453 articles · 39 videos found · page 11 of 17
Time+Tide
It’s been a mildly epic week here at T+T HQ. We’ve had a full plate of videography, airshow action with Oris (we’re now investigating options around leasing a Pilatus private jet – don’t tell our accountant), and Felix is becoming worryingly attached to the Apple Watch he’s reviewing. On top of all this, the logisitical nightmare that is … ContinuedThe post FRIDAY WIND DOWN: 3rd March, 2017 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
H. Moser & Cie. smartwatch
Revolution
The first A Lange & Söhne Singapore boutique has been (soft opening) in business at the prestigious ION Orchard mall for around 3 months now, aiming to please the loyal Asian Lange fans. To celebrate the expaded presence of the brand in Singapore, the boutique will have its official grand opening at the end of […]
SJX Watches
One of the leading names in movement development, Concepto marks its 20th year in 2026. Concepto’s founder, Valérien Jaquet, has led the company since its founding in 2006, advised by his father, Jean-Pierre Jaquet, a fabled watch entrepreneur with a controversial history. Now a vertically integrated manufacture capable of creating and producing almost every part of a watch, Concepto is one of the rare handful of movement suppliers that have survived and prospered over the economic cycles of the watch industry. Some of its peers have gone bust, like Christophe Claret, while others, like La Fabrique du Temps, have been acquired by the industry’s giants. From left: Valérien Jaquet, Jean-Pierre Jaquet, and Jacob Arabo. Image – Concepto The company released a statement for its 20th anniversary that reveals some interesting facts about a little-known but crucial aspect of the industry — the specialist suppliers that feed watch brands with movements. Concepto remains a family business boasting some impressive numbers: according to the company, last year’s sales exceeded CHF60 million while output was some 30,000 movements, including about 1,100 tourbillon calibres. According to Concepto, its client list exceeds 100 brands. The list includes names large and small — the firm helped Bulgari set the record for the world’s thinnest tourbillon, while Jacob & Co. tapped Concepto for the V-16 engine automaton in the Bugatti Tourbillon wristwatch. Even Bugatti itself turn...
SJX Watches
Philippe Stern, who served as general director and later president of Patek Philippe from 1977 to 2009, died yesterday at the age of 88. Under his stewardship, the Geneva manufacture was transformed from a small, workshop-scattered operation into the global benchmark for fine watchmaking, a position it holds to this day. He was the third generation of the Stern family to lead the company. His grandfather Charles, alongside his brother Jean, had acquired Patek Philippe from insolvency in 1932 from their position as the firm’s trusted dial supplier. His father Henri had built the company’s modern international distribution network and established the Henri Stern Watch Agency in New York, laying the commercial foundations on which Philippe would build. Father and son, Henri and Philippe Stern. Image – Patek Philippe Philippe Stern became managing director in 1977, at the height of the quartz crisis. The timing could not have been more demanding. Swiss watch industry employment was collapsing, from roughly 90,000 workers to a fraction of that figure within a few years, as electronic timekeeping rendered the mechanical watch commercially marginal almost overnight. Many established manufacturers collapsed, merged, or abandoned mechanical production entirely. Stern’s response defined his presidency. He kept the tooling, retained his engineers, and committed Patek Philippe irrevocably to mechanical watchmaking at the precise moment the industry consensus ran in the opposit...
Monochrome
What is Ressence if not one of the most recognisable identities in independent watchmaking? From the crownless Type 3 (check out the recent Type 3 Marc Newson) to the oil-filled Type 5, Ressence founder Benoît Mintiens has consistently challenged the conventional relationship between display, ergonomics and mechanical watchmaking, leading to the introduction of the Type […]
Monochrome
The Spirit of Big Bang collection was introduced as Hublot’s first major new case shape under Jean-Claude Biver. As its name suggests, the collection captured the “spirit” of the Big Bang but replaced the octagonal case with a more complex tonneau-shaped case with lateral rubber bumpers and openworked dials. The latest Spirit of Big Bang […]
Monochrome
Norqain’s Wild One high-performance sports watch collection was developed with input from industry maverick Jean-Claude Biver. Launched in 2022, it introduced the brand’s proprietary Norteq material, a carbon fibre composite six times lighter than steel and 3.5 times lighter than titanium. Launching at Watches & Wonders 2026, Norqain unveils the Wild One Skeleton Chrono with […]
SJX Watches
Today in Paris a panel of five judges – including Carole Forestier-Kasapi and Kari Voutilainen – presented Alexandre Hazemann and Victor Monnin with the Louis Vuitton Watch Prize for Independent Creatives. The very same young watchmakers who won the F.P. Journe Young Talent Competition in 2023, the pair clinched the prize for their jump-hour “School Watch”. Launched in 2023 by Jean Arnault, who has spearheaded Louis Vuitton’s fine watchmaking ambitions, the initiative supports promising independent watchmakers while burnishing the maison’s credibility in the watch world. Last year the trophy – and its matching Louis Vuitton trunk – went to Raul Pages for his RP1 Régulateur à Détente. This edition’s victors met at Lycée Edgar Faure, a technical high school in Morteau, France, which is well known for its strong and respected watch and jewellery bent. Their aptly named School Watch developed from the pair’s school watch project. They have since set up shop in Saint-Aubin-Sauges, Switzerland, though both will now have the option of a one-year apprenticeship at Louis Vuitton’s La Fabrique du Temps manufacture in Geneva, in addition to financial support. In December, a Committee culled the 20 semifinalists, which we covered here, down to just five in December and appointed a five-person panel to select the winner. Other finalists included Norifumi Seki, who debuted the ambitious Fading Hours alarm watch, and Bernhard Lederer. Carole Forestier-Kasapi pr...
