ANONIMO returns to North America
Anonimo Militare Classic Auto, stainless steel with blue dial
A few years ago, Anonimo was no stranger to Canadian and US collectors of military watches, then they’ve disappeared from the shelfs, to show up only on the second-hand market. This is going to change, as two years ago, the Italian brand, Anonimo Firenze was bought and resuscitated from bankruptcy by a group of independent investors from Switzerland. Since then, the company was renamed to Anonimo SA and moved its head office to Switzerland, where they combine the tradition of Italian design with Swiss watchmaking knowhow.
After this year’s Baselworld, where Anonimo presented its new collection, the company is looking to return to the North American market, you can expect to find again their watches in select US and Canadian boutiques.
The origins
Anonimo Nautilo bronze and black DLC
In 1972, after Giuseppe Panerai passes away, Dino Zei, an officer in the Italian Navy takes over the management of Guido Panerai e Figlio and changes the name to Officine Panerai Srl. For the first time, the family business was run by someone outside the family and he remained at the helm of the company till 1997, when Panerai was purchased by Richemont.
After Panerai, Dino Zei cofounded Anonimo with a group of watchmakers and designers, to continue the Florentine watchmaking tradition. The name of the brand convey the vision of its founders: “the product must always be more important than the brand”.
In 2001, Anonimo introduced their popular Militare collection, which also equipped the Italian military navy divers, cushion shaped watches with a distinctive crown and crown-protector at 12 o’clock. Their other important model was the Nautilo, a diving watch designed by Dino Zei.
The new Anonimo collection
Anonimo Militare Classic Auto
The new collection of Anonimo keeps certain key design elements from the early models, while updating the overall look of the watches. The new design is the result of the collaboration of Anonimo with renowned watch designer Antoine Tschumi.
The Militare collection offers two choices of movements, either the Militare Classic Automatic, a three hand watch with a small second dial at 3 o’clock and a date window at 9, using Sellita SW 260-1, or the Militare Classic Chronograph lineup, using the Sellita SW300 equipped with a Dubois Depraz 2035M chronograph module.
Both the Automatic and the Chronograph are 43 mm, made from stainless steel, stainless steel with DLC or bronze. When it comes to the dial, you can chose between black, silver or blue.
The entire lineup of the new Anonimo Militare Classic Chrono
The new Nautilo watches feature an innovative structure protecting the crown at 4 o’clock and gives also the possibility to play with bi-colour finishing editions. The blue, silver or black pure dials come with a high quality calf leather strap or a brand new designed Anonimo rubber strap. Their 44 mm cushion shaped cases come in a combination of stainless steel, stainless steel with black DLC and bronze.
You can expect seeing Anonimo hitting the shelfs of selected dealers across Canada in the next few weeks. Anyone interested can also get in touch with their official Canadian distributor at info@dezco-canada.com. As for the US, their executive agent is Horology Works.
The back of the Anonimo Militare Auto and its emblematic crown-protector
Anonimo Nautilo bronze and black DLC
