Fair play to Hublot for using its latest press release to declare itself “luxury’s most polarising watch brand”.
It might be true.
Not for everyone are Hublot’s extravagant designs, oversized dimensions and out-there case materials, including rubber, carbon fibre and “Magic” Gold, all for eye-watering prices.
Whatever the opposite of quiet luxury is, that is the area in which Hublot likes to play. (Noisy opulence? Punchy elegance? Extravagance with a megaphone?)
And fair enough—those are things others might say behind your back.
Yet few brands admit to being "polarising".
But not giving a stuff seems to be even more front and centre at the youthful (in Swiss terms) watchmaker lately.
Hence today's unveiling of a forceful new slogan: “Own it”.
And a furry new ambassador: Choupette the cat.
Choupette is the face (and whiskers, and paws) of the Big Bang Anniversary Red Magic, one of five limited-edition watches celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Big Bang, the groundbreaking watch that introduced Hublot’s “art of fusion”, where it mixes seemingly incongruous materials, all five of which were announced at the start of April.
Choupette Lagerfeld—currently aged 72 in cat years—is a Birman who became a fashion-world icon, and the beloved companion of the designer Karl Lagerfeld.
Originally the pet of model of the French model and singer Baptiste Giabiconi, Choupette was adopted by Lagerfeld and quickly ascended to a life of rarefied luxury in Paris.
She enjoyed a lifestyle most of us can only dream of—attended by two personal maids, dining on custom-prepared meals served in Goyard dishes, as well as owning her own iPad.
Travel was typically by private jet, and her daily routine included photo shoots, beauty rest, and interviews (via her staff).
Lagerfeld adored her to such a degree that he once declared he would have married her if it were legally possible. “She is the centre of the world.”
On top of being a pampered pet, Choupette became a commercial force.
She reportedly earned over £2.2m through ad campaigns with beauty brands like Shu Uemura, and the German carmaker Opel, and never stooped so low as to endorse pet food.
She inspired the book Choupette: The Private Life of a High-Flying Fashion Cat and graced the pages of Vogue and countless other fashion titles.
She still has 267,000 Instagram followers, an agent and a significant presence on X and Facebook, where she is often styled as Lagerfeld’s “furry heiress”. (Lagerfeld himself called her a “spoiled, rich girl”.)
After the designer’s death in 2019, rumours circulated that Choupette was named in his will, possibly inheriting a portion of his estimated £150m fortune.
Today, she remains an enduring symbol of extravagance, affectionately remembered as the cat who redefined celebrity, luxury, and legacy—and clawed her way to the top.
And now she is helping Hublot “Own It”.
The watchmaker notes that Choupette is a "cultural icon known for her haute lifestyle and unfiltered personality" who "brings her signature attitude to a campaign that celebrates outrageous confidence and radical individuality that define both her and Hublot".
Who knows, perhaps Choupette will even inspire some Hublot watches of her own.
Perhaps a Spirit of Big Fang, a MP-05 LaFurrari or a Classic Fusion Purrluti?
