Feb 5, 2020
Reading time 3 min.
Norqain Announces New In-House Calibers in Partnership with Tudor-Founded Kenissi
NEWS
Norqain is an independent, family-owned watch brand located in the Swiss watch hub of Bienne. Its board of directors includes its founder and CEO, 32-year-old Ben Küffer; his father, Marc Küffer, former owner of another Swiss watch manufacturer, Roventa-Henex; Ted Schneider, of the family that owned Breitling for nearly 40 years; and Mark Streit, a retired Swiss NHL player and Stanley Cup winner. The company was founded only in 2018 but has already experienced impressive growth, including building an expansive network of retailers worldwide. The firm announced the latest step in its strategy today: the launch of two new proprietary, chronometer-certified movements, developed in a partnership with Kenissi, a Bienne-based mechanical-movement manufacturer founded by Tudor.
Norqain Adventure Sport
PR
Norqain Freedom Chronograph
PR
The new movements, the three-hand Caliber NN20/1 and GMT-equipped Caliber NN20/2, will make their debuts in models throughout Norqain's three collections, called Adventure (Automatic pictured at top), Freedom (Chronograph pictured above), and Independence. Like the Manufacture Tudor movements, presumably produced at Kenissi, both feature 70-hour power reserves and COSC chronometer certifications. Their sturdy construction is notable for the two-point-fixed traversing bridge that allows for unhindered timekeeping. The GMT functionality in Caliber NN20/2 features a jump-hour system that allows easy setting of the local time and changing of the date in either direction.
NORQAIN Caliber NN20 with GMT function
PR
The new movements, which are on display through clear sapphire casebacks, also offer special decorative touches, including the "double-N" Norqain logo, which the brand says symbolizes the Swiss Alps, on the oscillating weight and the words "Adventure - Freedom - Independence" engraved on a bridge, representing the collection names as well as the "core values" claimed by the young company.
NORQAIN Caliber NN20/1 with the golden "double-N" logo on the rotor
PR
All Norqain watches feature customizable details, including plates on the sides of the cases that can be personalized with a signature or message, and a number of strap and bracelet options. Among the company's strategic long-term partnerships are a new relationship with the National Hockey League Players' Association and a number of athlete "ambassadors;" Norqain is also the Official Timekeeper of ice hockey's Spengler Cup Davos and the organizer of the Norqainer Matterhorn Challenge, a mountaineering event in Zermatt, Switzerland.
Norqain CEO and founder Ben Küffer°
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