Lockdown has had a devastating effect on formal wear. Why dress up in a full suit and tie for a Zoom meeting when you can also comfortably “Donald Duck” it? A little less visually extreme is combining jeans with a sports jacket. It’s well accepted and sneakers in the boardroom are possibly also on the way to full acceptance in the near future. And believe it or not, in a distant corner of Germany, in the remote Ore mountains in Saxony, one watch brand has spotted the trend and taps into it. Here’s the classic Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Panorama on a beige nylon strap.

Not all watches are created equal, and neither are sneakers. There’s a big difference between premium leather ones made in an artisanal Italian atelier and the ones you use for playing squash. What Glashütte Original did is pairing its very traditional-looking Senator Chronograph Panorama with a beige, kind of sand-colored, nylon strap. The folding clasp makes sure the strap looks and feels like your Santoni sneakers instead of your smelly, worn-down squash shoes.

Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Panorama: a sporty soul revealed

The classically elegant Senator Chronograph Panorama performs the same trick as the Panoreserve, and it works out well again. Maybe even better this time, because a chronograph will always have a sporty soul no matter how traditional the design. Because there’s less to get used to so to speak than was the case with the asymmetric Panoreserve. The most traditional-looking element of the Senator Chronograph Panorama is the matte white varnished dial with printed scales and indices.

Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Panorama

A sporty touch is the Super-LumiNova on the well-proportioned large hands, indices, and the two Roman numerals that also represent the classic background of the watch. The emblematic Panorama Date is the signature that stands out in a subtle, horological way. One large window instead of two side by side showing the date on two discs is the way to go in the case of a big date if you ask me.

Visible watchmaking skills only found in the Senator Chronograph Panorama

Apart from the characteristic Panorama Date, you will also find the 30-minute and a 12-hour counter and a fly-back central second hand. Look closely at the small second positioned at 9 o’clock and you will see a nifty power reserve display. It’s the automatic in-house caliber 37-01 that makes it happen. This 4Hz movement with a power reserve of 70 hours, is visible through the sapphire case back. The watchmaking skills are kept in high regard at GO. That much is clear from looking at the polished steel parts with beveled edges, and blued screws. The movement uses a Glashütte three-quarter plate with a striped finish that is a joy to behold. And so is the open-worked rotor with a double-G symbol.

Emphasizing the all-round character

Less traditional and more contemporary is the 42mm steel case with a height of 14.60mm. The sporty DNA shines through in the shape of the water resistance of 10 bar and the screwed crown. To emphasize the can-do-all character of the Senator Chronograph Panorama, GO decided to put a beige nylon strap between the 21mm lugs. They put sneakers on a watch you can and will wear to the office with great comfort. Just like you would expect from a smooth and soft fabric strap. When you’re allowed to come and work in the office that is you’re not obliged to work from home. And in case of the latter, you will wear the watch in every Zoom meeting. Even when you’re “Winnie The Poohing” it.

Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Panorama

Traditional, robust, or easy-going?

The Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Panorama (1-37-01-05-02-36) has a price of €13,800. The watch is also available on a traditional leather strap or a robust steel bracelet. The nylon strap is the most relaxed and easy-going. The bracelet is sporty like the fabric strap but also very prominently there. All that steel kind of overshadows the dial. The sandy tones of the nylon strap on the other hand, also leave room for the subtle color and details on it too shiny while blending in at the same time. Don’t underestimate the power of nylon. Glashütte Original certainly hasn’t!

Glashütte Original Senator Chronograph Panorama

For more information, please visit the Glashütte Original website.

Please follow me at Lex Stolk • Instagram