Do-gooder horophiles are in for a treat today – luxury watchmakers Hublot and the Kevin Pietersen-founded charity SORAI (Save Our Rhinos Africa and India) have joined forces once again. Marking the forth time the pair have collaborated, this edition manifests in an exquisite timepiece called the Spirit of Big Bang, a limited-edition 30-piece watch.
“I don’t want to compare it to the others. I want it to be a continuation of what we’ve started,” Pietersen notes, referring to how the partnership with Hublot has evolved. “We can’t compare the watches [of each collab]. Yes, they look different, but the meaning is the same, the authenticity is the same, the value of what we’re trying to create and the end result is the same. So [the Spirit of Big Bang] is a different timepiece to potentially bring in different owners to the story, because of the meaning associated to what we’re trying to do. It’s all part of the big puzzle which we’re putting together to continue our positive results around rhino poaching.”
Setting up SORAI in 2018, Pietersen’s transition from former professional cricketer to conservationist was fuelled by his passion for protecting key species around Africa and India. Supporting a range of anti-poaching education and enforcement programmes, SORAI’s impact is notable. “We’re starting to see a decrease in the poaching of the animal,” Pietersen explains. “We’re starting to see the fruits of some long hours and a lot of work that’s gone into trying to protect these animals. When I started in this conservation space, three animals were being killed a day. We’re down to one or less than one a day at the moment…But one thing we won’t do is rest on our laurels and think, ‘Hey, we’ve done it now’…We want to really power through. One animal being killed is too many for me.”
Aside from the financial support SORAI gains from the sales of the watch, partnering with Hublot has a significant impact on the organisation’s much-needed reach. “When the opportunity to collab with a brand as significant as Hublot came about, one of the things that we looked at was the geographies of where we can target awareness. One thing Hublot does is a target the East, which is where the majority of the consumption of rhino horn is. That’s why this marriage works so well, because we’re able to really infiltrate where the issue is and we’re able to broadcast messaging.”
Drawing in awareness to this issue is one of the key drivers for Pietersen, as is building a community around the cause. “This watch is all about coming together. It’s about unity,” Pietersen explains. “It’s about the people. It’s about the animal, but it’s about protection as a whole.
“Anybody who does have this watch, or who’s lucky enough to get this watch, should know that they are part of a big play here in conserving the species that needs to be preserved. Africa is synonymous for the Big Five [game animals] and what we’re doing here is protecting one of the Big Five. We just launched a subscription program where we’re trying to bring in a ‘human fence’. There’s many electric fences and other types of fences that contain these animals, but on the other side is a human fence which is people [metaphorically] joining hands from all over the world, knowing that they can contribute. For as little as £1 a month, you can join SORAI Rangers [which contributes to Pietersen’s conservation efforts]. All the information is on our website and you can be a part of that human fence that we’re trying to create. It doesn’t matter if you live in Sydney, New York, Chicago, Mumbai or Munich – you can feel like you are properly engaged in the fight to make sure that these animals thrive and survive in the wild.”
Photography courtesy of Hublot. To learn more, head to the Hublot website, here.
