Editor’s Note
Chopard is setting a new standard in sustainable luxury by becoming the first high-end watchmaker to produce all its steel watches from recycled materials. This commitment to Lucent Steel™ marks a significant step toward reducing the industry’s environmental footprint.
Chopard has become the first high-end watch and jewelry brand to manufacture watches using recycled steel. By the end of 2023, Chopard will use Lucent Steel™ to produce all of its steel watches, including the bracelets and cases.
Lucent Steel™ is an alloy with a minimum recycled steel content of 80%. The brand is committed to increasing this proportion of recycled steel in Lucent Steel™ to at least 90% by the end of 2025. This commitment will enable Chopard to significantly reduce the carbon emissions footprint associated with manufacturing steel.
As a family-run business with a long-term vision, Chopard has always considered sustainability a core value. This move marks another milestone in Chopard’s “Journey to Sustainable Luxury.” This announcement builds upon the existing Lucent Steel™, first used in 2019 for the classic Alpine Eagle collection with 70% recycled steel. It signifies a key next step in Chopard’s long-term commitment to responsible raw material sourcing:
- By the end of 2023, all Chopard steel watch models, including bracelets and cases, will be made with 80% recycled steel.
- By 2025, this figure will increase to at least 90%.
- Chopard is the first high-end watch and jewelry brand to join the Climate Group’s SteelZero initiative, collaborating with the industry to accelerate the transition of the steel sector to net-zero carbon emissions, thereby emphasizing its solemn commitment.
According to key data from the International Stainless Steel Forum (ISSF), this initiative allows Chopard to significantly reduce its CO2 emissions related to steel manufacturing. Increasing the recycled steel content from a standard 50% to 80% can lead to a dramatic 30% reduction in production-related carbon emissions. If the recycled content is raised to 90%, emissions will be reduced by 40%.
While adhering to its sustainability commitments, Chopard also ensures the exceptional quality and performance of the raw materials for its timepieces. Chopard’s Lucent Steel™ is made from high-quality industrial scrap from Swiss watchmakers and high-grade steel from the medical, aerospace, and automotive industries.
The unique remelting process used to create Chopard’s Lucent Steel™ gives the material three distinctive properties:
- First, it is hypoallergenic. Similar to medical-grade steel, it has excellent skin compatibility, suitable even for the most sensitive skin.
- Second, its corrosion resistance is 50% higher than ordinary steel, making the watches inherently more sustainable.
- Finally, it possesses an excellent uniform crystalline microstructure, allowing it to refract and reflect light in a truly unique way. Just as diamonds shine brighter with fewer impurities, this high-performance steel contains far fewer impurities than ordinary steel, resulting in extremely high gloss, brightness, and a radiant, golden-like shine.
Chopard spent over four years in meticulous research and development to perfect the composition and manufacturing method of this steel, collaborating with suppliers to ensure sufficient quantities of high-quality recycled steel to extend Lucent Steel™ across all Chopard collections.
Lucent Steel™ is produced within a localized circular manufacturing loop designed by Chopard. All of Chopard’s recycled steel suppliers are located within a 1000 km radius of its production sites, either in Switzerland or neighboring Austria, France, Germany, and Italy, thereby reducing the need for transport emissions.
Chopard’s main suppliers are Voestalpine BÖHLER Edelstahl, a subsidiary of the globally leading steel technology and capital goods group based in Austria, and PX Precimet in Switzerland. The brand also collaborates with the Swiss innovation company Panatere, which is actively developing solar-powered metal processing.
Furthermore, scrap generated during Chopard’s manufacturing process is collected by suppliers and recycled into new high-quality steel. This circular process limits raw material extraction without adversely affecting the crucial product quality across all Chopard operations.
To fulfill its commitment, Chopard has become the first high-end watch and jewelry brand to join the Climate Group’s SteelZero initiative, collaborating with the industry to accelerate the steel sector’s transition to zero carbon.
SteelZero members use their purchasing power and influence to send a strong demand signal to steel manufacturers, investors, and policymakers, thereby accelerating the mass production of responsible steel.
As the first watch brand to participate in this initiative, Chopard is deeply proud. Although the watch industry uses relatively small quantities of steel compared to other sectors, steel is a significant material for watches and the industry itself. Therefore, the brand is determined to reduce the impact associated with steel use, just as it has with its gold.
Chopard’s commitment to using 90% recycled steel in all its watch models by 2025 represents another iconic step on its sustainability path. Key milestones include:
- 2013: Launch of the “Journey to Sustainable Luxury,” a multi-year commitment to ensure more responsible sourcing in the supply chain.
- 2018: Announcement that Chopard would use 100% sustainable and socially responsible gold in all watch and jewelry creations by July 2018.
- 2019: Launch of the Alpine Eagle collection, the first series using Lucent Steel™ with 70% recycled content.
- 2023: Announcement that steel watch manufacturing, including bracelets and cases, will use Lucent Steel™, achieving 80% recycled steel content by 2023 and at least 90% by 2025.
