Oris and Kermit Join Forces to Bring Joy At Watches & Wonders Geneva 2023

By Nancy Olson

Timepieces deliver many things in addition to the time, among them an opportunity to appreciate beauty and artisanship, access to a likeminded community of watch aficionados, and even the chance to strut a bit, if so inclined. This year Oris is weighing in with a more organic perspective, intending to provide an extra shot of joy to one’s day via its new ProPilot X Kermit Edition. And if that sounds a bit ethereal for a renowned Swiss brand with 119 years of mechanical watchmaking experience and ten new calibers in ten years under its belt, not so. The “joy of mechanics,” is at the core of everything Oris does, making Kermit the perfect brand ambassador.

This special edition watch, available in April and priced at CHF 4,400, closely follows the ProPilot X Calibre 400 playbook, fitted with a lively green dial in honor of Kermit. Further, on the first day of each month, a genial-looking likeness of the famous amphibian appears in the date window at 6 o’clock, giving those twenty-four hours the unofficial designation of “Kermit Day.” Weirdly, at least for this pre-coffee morning grump, I found myself smiling back.

Oris Creative Director Ken Laurent, who traveled to Hollywood to “meet” the joyful Muppet, says that Oris and Kermit have more in common than first meets the eye.

“He’s the ‘everyfrog,’ like the everyman. He’s down to earth, I mean, he comes from a swamp. And he’s never trying to be the centerpiece, but he always has an important role to play.”

The watch’s 39mm case is titanium and has a screwed titanium see-through caseback; satin and sandblasted surfaces add dimension. The bracelet, too, is titanium as is the screw-in crown that assists in the watch’s water resistance to 100m.  The indices and hour and minute hands are treated with Super-Luminova, artfully interrupting the solid green backdrop of the dial.

“We could have put a big Kermit the Frog emoji on the dial. Some might have done that because they want their most important collaborations to be in-your-face, to scream,” says Laurent. “But we didn’t want that. We wanted something more humble that would respect the product.”

The automatic Oris Caliber 400 powers the watch, offering central hours, minutes and seconds. This resolutely antimagnetic movement, which was conceived in-house, features power reserve of 120 hours and has a 10-year warranty.

The ProPilot X Kermit Edition, billed as part of the Oris X Dianey The Muppets collaboration, begs the question, Are there more Muppet watches in the plans? Laurent isn’t spilling any beans: “Maybe. You’ll have to wait and see…”