The Origins and Evolution of the Swiss Watchmaking Industry
Throughout over four centuries, tradition, expertise, cutting-edge technology, and innovation have maintained the Swiss watchmaking industry’s leadership position in the global market. Despite facing several crises, the industry’s exceptional flexibility and creativity have enabled it to overcome challenges related to technology, structure, and economics. Many inventions and world firsts in the Swiss watchmaking industry serve as prime examples of its superiority: the first wristwatch, the first quartz wristwatch, the first waterproof wristwatch, the thinnest and smallest watches, the most expensive watch, among countless others…
The Swiss watchmaking industry emerged in the mid-16th century in Geneva. In 1541, reformer Jean Calvin banned the wearing of jewelry, forcing goldsmiths and other jewelers to pivot to a new craft: watchmaking. By the end of the century, Geneva’s watchmaking industry was renowned for its excellent quality. The Watchmakers Guild of Geneva was founded in 1601, marking the world’s first.
A century later, due to an “excess” of watchmakers in the city, many craftsmen left the Geneva area to set up their businesses in the Jura Mountains. The development of the watchmaking industry is closely linked to the genius goldsmith Daniel Jeanrichard (1665-1741), who first proposed the “établissage” model of labor division. By 1790, Geneva was exporting over 60,000 watches.
Subsequent centuries saw numerous inventions and developments. In 1770, Abraham-Louis Perrelet created the “perpetual” watch, considered by many as the precursor to the modern automatic winding watch. In 1816, Louis Moinet made the first chronograph, called the “compteur de tierces”. In 1842, Adrien Philippe, one of the founders of the famous Patek Philippe, invented the winding pocket watch. This period also saw the production of complicated timepieces (such as chronographs) and the introduction of functions like the flyback hand and perpetual calendars.
The 20th century marked the mass production of wristwatches, thanks to research by renowned watchmakers Frédéric Ingold and Georges Léschot. Increased productivity, interchangeable components, and standardization catapulted the Swiss watchmaking industry to global prominence.
After World War I, wristwatches were introduced, with the traditional round shape becoming the standard in the 60s. In 1926, Rolex produced the first automatic or self-winding wristwatch, and the first electric watch was introduced in 1952.
The year 1967 saw the development of the world’s first quartz wristwatch by the Electronic Watch Center (Centre Electronique Horloger (CEH)) in Neuchâtel – the famous Beta 21. This was followed by significant developments and inventions: watches equipped with LED and LCD displays, quartz watches that do not require batteries, new materials, and more.
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