, if you're a real TAG Heuer Formula 1 fan, if you're at the Ronnie Fieg-level of passion, you want 'em all. KITH knows this, which is why it's offering a box set of all 10 for $18,000.
"Moments like these remind me why I work so hard," says Fieg. "Having an opportunity to share my personal experiences with others, and share stories about great brands and iconic products, is a gift I don’t take lightly.”
