History of the brands

The true story of Etna watches

Etna

Manufacture d'Horlogerie Etna took the rather successful gamble of producing simple watches in Geneva, the city of luxury watches. The company disappeared with the quartz crisis.

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History of the brands

The true story of Record watches

Record

Founded to produce the curious Sector watch, Record Watch in Tramelan soon became a manufacturer of remarkable timepieces. The company was acquired by Longines in 1962.

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History of the brands

The true story of Degoumois et Cie, makers of Avia watches

Avia

This La Chaux-de-Fonds-based manufacturer marketed its watches under the Protector name before taking over the Avia brand following the bankruptcy of The Rode Watch. Its director is best known for having created the Société des Garde-Temps (SGT) in 1968.

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History of the brands

The true story of Eska and Royce watches

Eska

Forgotten today, Eska watches were nonetheless extremely original, both the men's watches and the superb women's jewelry watches. The company was one of the many victims of the "quartz crisis" in the late 1980s.

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History of the brands

The true story of Election watches

Election

This fine manufacture in La Chaux-de-Fonds almost disappeared in the 1930s. After recovering, it didn't survive the quartz crisis. It was behind the famous Incabloc shock absorber.

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History of the brands

The true history of Orfina watches

Orfina

Now defunct, this Grenchen manufacturer was very interested in chronographs, and was even the first to collaborate with Porsche Design on the development of their first range of watches.

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History of the brands

The true story of Spera watches

Spera

Founded in 1919, this discreet Tramelan watchmaking factory was one of the many companies to fall victim to the quartz crisis, disappearing in 1993.

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History of the brands

The true story of Moeris watches

Moeris

Like most of the watchmaking factories in St Imier, Moeris was interested in chronographs, but it was above all the quality of its civilian watches that made the company famous until the 1960s.

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History of the brands

The true story of Guinand chronographs

Guinand

Guinand began as a manufacturer of high-quality counters and pocket chronographs. With the advent of wrist chronographs, Guinand used Ébauches SA calibers, but chronograph production has continued to the present day.

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History of the brands

The true story of Palmyra watches

Palmyra

The Fabrique L. Tièche-Gammeter of Palmyra watches had a short existence, as it was bought out by Meyer & Stüdeli barely 14 years after its creation.

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History of the brands

The true story of Arbu watches

Arbu

Founded in 1937 and specializing in chronographs, the Arbu factory had a brief existence: it was bought out in 1957 by the Rumanel company, which never exploited the brand.

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History of the brands

The true story of Fabrique Le Phare

Le Phare

In the early 20th century, Fabrique Le Phare was the world's largest producer of repeating pocket watches, and its calibers were used by many other manufacturers. The transition to the wristwatch was difficult, but the company later distinguished itself by creating the first automatic quartz watch.

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History of the brands

The true story of Alpina watches

Alpina

Alpina occupies a special place in the history of Swiss watchmaking, as it was originally a grouping of retail watchmakers, first in Switzerland, then in several countries. This particular structure did not prevent Alpina from producing its own watches, before being transformed into a traditional company, the form it still has today.

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History of the brands

The true story of Gallet watches

Gallet

Gallet is a special case among Swiss watch manufacturers. It was essentially a trading company, buying watches from various manufacturers in the La Chaux-de-Fonds region and marketing them abroad. But the company also made a name for itself in the field of chronographs and counters, particularly in the USA.

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History of the brands

The true story of MIMO watches

Mimo

The Manufacture Internationale de Montres en Or (MIMO) is the originator of some remarkable models. But after MIMO acquired the famous Girard-Perregaux manufacture, the MIMO brand was gradually abandoned.

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History of the brands

The true story of Buren watches

Buren

Like Rolex or Britix, Buren (or Büren) has English origins. It was an important manufacturer in Switzerland, and its history is marked by remarkable models, particularly in the field of automatic watches and micro-rotors. It disappeared after its takeover by the American company Hamilton.

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History of the brands

The true story of Olma watches

Olma

Olma is a good example of a Swiss company that was very active until the "quartz crisis", and is now asleep somewhere in Asia.

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History of the brands

The true story of Sultana watches

Sultana

For many years, Compagnie des montres Sultana was managed by the Schwarz family of La Chaux-de-Fonds. In 1973 the company merged with Le Phare SA, also owned by members of the Schwarz family.

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History of the brands

The true story of Lanco and the Société d'Horlogerie de Langendorf

Lanco

The Société d'Horlogerie de Langendorf, the birthplace of the Lanco brand, was once Switzerland's most important watch manufacturer. It no longer exists, and its eventful history is difficult to reconstruct.

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History of the brands

The true story of Grana and Certina watches

Certina

The Kurth brothers from Grenchen initially marketed their watches under the Grana brand, but it was the Certina brand that finally took hold, thanks to successful models such as the Labora and Certina DS.

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History of the brands

The true story of Milus

Milus

A discreet manufacturer based in Biel, Milus made a name for itself in the 1980s with its avant-garde watch designs.

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History of the brands

The true story of Cyma and the Tavannes Watch Co.

Cyma

Millions of watches worldwide have borne the Cyma and Tavannes names, and Tavannes Watch was once one of Switzerland's most important.

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History of the brands

The true story of Henex watches

Henex

In 1973, this Tavannes-based manufacturer joined forces with Roventa to create the Roventa-Henex company.

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History of the brands

The true story of Rila watches

Rila

Rila is one of the many factories created by the Choffat family in Tramelan. Active until the "quartz crisis", it subsequently merged with the Dulux factory.

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