What We Know
It’s spring, which means it’s time for Naoya Hida’s annual trunk show, where the brand tours the world to showcase its new watches. If you’re in town for one of their few stops (like next week in New York), you can treat it like any tailor’s trunk show and find out if the watch is a good fit. And every year, Hida-san and his team unveil a few new styles. In fact, you can see the ten releases on offer below. Some are familiar; others have small tweaks (the Type1 is now the Type1E because of the new domed crystal that makes it 10.9mm). But there are three watches that are so distinctly new that it’s worth talking about.
Let’s go in numerical order, starting with a watch that is essentially just a dial revision, but it’s a dramatic one at that. The Type2 series has been around for six years now as the brand’s central seconds movement, followed by revisions in 2021 and then the coveted collaboration with The Armoury in 2022, called “The Lettercutter.” I know a lot of people fought to get that piece, but there’s a new Type2C-2 that’s going to get some attention. While a big draw for Naoya Hida is the hand-engraved German or Argentium silver dials (in fact, that’s where a lot of the price goes), they’ve pivoted here to their first-ever porcelain dial.
The watch, powered by a Cal. 3020CS manually-wound movement with 45-hour power reserve and 4Hz beat rate, is cased in 37mm by 11.4mm stainless steel with a 44.8mm lug-to-lug. The glass is a curved sapphire crystal with a double-sided antireflective coating. The dial is made of porcelain and hand-painted to evoke a 1950s/1960s aesthetic. Finally, the blued central seconds hand is bent to fit the curved dial and sapphire. The retail price is $20,600, and only 10 pieces will be made between 2026 and 2027.
The first fully new model from Hida-san is also old. Well, the movement is. For the NH Type7A, Hida was able to gather a decent number of vintage new-old-stock versions of the famed Valjoux 23 chronograph movement (which was the base for the caliber in the Patek Philippe 1518 and 2499). Sourcing old V23 movements isn’t a new idea. Nivada Grenchen has done it seven times now, with as many as 25 pieces in some runs. Raymond Weil recently did it with 50 movements. Now, Naoya Hida has done it in their own way.
The German silver dial uses hand-engraving for the hour indices, but ultra-high-precision and high-speed micro-fine machining for the logo and minute/second scales. The hands are 18k yellow gold, while the chronograph hand is heat-blued steel. All this is in a 36mm by 11.7mm stainless steel case with 43.8mm lug-to-lug, screw-down caseback, and 30m of water resistance. The brand hasn’t shared any details on how the movements were restored, but I assume they were regulated and restored as with other brands. There are, again, only ten pieces for the next two years of allocations, and the price is $38,300.
Finally, we have a new Patek ref. 96–inspired model, the NH Type8A—the watch that started it all for Hida-san. The ref. 96 has long resonated in the Japanese market, where smaller, more refined watches—like the 3796—continued to find an audience. Hida-san has spoken about wanting to make something this small for years, but it wasn’t until the development of the Cal. 2524SS that he felt ready to do it.
The German Silver dial is reminiscent of the Type1D and Type1E, with a subsidiary seconds now at 9 o’clock (where I am used to it, frankly). The 9 ligne movement runs at 3Hz, with a power reserve of 38 hours and 19 jewels. This can be seen through the display caseback, which isn’t common for Hida watches. The case is only 31mm by 8.9mm thick with a 38.4mm lug-to-lug, screwback case, and 50 meters of water resistance. The dial has the same mix of hand and machine engraving as the chronograph. One feature I appreciate is the widely stanced lugs, 18mm apart, with 14mm taper to the buckle. The retail price is $23,100, and twenty pieces will be made over the next two years.
For the rest of the watches, you can find more information and pricing on the Naoya Hida website.
What We Think
I have to give credit to the Hida team for expanding their lineup each year. That’s impressive, since I know that their team is pretty small and, I’m sure, quite taxed with all the handwork that goes into the dials. And man, do I love the dials, especially the beautiful hand-engraved Breguet numerals. I’m really a fan of the Type1E, especially.
That said, over time, I’ve become more sensitive to the pricing of some Hida releases. Maybe that’s just more emphasized by the chronograph this year, given that it’s about eight times the price of the Nivada Grenchen and almost four times the price of the Raymond Weil (which people were already skeptical of). I know the dial engraving adds to the cost, but that much seems surprising. I would imagine a lack of economies of scale comes into play. It’s quite beautiful, but at nearly $40,000, it’s quite expensive.
The other topic is the Type8A, which is essentially a Peseux 7001. That’s not really a problem—a lot of great movements draw from other watches. But the brand’s finishing on the plates doesn’t resonate with me. It looks overly industrial and out of harmony with the rest of the watch or its price point. Compare it to the Peseux 7001 with in-house finishing from Furlan Marri (who admittedly doesn’t carve out the extra bridge) for $4,500 or the Massena collaboration with Raúl Pagès for less than $10,000. Regardless, many vintage collectors will appreciate the modern specifications of an otherwise vintage design, and I bet the Type8A is nearly fully allocated to ref. 96 fans overnight.
Pricing & Availability
Price: $20,600 (Type2C-2), $38,300 (Type7A), $23,100 (Type8A)
Availability: Via application to Naoya Hida or through The Armoury
Limited Edition: 10 pieces for 2026 to 2027 of the Type2C-2 or Type7A; 20 pieces for 2026 to 2027 for the Type8A
For more, click here.
