Brands

Longines has been based at Saint-Imier in Switzerland since 1832. Its watchmaking expertise reflects a strong devotion to tradition, elegance and performance. With many yera of experience as a timekeeper for world championships in sport or as a partner of international sports federations, Longines – famous for the elegance of its timepieces – is a member of the Swatch Group Ltd, the world’s leading manufacturer of horological products. The brand knownby its winged hourglass logo now has outlets in over 130 countries.

In 1832 Auguste Agassiz entered the world of horology when he joined a trading office established in St. Imier. He soon rose to become the manager and the company took on the name Agassiz & Co. At the time, he was producing timepieces under the “etablissage” system, whereby watchmakers worked at home and supplied their products to the trading offices. Agassiz built up a network of commercial contacts, which enabled him to sell his watches on other continents, in particular in North America. During  the 1850′s Agassiz’s nephew Ernest Francillon took over the running of the office. When Francillon took on this responsiblity, he considered ways of perfecting the manufacturing methods used in watching in the area. He concluded that it would be advantageous  to try to bring together the different stages that go towards making a watch under one roof. Francillon’s intention was to set up a factory where he could assemble and finish each watch, introducing a degree of mechanisation. In order to archieve this, he bought two adjoining pieces of land in 1866 on the right bank of the river Suze, which runs through the St. Imier valley. The site was known locally as Les Longines and he adopted this name for the factory which he built there in 1867. Ernest Francillon took on Jacques David, a young engineer who was also related to him, to help develop the machines needed for perfecting the manufacture of timepieces. During the 1870′s, Francillon’s choice of industrial options was proved sound and the factory continually expanded until the first third of the 20th century: in 1911 the longines factory employed over 1,100 worker and sold its products all over the world.

The technical research carried out at Longines was rewarded by various prizes which gradually gave the company its reputation of winning the most awards in international and world exhibitions until the 1929 exhibition in Barcelona, by which time Longines had won no fewer than 10 Grand Prix. In 1889, Francillon patented a trademark comprising the name Longines and the now famous winged hourglass. Today, Longines is the oldest trademark or logo still in use in its origional form registered with the World Intellectual Property Organization(WIPO). As early as 1867, Longines was using the winged hourglass symbol and the tradename “Longines” as a guarantee of quality in order combat counterfeit products aimed at taking advantage of the reputation already established by the company.

Thus, Composable is born, a bracelet whose links, united with a spring mechanism, are enriched with gold letters that can be combined to spell out your own name.
The revolution in the world of jewelry is enormous. For the first time, stainless steel appears in window displays in what was once the capital of fashion, Florence, allowing for the creation of stylistically important precious accessories at an affordable price.

Police is an Italian manufacturer of fashion accessories. Launched in 1983, the company was initially specializing in designing sunglasses.^[1]

In 1997 Police launched its first perfume range and in 2003 its first watch collection. The company launched its first apparel collection in 2008.

Over the course of its history, the Police brand has been advertised by numerous celebrities, including Paulo Maldini, Bruce Willis, George Clooney, James O’Sullivan, David Beckham and Antonio Banderas.

The story of Swatch is the story of a revolution. In 1983, the unexpected appearance of an affordable, Swiss made, plastic(!!) watch turned the watch world upside down. Suddenly, a watch was much more than a way to measure time. It was a new language, a way to speak from the heart without words. A Swatch watch was an expression of joy, a provocative statement, a warm smile delivered with a flick of the wrist. Today, the revolution continues: Swatch talks, and everyone understands.

It wasn’t always that way.

Tissot, with its signature ‘Innovators by Tradition’, has been pioneering craftsmanship and innovation since its foundation in 1853. Today Tissot is a member of the Swatch Group, the world’s largest watch producer and distributor. The company has always had its home in the Swiss watchmaking town of Le Locle in the Jura Mountains but now also has a presence in 160 countries.

The Tissot innovation leadership is enabled by the development of high-tech products, special materials and advanced functionality. With a broader, more versatile range of high-quality timepieces at  an attractive price than any other Swiss watch brand, Tissot also expresses its commitment to making excellence accessible.

As official timekeeper and partner of FIBA, AFL, MotoGP™, FIM Superbike and the World Championships of cycling, fencing and ice hockey, Tissot is committed to respecting tradition, underlining its core values of performance, precision and settling new standards.

Titan’s philosophy says a watch can be made with unrivalled craftsmanship, and still be accessible to all people. We believe a watch can be both fashion forward and timeless. This philosophy has created a brand that has captured the imaginations of over one hundred million customers worldwide.

Interesting Fact

Titan is part of the FATA Group whichis a US $70 billion business a year.
Other Famous Brands that belong to the TATA Group are: Jaguar, Land Rover, Tetley Tea and the Taj Group of Hotels.
Titan has sold more than 100 million watches across the world.
Titan is the 5th largest watch company in the world.
Titan manufacturers its own watches in a fully Intergrated Manufacturing facility and five assembly units in India.
Because Titan manufactures 80% of its own watches, the quality standards are high and controlled through every step of the manufacturing process.
Titan’s engineering expertise is one of the best in the world and holds the record of making the slimmest watch movement and watch in the world.
Titan is sold in 27 countries.

Michel Herbelin founded his watch company in 1947 combining the principles of high quality watch making technical reliability with elegance and good design. In 1972, Jean – Claude Herbelin, the son of the founder joined the company. With his team, he decided to adapt a new marketing approach by developing the creativity of the brand and proposing to position their high quality watches in the mid to upper section of the market.

Michel Herbelin carries on the finest watchmaking traditions, allying the latest technology with skills honed over the generations. Every Michel Herbelin creation is unique piece featuring the very best swiss movements and the painstaking work of our master craftsmen.

Michel Herbelin has become the leader in France in its market segment. One in four watches sold in the same price bracket is Michel Herblin. Michel Herbelin is an international brand. Two thirds of production is sold in approximately 50 countries worldwide.