FounderFest: The Baltic Heures du Monde “Horizon Line” is a worldtimer that takes the French brand into entirely new territory
Russell SheldrakeDisruption is often discussed in the watch industry, but it is rarely truly embodied. While Baltic has been placed, and rightfully so, among the small group of brands that are challenging the industry to be more daring and try new things, we thought we could take that one step further and get Baltic to try something new. Enter the Baltic Heures du Monde “Horizon Line”.
Defying expectation is something we have, in a strange way, come to expect from Baltic. The young French brand has only been operating for 10 years, yet it has managed to create a persona of rule-breaking and expectation defiance that very few others have. And so how do you go about elevating and amplifying this nature in a brand that already has it written into its DNA?
For FounderFest, we only wanted to work with brands that have shown this type of spirit, as we wanted to try something new. Not only in releasing seven watches at once, but also in how we let you experience these watches as well. When Baltic first released the Heures du Monde, we knew instantly that this would become the perfect canvas for us to work from, as it brought a recognisable structure to the wrist, but added elements that we had never seen paired with it before.
While Baltic has become a master of working with natural stones, we instead wanted to move in a slightly different direction and add the random nature of forged carbon to this watch. While this man-made material carries some of those same visual properties that you find in semi-precious stones, it generates an entirely different feeling and aura for the watch thanks to its randomised assortment of black and grey flakes.
By adding in this new material for the brand on a watch it has never collaborated on, we felt confident that we were breaking new ground. This is not the Baltic you know, but it still has enough hallmarks of the French brand to recognise it when on the wrist.
But what does this have to do with music? After all, FounderFest is all about the coming together of horology and music. Have we not all had a favourite band, one we’ve followed from childhood, release an album that bends the genre they are known for? Or even a complete breakout from their comfort zone and try something entirely new? The bands that have managed to hop from one genre to another with the most success have always kept the essence of what made them special in the new genre. And that is what we have attempted here with the Horizon Line. It’s not the Baltic you know, but you still know it as a Baltic.
So what are you getting in the genre-bending Baltic? Everything you would expect from the Heures du Monde. A fully functioning world timer with that recognisable time zone bezel, although we have taken the liberty of highlighting our three home towns of Melbourne, London, and New York so you always know where and when to find us. A 37mm stainless steel case that remains thin at 11mm and sits comfortably on the wrist with a lug-to-lug of 45mm. Inside is still that Soprod C125 automatic movement with 42 hours of power reserve and protected by 100m of water resistance.
Of course, as we have mentioned, the centre of the dial is a forged carbon disc, and around this we have a black and vibrant orange 24-hour ring that brings the pop of colour you see as a sun sets or rises on the horizon. The brushed 316L stainless steel case almost disappears when on the wrist, with the only visible components being the four straight lugs that jut out and hold the grey fabric strap, another new frontier for Baltic. We wanted to wear this on the more utilitarian and comfortable fabric as it completely shifts the feel of this watch, away from a dressy, vintage-styled piece to something more to be worn every day as you chase horizons.
There are a lot of elements that make the Horizon Line sit just outside of what you expect from Baltic. Whether it’s the first use of forged carbon, or placing a 37mm watch on a fabric strap, this new Heures du Monde shows how Baltic is still willing to stretch the definition of what one of its watches should look like. We know that this might not appear to every Baltic fan, but that is partly the point; this broadens the appeal of the brand to those who might not have ever considered it, reaching outside of its classical and automotive heartlands. Asking the question: what is the other side of the horizon?
The Baltic Heures du Monde “Horizon Line” Time+Tide Studio Edition pricing and availability
The Baltic Heures du Monde “Horizon Line” Time+Tide Studio Edition will be available at FounderFest from September 19, then globally online at the Time+Tide Shop during a 24hr window beginning on September 22. Following that, this Studio Edition will be available exclusively at the Time+Tide Studios in London, Melbourne, and New York. Price: £1,495 (incl. VAT) / US$1,795 / A$2,650 (incl. GST) / €1,450 (excl. VAT)
| Brand | Baltic |
| Model | Heures du Monde “Horizon Line” Time+Tide Studio Edition |
| Reference | HDM11TTCA99 |
| Case Dimensions | 37mm (D) x 11mm (T) x 45mm (LTL) |
| Case Material | 316L stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 100 metres |
| Crystal(s) | Double-domed sapphire |
| Dial | Forged carbon fibre |
| Lug Width | 20mm |
| Strap | Grey MN strap, light grey detailing |
| Movement | Soprod C125, automatic |
| Power Reserve | 42 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, GMT, worldtimer |
| Availability | Available beginning September 19 at FounderFest US/UK/AU Available online globally on September 22 for 24 hours only, before becoming an in-store exclusive across Time+Tide’s Discovery Studios |
| Price | £1,495 (incl. VAT) / US$1,795 / A$2,650 (incl. GST) / €1,450 (excl. VAT) |