Welcome to the ice age
If you’ve ever been near a glacier, you know that they’re rarely pure white; the ice masses give off various colors — sometimes deep, icy blue, sometimes emerald green, sometimes black — depending on the amount of air bubbles trapped in the ice for thousands and thousands of years. The ice bubbles refract the sunlight, blocking some wavelengths and releasing other vivid, intense colors.
Montblanc, the iconic brand named after the highest Alpine peak in Europe, took inspiration from this phenomenon when designing its latest athleisure series, the Montblanc Glacier Collection, with retooled fountain pen designs, a capsule line of cross-body bags, clutches and backpacks, and a first-ever diver’s watch, the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date.
Imagine plunging through the icy blue glacial waters at the foot of Mont Blanc in a wetsuit, down through interlocking ice patterns that have existed for millennia.
“Gazing into the depths of this Alpine ice is an incredible experience that we wanted to bring to our products, finding a creative way to recreate that same sense of awe and wonder,” explains Montblanc creative director Marco Tomasetta.
At a special launch at The Peak, high up on the 62nd floor of the Grand Hyatt in BGC, guests and media gathered for the release, set amid icy chunks and a retooled, six-sided Montblanc logo lit up in immersive blue. Rustan’s SVP for Support and Development Michael Tantoco Huang was on hand with Montblanc SEA wholesale director Cedric Audoubert to unveil the collection and explain its complexity.
First, there’s the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date, the brand’s first-ever certified diver’s watch. It’s designed with a 41mm stainless steel case featuring a bicolor ceramic unidirectional rotating bezel that is carefully handcrafted. The interchangeable V-shaped stainless-steel bracelet can be quickly and easily switched for a rubber strap without the use of any tools (it comes with an attractive taper of 20-16mm and is secured by a double deployant buckle). The bracelet is also adjustable on the wrist for a perfect fit, even when wearing it over a wet suit.
On the face, Montblanc dial makers have executed a technical feat, recreating the illusion of looking into the “frozen” depths of a glacier: you’ll see shimmering blues, blacks and greens, while the case back features a 3D relief engraving of an iceberg and a scuba diver exploring the glacial waters below — from the highest peak to the deepest depths.
Interest in sports gear is mounting, Montblanc finds. After all, as Huang notes, “Nowadays, after the pandemic, athleisure has become a big thing. It’s back. It’s something that the brand has realized everyone’s into; everyone’s looking for something sportier, getting into the sportier lifestyle.”
Call it revenge sports luxury, but with new creative director Tomasetta on board, the inspiration goes beyond Montblanc’s monochromatic tones to something more physical and daring — and colorful.
Take the new sporty and bold capsule collection of large, small and medium leather goods and accessories. Featuring an original blue ice design, the backpacks, folios, belt and cross-body bags are printed on nylon or leather, while the motif is paired with the new Montblanc M Lock 4810, a pressure closure used in the world of climbing and mountaineering and introduced as a new brand code. Functional outside pockets and closures make it easier to access personal items on the go, and add to the look of the collection, while the zip closures feature a leather pull that echoes the shape of a classic Meisterstück fountain pen nib. The capsule collection is also crafted from eco-sustainable materials, underscoring the importance of preserving glaciers and mountains in the future.
“Montblanc is getting more into the sporty lifestyle,” notes Huang. “While they’ve had other collections with water-resistant backpacks, they’re really trying to make it a more all-around brand.”
Even the trademark Montblanc Meisterstück writing instrument reflects this new adventurous look. While the Mont Blanc’s glaciers have always been expressed in the brand’s six-point emblem on its fountain pens and the height of the mountain — 4,810 meters — etched on its nibs, the new design elements of the Montblanc Meisterstück Glacier collection evoke the awe-inspiring beauty of a disappearing natural treasure in blue/grey and white tones, a PVD coating technology that gives the surface a shimmering, ice-like appearance and engraving on the Doué and Solitaire editions that resembles the refraction of light when hitting ice crystals. Then there’s the detailed engraving on each nib in the collection of the Mont Blanc Mer de Glace dragon — based on the legend that the Mer de Glace (ice sea) glacier resembles a giant monster hugging the northern slope of Mont Blanc.
Launching the collection with a toast, Audoubert lauded the design team’s “synthesis of the highest-ever quality, innovation and workmanship.”
Montblanc has long been a mainstay of Rustan’s stores in the Philippines, thanks to its well-traveled co-founder, Bienvenido “Benny” Tantoco Sr., who always sought the finest brands for the country on his European adventures. “One of the things my grandfather always prided himself on was bringing the best brands into the Philippines,” says Huang. “Definitely, one of his favorite places was always Switzerland,” where the Montblanc journey began. From the highest peaks of Europe, to the stores of Metro Manila. What an adventure.
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Montblanc is available at Rustan’s Makati, Rustan’s Shangri-La, Rustan’s Cebu, Greenbelt 5, City of Dreams and Resorts World.
For more information, visit Rustans.com.
