On April 30, 2026, Naoya Hida & Co., the Tokyo-based independent brand, announced its 2026 production lineup. It marked the eighth time that Mr. Naoya Hida, founder and CEO, together with long-time retail partner Mr. Mark Cho of The Armoury, unveiled the brand’s novelties for the upcoming cycle.
Naoya Hida & Co. is known for its low annual production and a strict application process. A ChatGPT-written essay will not get you far. You need to stand out with genuine passion. Many enthusiasts, myself included, have experienced the disappointment of not being selected. Yet the brand continues to present compelling new releases that motivate collectors to keep trying.
This year’s lineup is no exception. Among the 10 models presented, seven are entirely new. At the same time, 8 of the 11 models from 2025 have been phased out, which adds to their collectability. The new lineup includes the brand’s first porcelain dial, a chronograph powered by a vintage Valjoux 23 movement, and its first 31 mm timepiece.
These releases have already stirred excitement across the watch community and media. But there is more. On May 7th, the first day of the New York City trunk show for the 2026 novelties, The Armoury and Naoya Hida & Co. announced a 10-piece collaboration. This is the brand’s first Métiers d’Art watch, named Floating Feathers.
With this, the full 2026/27 production now totals 129 pieces, by adding up the expected production numbers of the 11 models. Let us briefly introduce the brand and its founders, revisit past collaborations, and then turn to this stunning Métiers d’Art masterpiece.
A Brief Introduction of the Creators
Mr. Naoya Hida, the founder, brings a rich background in the watch industry. He held key sales and marketing roles in Japan for Swiss brands such as Jaeger-LeCoultre, Vacheron Constantin, and F.P. Journe. His vision centers on creating contemporary timepieces that reflect the timeless aesthetics of the 1930s to 1960s. These watches are realized through the intricate work of skilled artisans.
After establishing the brand in 2018, Mr. Hida brought in Mr. Kosuke Fujita, an accomplished master watchmaker, in 2020. He then welcomed Mr. Keisuke Kano, a master engraver, in 2022.
Kano-san graduated from watchmaking school in 2000. He began his career at Seiko, working in jewelry watch manufacturing. In 2006, he joined Tiffany & Co. as an engraver. Around 2015, he undertook further training in engraving in Paris. Some of his work can be seen on his Instagram account, @plusgive.
Mark Cho, born and raised in the UK, co-founded The Armoury in Hong Kong in 2010. The company now operates four stores for men’s clothing and accessories in New York City and Hong Kong. Mark is a passionate watch collector and an active collaborator. He has worked with brands such as H. Moser & Cie. and Ressence. Together with his watch design partner Elliot Hammer, he recently co-founded a new watch brand, Temporal Works.
Mark became the first retail partner for Naoya Hida & Co. His deep passion for horology, combined with refined retail spaces and a strong client base, made this partnership a natural fit. He has played a key role in promoting Naoya Hida timepieces and in creating several notable collaborations. The shared vision and chemistry between Mark Cho and Naoya Hida have made their partnership stand out in the watch world.
I had the pleasure of visiting the Naoya Hida & Co. workshop in Tokyo in 2024, where I met Mr. Naoya Hida. In mid-June 2025, I visited The Armoury’s store in Central, Hong Kong, and attended a trunk show featuring the full 2025 collection. These were such memorable experiences to meet the creators behind these remarkable timepieces.
Past Collaborations
Mr. Naoya Hida organizes his watches into series designated by type numbers, so it is helpful first to review the definitions of these series. Each collaboration model is based on one of them.
NH Type 1: a dress watch with a seconds sub-dial at the 9 o’clock position
NH Type 2: a dress watch with a central seconds hand
NH Type 3: a two-hand dress watch with a moon phase indicator
NH Type 4: a sports dress watch with a central seconds hand
NH Type 5: a dress watch with a rectangular case
NH Type 6: a perpetual calendar dress watch
NH Type 7: a chronograph dress watch
NH Type 8: a small 31 mm dress watch
Now, let’s delve into the past collaborations between Naoya Hida & Co. and The Armoury.
NH Type 2C-1 “Lettercutter” - 20 pieces
This was the first collaboration between Naoya Hida & Co. and The Armoury, unveiled in 2022. The Armoury team, led by Mark Cho and Elliot Hammer, set out to develop a typeface that would highlight the engraver’s skill. The design needed depth to create a strong sense of relief and contrast. They named it “Lettercutter” in tribute to craftsmen who carve letters in stone.
