| Aziz Idris |
BRUNEI’S first luxury timepiece, Avantist, was officially launched on the sidelines of the recently concluded Wimbledon Championship 2017, by pioneer brand Ambassador and tennis icon Martina Navratilova (nine time Wimbledon singles champion) at the Fairway Village of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club – only steps away from centre-court.
The Martina Navratilova Wimbledon 1987 by Avantist is the first in its highly anticipated Legend Series, made with the strings of her match-winning racquet used during the Wimbledon finals 30 years ago.
The Swiss made watch is beautifully crafted by Brunei’s first watch entrepreneur and avid tennis fan, Avantist Founder and CEO Keeran Dato Janin, who explained that the strings are set into the dials of the limited edition timepieces. Only 30 will be made.
The luxury watch boasts a rectangular shaped face depicting the tennis court and a curved surface depicting a tennis ball. The string is visible through slots arranged in a circle on the watch face.
At present, only 10 Avantist watch units are in stock, while 20 more are still in the works.
Following a successful pre-order sale, Avantist expects orders to stream in from discerning collectors keen on owning an iconic moment of Navratilova’s history.
Keeran explained that the idea for the watch came about as he watched a mutual friend of his and Martina’s, dispose of the strings from his tennis racquet. A tennis player can use the same racquet for a number of matches but the racquet is restrung before every match.
“So I asked myself, if I could have the strings from the racquet, then other avid tennis fans would be interested in them too, especially when the racquet belongs to a legendary tennis player… one like Martina Navratilova,” he said.
Navratilova’s reasoning for getting involved in the Avantist watch project was because she “loves original ideas” and was reeled in by the fascination of the mechanics involved in including a tennis string in a watch.
The Martina Navratilova Avantist watch gives its owner the opportunity to wear a watch that “has a little bit of history in it,” she said.
“We are honoured that as Avantist’s first ambassador, Martina Navratilova’s extraordinary achievements can be crafted into a timepiece that has the power to inspire people,” Keeran said.
“It is a novel and unique concept for a watch, which will resonate with both watch collectors and fans. We look forward to releasing the other timepieces from this collaboration,” he added.
After purchase, a customer becomes a member of an exclusive community and is entitled to the opportunity to meet Navratilova in person at Avantist events held on the sidelines of the four grand slams (Melbourne, Paris, Wimbledon, New York) and WTA finals in Singapore.
Navratilova’s achievements include being an 18-time Grand Slam Singles Champion, 31-time Grand Slam Women’s Doubles Champion, 10-time Grand Slam Mixed Double’s Champion and holding the World No 1 ranking for seven years.
Celebrating the 30th anniversary of that iconic 1987 Wimbledon finals victory, the Avantist debut was successfully organised by a production team from Brunei and featured an intimate fireside chat between Navratilova and a gathering of avid watch collectors and fans, eager to meet the champion and hear the story of her incredible life and career.
Navratilova held court for 40 minutes to share her prolific journey, including the trials and tribulations of staying at the top of her game over four extraordinary decades.
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