The new Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT, Another Cool 1970s Remake

Since its relaunch in 2020, historic brand Nivada Grenchen has become one of the most active watch companies in the field of vintage revival… Take a look at the entire portfolio of models offered by Nivada and you’ll see that almost everything is based on a historic design. And the brand’s latest creation, a watch that is modelled after Nivada Grenchen’s first GMT watch, is not going to change this rather successful recipe. Here’s the new Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT, a timepiece that’s all about bringing back 1970s Jet Age vibes. 

Just like the recent Chronosport, the story behind the creation of this Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT involves historical research and a bit of luck. While searching into Nivada’s past collections in order to complete, together with Aashdin K. Billimora, the book dedicated to the Nivada Grenchen Antarctic, Guillaume Laidet (CEO) came across a rare gem for sale on a famous online shop. This watch, most likely dating from the late 1960s or early 1970s, with the Reference number 87013, was the brand’s first GMT watch. Indeed, Nivada joined the ranks of many brands producing such watches. Made right during the Jet Age, which peaked between 1955 and 1972, and sparked a demand for GMT watches among frequent travellers.

The watch in question, the historic Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT, was encased in a 200m dive-ready case developed by Ervin Piquerez S.A. (EPSA), with its classic twin-crown design (here with one to control the 24-hour bezel, the other to actuate the movement) and the patented technology that leveraged the water pressure at depth to compress the case against its gasket. Inside was an AR-1146 movement, which didn’t yet allow for independent adjustment of the 24-hour hand. Instead, it moved in sync with the 12-hour hand (like an early GMT Master by Rolex).

Fast forward to 2024, using its now classic theme of reviving past icons in a rather faithful way, Nivada Grenchen brings here a deliberately vintage, historically-relevant, compact watch with many attributes of the past watch. And it starts with the case, made of polished steel, with a typical 1970s shape, and faithful dimensions – 36mm in diameter, 11.1mm in thickness and about 41mm in length – that echo the vintage watch. In order to remain true to the original look, Nivada has here opted for a domed plexiglass crystal instead of a sapphire crystal, thus enhancing its retro charm (there’s a unique warmth to plexiglass) and avoiding the distortions commonly seen with thick, ultra-domed sapphires.

Some concessions, however, have been made regarding the case’s construction, which is now a classic 2-part architecture with a traditional screw-in caseback and a rather limited 50m water-resistance. It might retain the look of an old EPSA Compressor watch with its emblematic two crowns, but it’s not a real compressor watch anymore. It’s a bit of a disappointment, but it’s also how Nivada manages to offer its watches at a highly competitive price. It nevertheless retains the unique flair and feel of the original model, visually speaking at least.

Move on to the dial and you’ll see that the new Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT is all about the old model… But yet again, with some modifications and upgrades. First, two dial colours will be available, either classic matte black or a brown “tropical” option as a limited edition of 99 pieces. Other than the base colour, both versions are identical with a black-and-yellow 24-hour rotating bezel (actuated by the 2 o’clock crown), which is now made of plexiglass for added depth. Local time is read thanks to polished hands and applied markers (all with SLN) while the GMT function – an office/caller style – is displayed with a bold and (again) retro-style red-and-black chequered hand.

Inside there are some welcome upgrades, however, as the Antarctic GMT now features an independent 24-hour hand, which can separately track an additional time zone – and the bezel thus becomes a third time zone indicator. We’re not talking about a true GMT function, with one-hour increment adjustments on the local hour hand, but it’s certainly a major improvement over the vintage model. Power comes from an automatic Soprod C125, an alternative to the ETA 2893, with a 4Hz frequency and a 42h power reserve.

Regarding straps, Nivada always offers multiple options and this new Antarctic GMT is no exception to the rule, with either a perforated leather strap in light brown or black, a tropic-like rubber strap or a steel beads of rice steel bracelet.

All in all, this new Nivada Grenchen Antarctic GMT is once again done with great visual appeal. It might come with certain concessions on the case construction but also mechanical upgrades, but mostly a very cool visual appeal and great retro dimensions. And at EUR 1,500, CHF 1,400 or USD 1,600, it’s also fairly priced. It will be available for orders as of November 14th, 2024 at 4PM Europe Time, with the tropical brown version being limited to 99 pieces. For more details and to register your interest, please visit nivadagrenchenofficial.com.