Teddy Baldassarre
Blancpain, founded in the Swiss village of Villeret in 1735, has been making timepieces for almost 300 years, but perhaps its most impactful contribution to wristwatch history was relatively recent - and began its heralded life as a military tool rather than a luxury item. In 1953, Blancpain was headed by Jean-Jacques Fiechter, an avid diving enthusiast who had long wanted to develop a watch that would be ideal for his hobby. Fiechter worked with Captain Robert Maloubier, a French naval officer, to design a reliable, mission-ready timepiece that Maloubier’s elite combat diving team could wear. Here we will take a look at the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe, a more everyday take on the iconic diver. [toc-section heading="Blancpain Fifty Fathoms: A Historic Divers’ Watch"] The watch, called the Fifty Fathoms, had a 42mm steel case - exceptionally large for the time - and it was water-resistant to 91.45 meters, or 50 fathoms, the maximum depth recommended for scuba divers. Its dial was black and its numerals were luminescent for greater legibility underwater. It was the first divers’ watch with a self-winding movement, the first with an antimagnetic case, and the first to employ the patented, double-sealed crown that Fiechter had developed. Most notably, the Fifty Fathoms was the first watch to include a lockable bezel with dive-time scale that rotated in only one direction. This practical and potentially life-saving innovation prevented a diver from acciden...
Monochrome
Although the Big Bang theory is a widely accepted explanation for the universe’s origin, the Big Bang that exploded on the watch scene in 2005 could not have detonated without two factors: the bravado and marketing genius of CEO Jean-Claude Biver and former CEO Carlo Crocco’s original spirit of fusion on board the 1980 Classic […]
Hodinkee
At Dubai Watch Week, Rolex CEO Jean-Frédéric Dufour reveals how much Rolex spends each year upgrading its machinery and why it has more than 500 apprenticeships.
Monochrome
In a press release issued just a few hours ago, the LVMH Watches Division announced having acquired a minority stake in yet another key player in the Swiss watch industry. As a reminder, the LVMH Watches Division comprises brands Hublot, TAG Heuer and Zenith and is under the direction of Jean-Christophe Babin, also CEO of […]
SJX Watches
On episode 11 of the SJX Podcast, SJX and Brandon Moore discuss the monumental La Quête Du Temps astronomical clock that Vacheron Constantin just unveiled in Paris alongside the companion Quest of Time wristwatch. We also tackle Tudor’s first moon phase complication and what it means for the brand’s collection of dress watches. SJX also shares his views on the news that Rolex chief executive Jean-Frédéric Dufour will be giving the keynote at Dubai Watch Week, a move that’s largely unprecedented for the industry’s most impenetrable brand. We also chat about the other big news in the world of watch fairs, Audemars Piguet’s return to Watches & Wonders in 2026. Last but not least, we discuss what Girard-Perregaux’s new movement platform might reveal about the future of the brand. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Youtube.
Fratello
The world of horology is an emotional parallel universe where those who love watches can make them their livelihood. Now, it seems that watch brands, organizations, and media have realized that this universe can only continue to exist if the knowledge and appreciation of it continue to grow and evolve. Marc André Deschoux, who started […] Visit Get Ready For MACH: A Place To Showcase Horological Heritage, Transmit Know-How, And Raise Awareness to read the full article.
