New Bulgari Octo Finissimo from LVMH Watch Week 2024

Text: Mia Litström

The brands from LVMH – Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy – kick off 2024 with their own little fair LVMH Watch Week. Here we take a look at two new versions of the Octo Finissimo from Bulgari.

The Octo Finissimo is a model that has been noticed and praised several times over the years for its very own style but above all for being well placed in the competition to be able to make watches with ultra-thin movements. That makes the watch both slim and pleasant to wear, but it is also substantial with its case size of 40 mm, however without becoming too clumsy. It offers a well-made design that is perfect for anyone looking for a more different watch that also carries a solid design heritage. 

The two new versions are completely different in terms of material and colour, otherwise they are fundamentally like the earlier Octo Finissimo Automatic with small seconds at 7 o'clock. The size is 40 mm with an impressively low height of only 6.4 mm. The water resistance is moreover 100 m for the newer generation of the Octo Finissimo, previously it was 30 m. The heart of the watch consists of the automatic movement Caliber 138 which is an ultra-thin movement at 2.23 mm with a power reserve of up to 60 hrs. The back is open and the parts decorated with among other things a Côtes de Geneve pattern and where you can moreover see the micro-rotor in platinum. 

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Yellow gold Automatic ref. 103812

The one that stands out most among the new releases is quite clearly the one that has the case and bracelet entirely in yellow gold. It has a fantastically lovely lustre. Yellow gold in particular has really come back big and become really trendy. The lighter gold shade conveys alovely retro feeling and in this particular case combined with a deep blue dial it makes the watch strikingly delightful.Both the case and the bracelet have a smart, soft satin finish and the dial is lacquered with a sunburst finish that gives a nice depth to the tone.

On the other hand it is not the easiest watch to wear since it is so very special, but for those who love the combination it is a bullseye. Already last year the American market got a foretaste of the Octo Finissimo in yellow gold since a pre-launch was made on that market with an Octo Finissimo in yellow gold with a rich dark brown dial. Limited to 50 examples. The new version is a notch sharper with its colour combination and it is not only the looks that are something quite extra, a watch entirely in gold also results in a high price tag which this timelands at 590 000 kronor. 

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Tuscan Copper Automatic ref. 103856 

Now to the most fun new release, the Tuscan Copper, a "Salmon dial", a trend that picked up proper speed in the watch industry a while ago. This one fundamentally has a warm copper tone that makes the pink salmon shade really pleasant and good. The dial has a smart sunray finish and the salmon pink shade marries nicely to the case and bracelet in steel. Bulgari's creative director Fabrizio Buonamassa relates that the salmon-coloured tone is not taken from the usual vintage trend that is so popular among collectors, instead the inspiration this time has been taken from the Italian art movement mannerism which reigned from 1520–1600 and is also called the late Renaissance. This model too has had a pre-premiere in the USA but was then limited to 50 examples, but today it is open for Europe and can be bought via their website, the price is 179 000 kronor. 

Read more about the watches at Bulgari