(Newswire Today) —  La Chaux-De-Fonds, Switzerland, 2008-02-11 - TAG Heuer inaugurates its “TAG Heuer 360” Private Museum with the exclusive presence of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 superstar Lewis Hamilton at TAG Heuer’s Avant-Garde Headquarters in La Chaux-De-Fonds, Switzerland.

At a glamorous and glittering champagne soirée hosted by Vodafone McLaren Mercedes superstar Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton, best rookie ever and 2nd at FIA 2007 F1 world championship, TAG Heuer inaugurated the world’s first 360 Degree Watchmaking Museum, celebrating 150 years of innovation, precision, performance and prestigious sports embedded in the legendary Swiss brand’s unique heritage.
More than 250 journalists, retailers and VIPs from around the world took part in this exclusive event, which was proudly introduced by Jean-Christophe Babin., TAG Heuer President & CEO.

“This daring tridimensional museum celebrates TAG Heuer’s unrivalled sports heritage and constant quest for technical innovation and precision,” said Jean-Christophe Babin. “Its dramatic architecture and design combined with awesome technology reflect the unique sports and glamour DNA that has driven our brand for a century and a half. The unique combination of chronology, themes and legends with sensorial technologies make this museum a new milestone in TAG Heuer innovative history as well as in ways of envisioning 21st century museums as projection into the future rather than nostalgic glimpses into the past”.

As technologically avant-garde as a superlative TAG Heuer sports watch, the state-of-the-art facility houses the world’s first-ever 360-degree conical movie screen. Operated by a battery of 12 computers processing over 1 million images an hour, it creates a unique and dynamic presentation of the TAG Heuer saga.

Located in TAG Heuer’s eco-efficient headquarters, the energy-saving architecture allows external and natural light to flow seamlessly throughout the building from the entrance to the roof via the elevator tubes and the office windows.

“It’s absolutely breathtaking,” said Lewis Hamilton, the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team’s Formula 1 phenomenon and longtime TAG Heuer Ambassador. “The museum showcases TAG Heuer’s incredible achievements in watch making and sports – especially motor racing, where it is always been more actively and legitimately engaged than any other watch brand. I am very proud to be here tonight as TAG Heuer has been supporting me for years, even before racing in F1. We share a strong human bond and the same values of prestige, sport and performance.”

TAG Heuer, the leader in prestigious sports watches and chronographs since 1860, is currently the largest and fastest growing international luxury watch brand. The Swiss watchmaking legend draws upon its active engagement in the world of sports to create the most accurate measuring instruments and sports watches in the world. TAG Heuer is today the first watchmaker ever to master luxurious chronographs with an unsurpassed precision of 1/10th, 1/100th and 1/1000th of a second. From the Olympic Games in the 1920s to its role as official timekeeper to within 1/10,000th of a second for the legendary Race of Champions, TAG Heuer, in a constant quest for innovation, excellence, performance and prestige, continues to aim ever higher, as reflected in its partnerships with Vodafone McLaren Mercedes in Formula 1 and its two aces: rookie sensation Lewis Hamilton, and Heikki Kovalainen. Powerfuly endorsed by 2007 F1 world champion Kim Raïkkönen and Scuderia Ferrari F1 driver, world number 1 golfer Tiger Woods, WTA star tennis player Maria Sharapova, NASCAR idol Jeff Gordon and Champcar four-time world champion Sébastien Bourdais; as well as by Hollywood superstars Brad Pitt and Uma Thurman and Bollywood icons Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra, TAG Heuer more than ever epitomizes Sport and Glamour !

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