Monochrome
Even though a relatively young brand, Norqain has made a name for itself in the field of sports watches, as well as a strong commitment to Swiss production. Norqain’s CEO Ben Küffer has been able to count on some great friends since he started his brand in 2018, one of them being industry veteran Jean-Claude […]
SJX Watches
In a surprising move from the conservative watchmaker, Rolex has quietly set up Rolex Quantum SA, a new entity dedicated to atomic timekeeping, the most precise form of timekeeping ever invented by man. Rolex chief executive Jean-Frederic Dufour will sit on the board of Rolex Quantum, with engineer Fabien Droz serving as director of the venture. With Rolex Quantum, the watchmaker plans to develop and sell atomic clocks, conceivably for industrial or scientific purposes. Being somewhat removed from the core Rolex offering of wristwatches, the atomic clocks will be developed separate from the main Rolex brand. The new venture strengthens the brand’s ties with CSEM (Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology), the Swiss technical institute most famous in watchmaking for having developing silicon component for watch movements. The venture will benefit from Rolex’ broad industrial research and development capabilities, while also leveraging CSEM’s experience with atomic timekeeping. The establishment of Rolex Quantum was first reported by Swiss newspaper Arcinfo. Neuchâtel timing Despite the cutting edge nature of its work, Rolex Quantum will be located on historic grounds, namely on the same street as the Neuchâtel Observatory, which is current home to CSEM’s atomic timekeeping laboratory. The location also has historical resonance as the city has long played a role in watchmaking and chronometry over the years. Abraham-Louis Breguet was born there and the obs...
SJX Watches
The second edition of biennial Louis Vuitton Watch Prize for Independent Creatives is now well underway, and the 20 semi-finalists have been announced. The candidate pool is exceptionally diverse, with makers hailing from eight different countries and espousing a variety of different product philosophies. The watch prize is the brainchild of Jean Arnault, who leads Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking initiatives. A passionate supporter of independent watchmaking, Mr Arnault created the watch prize in 2023 to recognise talented watchmakers and designers and give one lucky winner a helping hand. Raúl Pagès won the first edition of the watch prize. Image – Louis Vuitton Initial thoughts I try not to put too much stock in the various prizes that are handed out in the watch industry. Many such contests suffer from a lack of participation, a problem that makes it difficult to take the results seriously. That said, it’s worth paying attention to the Louis Vuitton watch prize for a few reasons. First, it’s unusually inclusive, welcoming entrants from all over the world, ranging from journeymen watchmakers like Bernhard Zwinz and David Candaux to emergent Chinese brands like Behrens and Fam Al Hut. Second, the candidate pool is not sub-divided into arbitrary categories, meaning there’s plenty of competition to keep things interesting. Finally, the outcome is meaningful – the winner gets a €150,000 cash prize and a one-year mentorship at La Fabrique du Temps with Michel Nava...
Monochrome
Norqain, the young, independent Swiss brand, produces contemporary, adventure-oriented watches. Many of the brand’s most popular models belong to the Independence collection, including the high-tech carbon fibre Wild One, conceived in collaboration with Jean-Claude Biver, the Skeleton Flyback Chrono featuring a proprietary manufacture calibre, and Norqain’s first skeletonised model. In line with current market watch […]
SJX Watches
The day I visited Biver started like any other – with breakfast. But it wasn’t a normal breakfast, because I was seated opposite Jean-Claude Biver, at his own kitchen table. A few days after Watches & Wonders wrapped up I had the opportunity to visit the brand’s atelier in the countryside near Geneva, and I was lucky enough to spend some time with the man himself before he went to the airport; he was headed to Boston to deliver a guest lecture at Harvard Business School. Dismissed in his early career as a ‘nostalgia salesman,’ Mr Biver helped pioneer the contemporary luxury watch industry in the midst of the Quartz Crisis by proving the consumer demand for artisanal mechanical watches. The story is well-known but it bears repeating; Mr Biver, together with his friend Jacques Piguet, head of the esteemed Frederic Piguet manufacture, paid CHF22,000 to buy the rights to a defunct brand from what would later become Swatch Group. Their deft products and marketing made Blancpain one of the stars of the mechanical watch renaissance, allowing the pair to sell the brand back to Swatch a decade later for CHF60 million. From left to right: CEO James Marks, Jean-Claude Biver, and Pierre Biver. Image – Biver The success of Blancpain was extraordinary and helped pave the way for the rebirth of other brands like A. Lange & Söhne. But this was just the opening act. After selling Blancpain back to Swatch, Mr Biver helped put Omega on the wrist of James Bond and transformed Hub...