The final typeface features many straight lines and circular curves, both of which are difficult to execute. Even small imperfections would be visible. When executed by hand with such precision by Kano-san, the result is elegant, striking, and unique.
During his training in Paris many years ago, Kano-san was impressed by the carved letters on historic buildings and took many photographs. He drew on his experience in Paris and embraced the project as a true letter cutter, working at a much smaller scale on the dial.
A total of 20 examples of the Type 2C-1 “Lettercutter” were produced between 2022 and 2023. This limited run has made them especially collectible.
NH Type 1D-4 and 1D-5 “East-West” - 12 pieces
The next project was a three-way collaboration between Naoya Hida & Co., The Armoury, and J.N. Shapiro, an American independent watchmaker known for his intricate guilloché dials. The watches were based on the Type 1D, with a small seconds sub-dial at the 9 o’clock position. The central dial, sub-dial, and caseback were hand guilloché by Shapiro. Kano-san engraved the hour numerals, minute dots, and the logos.
The collaboration model was named “East-West” to reflect a creative exchange across the Pacific. The Type 1D-4 was produced in stainless steel, with eight pieces completed in 2024. The Type 1D-5 was produced in yellow gold, with only four examples made in the same year.
The Floating Feathers Reference Type 4A-2 - 10 Pieces
Mark Cho and his design partner Elliot Hammer had long wanted to create a Métiers d’Art dial. They have admired highly decorated dials from the mid-20th century, including cloisonné works that depict birds, botanicals, and scenes of natural beauty.
The most prominent Métiers d’Art in haute horlogerie include enameling, engraving, guilloché, marquetry, miniature painting, and gem-setting. For a collaboration with the Naoya Hida team, Métiers d’Art based on engraving was a natural choice.
Engraved dials have been a signature of Naoya Hida timepieces from the beginning. In-house master engraver Kano-san, after completing numerous engravings of Arabic and Roman numerals, as well as happy and sad faces on moon discs, was ready for a new challenge. At just the right time, Mark and Elliot had a technically demanding idea in mind.
Instead of depicting birds, one of their favorite subjects, their vision focused on full, well-formed feathers. The intention was to capture fine details and subtle structures that catch the light. It is a subject well-suited to engraving, but one that requires a very high level of skill to execute.
This idea led to another close collaboration between the passionate designers and the talented engraver, an encore to the Lettercutter project. The dial was hand-engraved in Argentium silver, an alloy chosen by Kano-san for its resistance to tarnishing.
After many days of trial and refinement, the three feathers came to life, as if floating on the dial. Each angle to the light presents a different appearance of the lifelike feathers, a special delight reserved for the future wearer.
For this art piece, the team decided to use the Type 4 series as a base, which was introduced in 2023 as a sporty dress watch. It was then the brand’s first 36 mm model, featuring a pair of sculpted diamond-shaped hands for the hours and minutes. This special piece was subsequently designated Reference NH 4A-2 and aptly named “Floating Feathers”.
On the stunning dial featuring three feathers, the sharply faceted yellow gold hour and minute hands stand out in equal measure. Machined and then hand-polished, they are accompanied by a slim, blued steel seconds hand with a “caviar spoon” counterweight. The yellow gold hands are echoed by 12 yellow gold dots that indicate the hours.
The Floating Feathers is built on a 36 mm Type 4 case, machined from 904L stainless steel. The caseback is screwed down and offers water resistance to 5 ATM.
The watch is powered by Caliber 3020CS, a hand-wound movement based on the robust ETA 7750 platform. It beats at 4 Hz and provides 45 hours of power reserve.
Price and Availability
The Armoury x Naoya Hida & Co. NH Type 4A-2 “Floating Feathers” is priced at 33,000 USD. Only 10 pieces will be produced, with deliveries scheduled for 2027.
The allocation of this Métiers d’Art timepiece will be conducted via application. To participate, you can visit one of The Armoury stores during regular business hours, from May 17 to May 20, and complete a short questionnaire. Applications will also be accepted online during the same period.
For additional information, please visit The Armoury website.
Finally, a few photos showing how this remarkable dial was made.
What a beautiful piece of art on the wrist. Best of luck to anyone applying for a piece.
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