ZENITH Enters a New Era In 2026. Here’s What to Expect.

Fine watchmaking movement suppliers have been around for centuries. While there were a few brands that developed their own movements, establishing an integrated manufacture created high costs. This meant only the most successful brands could afford to do so. ZENITH was one of the first to set up an integrated watch manufacture. Instead, most companies relied on independent movement makers that they assembled into a completed watch. Up until the industry’s recovery in the 1980s, this was the norm and even after that, the ETA manufacture was a primary supplier of blank movements or ébauches to the entire industry.

It was only when the Swatch Group, which owns ETA, limited sales of blank movements to other industry players, citing the unfair practice of having to invest in production that benefited other companies instead of itself, that the industry shifted. During the noughties, watchmakers began to invest in their own movement production, designed by their own teams. Within a conglomerate group, brands often shared savoir faire, with movements using a common construction. ZENITH’s ultra-thin Elite calibres, which it introduced in 1994 for its classic collection, became the LVMH Group’s alternative to externally supplied blank movements as the brand’s focus moved towards its El Primero chronograph and high-end classic watchmaking releases.

Hublot’s HUB1710 and TAG Heuer’s Calibre 36, as well as Christian Dior’s Grand Soir and Bvlgari’s Lvcea watches feature customised movements based on the Elite 670 or 680. Measuring up to 3.88mm in thickness and with a power reserve of 50 hours on a single barrel, it offers plenty of torque for driving more complex complication modules, and can be easily fitted into cases from 36mm onwards. Beyond the Elite calibres, ZENITH’s El Primero movements are also used in select timepieces in the group.

ZENITH has also added high watchmaking variations of the El Primero and introduced other materials and inventions that improve the reliability and accuracy of the El Primero. As it looks to elevate its brand equity in the industry, other brands in the LVMH Group are using the same movement for their products. The Dior Homme Chiffre Rouge watch collection, which had been introduced in 2004 by then-creative director Hedi Slimane, and later discontinued around 2015, made a return in 2024. To highlight its 20th anniversary and celebrate its significance in the brand, the new Chiffre Rouge watches are powered by the El Primero calibre, clad in black with a red tinted sapphire crystal.

Dior Homme isn’t the only brand using the El Primero. Hublot’s HUB4700 calibre is a customised ZENITH El Primero, and Tiffany & Co. also released Bird on a Rock Mechanical this year, powered by an El Primero 400 calibre with a custom rotor depicting the Jean Schlumberger-designed icon. But if the El Primero is so accessible through other brands, where is ZENITH headed with its products?