Monochrome
One of the first purpose-built modern dive watches produced in the mid-1950s, Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms was a key player in the development of “skin diving” and the watch selected by several elite diving corps. Taken out of production in the 1980s, Swatch Group’s Marc A. Hayek resuscitated the Fifty Fathoms in 2003. In 2007, the […]
Monochrome
In 2023, Jean-Claude Biver, an industry veteran who requires no introduction, returned to the spotlight after retiring from his latest position at LVMH when, with his son Pierre, he unveiled the Biver Carillon Tourbillon, the debut timepiece from the newly minted family-name brand. True to form, expectations were sky-high, with the launch setting a tone […]
Monochrome
Ben Kuffer, the CEO of Norqain, is lucky to have industry heavyweight Jean-Claude Biver on his advisory board. Thanks to Biver’s valuable input, Norqain introduced its high-performance Wild One sports watch collection in 2022. Featuring an innovative carbon fibre composite case with a rubber shock absorber padding the titanium movement container, the Wild One is […]
SJX Watches
This week we remember Jean-Pierre Hagmann, whose hand created some of the finest watch cases in modern watchmaking. We discuss the latest creations from Audemars Piguet, Albishorn, Biver, Krayon, and Laurent Ferrier. We also dedicate a segment to questions from our readers, namely the value and appeal of independent watchmaking. We then close with thoughts on Watches & Wonders 2025, offering insights into the buzz and speculation surrounding upcoming releases, the evolving trends we’re anticipating, and what collectors and enthusiasts should watch out for in the months ahead. Tune in for a heartfelt tribute, expert insights, and a forward-looking discussion on all things horological. Whether you’re a seasoned collector or simply love the artistry of finely made watches, this episode promises a meaningful blend of reflection and excitement for what’s next in the world of watchmaking. The podcast is now live on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Monochrome
Trilobe is a young, independent watch brand founded by Gautier Massonneau in 2013. The brand debuted its first timepiece, Les Matinaux – French for The Morning Ones and a tribute to René Char’s poetry collection – in 2018. Distinguished by its unconventional time display, Les Matinaux introduced an original system developed by Jean-François Mojon of […]
Deployant
Breva Geneve is reborn this year and unveils a new collection: the Segreto di Lario with a movement created by Jean-François Mojon.
Fratello
When Biver launched to great fanfare in 2023, the debut watch displayed watchmaking maximalism at its finest. Father and son Jean-Claude and Pierre Biver must have asked themselves, “What if we turn everything up to eleven?” The young brand’s second model, the Automatique, dialed things down somewhat. Still, it looked distinctly intricate and truly Biver-esque. […] Visit Introducing: The Biver Automatique Japan Edition - Minimalism And Maximalism Collide to read the full article.
SJX Watches
Jean-Claude Biver and his son Pierre continue their journey of independent horology with the Biver Automatique Japan Edition. Made in collaboration with its retailer in Japan, this special release is based on the time-only automatic debuted last year, but reimagined to cater to the traditionally classical taste of the Japanese collector. The minimalist edition debuts in two elegant variants that explore the contrast of light and shadow through hard-fired enamel made by an enamel workshop in Geneva’s Old Town. A stark white enamel dial is paired with a platinum case, while the high-contrast version matches a glossy black dial with a rose gold case – both share a clean, old-school aesthetic with applied markers and a railway minute track. A tribute to the Japanese collector The Automatique epitomises Biver’s neoclassical and elaborate approach to watchmaking, which blends careful detailing with hand-finishing techniques, for both habillage and the movement. Now the Japan Edition further refines the approach, condensing the more elaborate execution of the original versions into something more traditional, more classical, and arguably more reflective of the taste of Japanese enthusiasts. The two distinct models pay homage to the Japanese appreciation of minimalist aesthetics combined with high quality and precision execution, along with a well-established love of mid-century precision Swiss wristwatches. The clarity of the vintage-inspired design makes the Japan Edition ...
Fratello
Some watches mimic an early morning sky in April; these three new Hublot Big Bang Meca-10 42mm watches have a playful backstory involving toys. When he was young, former Hublot CEO Jean-Claude Biver used to build stuff with Meccano, a toy construction system invented in 1898 by Englishman Frank Hornby. I happen to be a […] Visit Hands-On With The Three New Hublot Big Bang Meca-10 42mm Watches to read the full article.
Monochrome
Since the arrival of Jean Arnault as the head of the watchmaking division of Louis Vuitton, things have changed quickly, with the launch of the new Tambour in 2023, the Escale dress watch in 2024, and multiple automata and métiers d’art watches too. Today, we’ll be talking about what’s possibly the most recognisable high-end watch […]
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