Pendant watches shaped like lipstick, an oversized bejeweled watch recalling a haute couturier’s pincushion and watch dials etched with images of the fashion designer Coco Chanel — watchmaking at Chanel has always had a different flavor compared with its pure-player Swiss counterparts.

Leading that vision is Frédéric Grangié, president of Chanel watches and fine jewelry, who joined the fashion house in 2016 after more than two decades at LVMH.

Chanel entered watchmaking in 1987 with the Première, an octagonal case watch that evoked the stopper of Chanel’s famous No. 5 perfume bottle.

The watch celebrates its 40th anniversary next year, and Mr. Grangié said in a video interview from Geneva that, “By watchmaker standards, we are very, very young. But if I look at the number of creations, novelties and unexpected designs that we brought over the course of 40 years, it is probably more than most.”

Today, the watch that is most synonymous with Chanel is the ceramic J12, first introduced in 2000. The watch was seven years in the making by Jacques Helleu, artistic director of Chanel, who was inspired by racing cars and yachts, the latter competing in the America’s Cup. He crafted the watch in ceramic, which broke the mold at the time.

“I see the J12’s creation as a bit of a selfish gesture,” recalled Mr. Grangié. “Jacques created a dream watch for himself. His instinct brought him to ceramic as opposed to steel, because probably the way that steel was blackened at the time was not what he had in mind.