In one of my last meetings at COUTUREtime right before summer, I visited Frederique Constant (FC) to see some of their novelties. FC is not a brand that I would consider myself an expert in, it simply has not been on my collecting radar in recent years. I remember noticing them when I first got into watch collecting ten years ago, as some of their watches piqued my interest mainly as cheaper versions of classics watches, e.g., Patek Philippe and Breguet. But I never seriously considered their watches for my collection.

Today what is most attractive with FC are their entry level price points, that all can agree with; also, others might also appreciate the wide variety of offerings they have in their many collections. This is especially true for their manufacture slimline perpetual calendar and the recently announced tourbillon perpetual calendar. However, in Las Vegas, I only got a small taste of their basic models. Let’s see what stood out.

First is the entry level dress watches for men in the form of the Calatrava-like case and dial layout from the Classics Index. This is a 40 mm watch in stainless steel. It comes in a few options for dial colors and is super satisfying at under $1,500. FC also makes a rosé gold tone version which I would stay away from. Not because it has any specific technical issues, but because in my view a gold watch has to have weight and has a color that should last forever. Whereas a rosé gold tone watch pretends to have all of these characteristics and fails at all.

The ladies slimline FC watch is sublimely executed with mother of pearl dial and a tiny layer of diamonds around the bezel to give it enough bling to shine. At 39 mm it is perfectly sized and includes a variant of the FC-306 caliber which is Sellita-based. Finally, the FC Runabout Automatic is another watch that borrows from the classics, this time from the well known Jaeger LeCoulter Master collection but puts its own small spin to it with a navy blue dial and importantly, like many FC watches, keeps the price low, starting at just above $1,500.

One of the more interesting watch from the FC collection is the connected HYBRID watch. What started with the creation of their independent smartwatch division MMT in 2016, the current product is now full fledge with various versions. Bluetooth equipped and with a companion app, these FC HYBRID might not look like they pack a lot but inside is a small “smart” electronics module that transforms this classic looking mechanical Swiss watch into one that offers many of the fitness and activity tracking features of an Apple watch.

While clearly limited (no apps store nor digital display) the FC HYBRID can track various personal metrics, for instance, your daily steps, your sleeping habits, and your lack of movement during the day. It’s not clear to me that there exist a niche market for classically looking dress watches with these features, but I guess someone had to explore the space. The problem for me is that if I wanted a watch to do activity tracking, but not be an Apple watch, I would look at watches such one from the Garmin Vivo collection which gives a nicer balance, are cheaper, and has a lot more features. On the other hand, the Garmin does not look like an old classic Swiss watch, if that matters to you.

Finally, I got a chance to see the Vintage Rally Healey chronograph collection. And for me, this was the most attractive watch I got to handle from FC. Created to celebrate the English Austin-Healey cars and race, this is a bicompax chronograph with different color accents around the dial and with matching perforated leather straps. It reminds me a bit of some of Chopard’s Mille Miglia watches that are created with a similar goal — celebrating the famed 1000 miles yearly race in Italy.

Overall, what I like most about the Healey chronograph is its dial. The color accents are well executed and the green would be my favorite version. Strapping this watch around your wrist gives you the vibes of wanting to get an old matching leather glove and leather helmet and goggles, and hop on your car (ideally vintage) and just drive.

It’s like a traveler from a time lost when cars burned gasoline to a level that would not allow us to drive it on the road today, and when local racing clubs organized events every weekend. The FC Healey chronograph does a great job to bring back that nostalgia in a modern package that includes sapphire crystal to protect the dial and includes the FC-397, which is likely based on the Sellita SW-510 movement, itself a clone of the classic Valjoux 7750 chronograph movement.

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I’ve never owned a Frederique Constant watch and frankly few of their offerings stir such a passion in me that I would pick one up as the next celebratory token. However, I appreciate what FC is trying to do. They are democratizing the watch market, making various models accessible to all watch lovers — especially those new to mechanical watches and still chocked by the sticker prices they have seen after inquiring about their favorite models. However, while many of FC’s models are affordable, of all the ones they showed this time to me, the Vintage Rally Healey is the only one that tried to steal my heart.

I love that FC keeps its prices low, experiments with hybrid technology, and even sometimes produces outstanding value with some manufacture complications. However, I am still ambivalent about the brand and most of its products. The reason is that I am not quite sure what the brand’s mission is. If it’s about value play, then it’s not clear why the in-house complications are coming to the fore? If about classic designs, then why the hybrid? And if about value dress watches, then why the gold platted “pretend” dress watches? I think some collection simplification from the brand might help a lot. In the mean time I can only pick and chose certain watches, like the Vintage Rally Healey, and celebrate them. frederiqueconstant.com