The New Look of Luxury with TAG Heuer

Over the past few years, we’ve had the distinct pleasure of working with TAG Heuer on some major culturally significant milestone projects, and the latest two have been especially monumental, both internally and externally. For the first cultural milestone, we partnered with them to produce one of New York’s last experiential events before the March 2020 lockdown. Taking over the Caldwell Factory in Chelsea, we unveiled their Connected watch in an immersive launch experience, with sculptural and sensory elements that highlighted the watch as a bridge between city and nature.

Since then, the world has dramatically changed and the cultural landscape of jewelry has invariably shifted. With the industry and the definition of luxury in the midst of a transformation, TAG Heuer took inspiration from their past and brought their timeless style to a new generation of luxury connoisseurs: together with their latest brand ambassador Ryan Gosling, they relaunched their iconic Carrera watch three weeks ago, setting the tone for a cultural reset.

To mark this cultural reset alongside the return of experiential events, TAG tapped us to produce the relaunch celebration of the Carrera. To tell the new story of the timeless, three-hand style and to create a moment where past, present, and future meet, we took over a sprawling mansion in the Los Angeles hills. Described by writer Danny Milton as “David Lynch’s idea of an Italian villa”, the mansion’s scale allowed us to translate the visual identity of the campaign into a tactile, cinematic space that transported guests into the storied world of the brand.

The guest journey began indoors through a series of rooms that let TAG Heuer’s history unfold through architectural light installations, lightbox imagery, and thoughtful product features that married the brand’s archival materials with its new modern look. The campaign’s atmospheric lighting, a telltale feature of photographer Pari Dukovic’s portraiture, was translated and incorporated throughout the space, bathing guests in intimate, shifting light. With key brand touchpoints throughout the expansive space––such as a minimal, neon outline of the TAG logo above a lake––we kept the brand’s identity clear and easily understood as a leader in the new look of luxury.

To further bring the cultural vanguard and future into the event, we partnered with the iconoclast playwright Jeremy O. Harris, who brought his effervescent charisma as host of the event, moderating a conversation between Ryan Gosling and the innovative CEO of TAG Heuer, Frédéric Arnault. For an additional performance to round out the night, we brought in electronic brand Desire as musical talent, whose producer Johnny Jewel also scored Gosling’s directorial debut, Lost River. This approach to talent brought a well-considered intimacy to the launch event, reflecting the delicate balance between familiarity and excitement that’s at the forefront of the new look of luxury.

As heritage brands look to resonate with new, younger audiences, it’s essential to not forget who they are and how they got here in the first place. Modernizing does not have to mean abandoning their brand ethos––that’s what attracted audiences in the first place. Luxury is in the process of a makeover, as new understandings of desire, new beliefs in quality, and new sources of inspiration have changed how luxury resonates with consumers today. As these meanings come into full fruition, we’ll be here, doing the work, delivering at the highest caliber.

Lots of love,
New Moon