H. Moser & Cie: Swiss Icons Watch

H. Moser & Cie. strikes again! After the SWISS MAD WATCH presented in 2017 “the first 100% Swiss Made watch with the case in swiss cheese” today pay tribute to the legends of mechanical watchmaking with the the SWISS ICONS WATCH; a symbol of icons past and present and a safeguard against current excesses.

Since the times of the farmer-watchmakers, artisans have invented, refined and miniaturised, continually improving their precision, reliability and performances. Today, there is an immense chasm between the humility and serenity of the watchmakers  and the marketing that focuses on glitz and glamour above their products.

H. Moser & Cie. is taking a stand against this opportunistic watchmaking: “Many brands, even historical ones, create and produce nothing but substitute substance with artificial hype to stay relevant. Reinforcing their efforts with prestigious events and paying ambassadors who have no links to watchmaking. These tactics are just artifice that serve as smoke and mirrors. It’s all about who has the longest history, the most famous celebrity ambassador, or influencer with the most followers.

Their efforts are in vain, the essential lies elsewhere: with the product.” emphasises Edouard Meylan, CEO of H. Moser & Cie.

“We should show our creativity and we should refocus on the product. We need to come back down to earth, roll up our sleeves and create unique ideas. This is the only way that we can make Swiss Made great again.”

At the SIHH 2018, Edouard Meylan is launching the Swiss Icons Watch in support of his point. This unique piece revisits iconic watches from yesterday and today, fusing their various characteristic signatures into one balanced watch.

“Case Hublot – Bracelet Girard Perregaux Laureato – Bezel Audemars Piguet – Color and Numbers Bezel Rolex Pepsi – Crown Cartier – Crown Protection Panerai – Dial Patek Philippe Nautilus – Dial Logo IWC – Dial Numerals and Index Panerai – Tourbillon Bridge Girard Perregaux Three Bridges – Hands Breguet”

It pays homage to those timepieces that have given Swiss watchmaking its reputation, but also renounces, with irreverent humour, the lack of substance that has characterised certain watchmakers for far too long. The SWISS ICONS WATCH also houses certain elements that have become H. Moser signatures, including a Funky Blue dial, a double hairspring made from PE5000 “a paramagnetic alloy developed by Precision Engineering AG” as well as an interchangeable one-minute flying tourbillon.

The SWISS ICONS WATCH is a unique piece and its place in the series of special watches that was inaugurated in 2016 with the Swiss Alp Watch and the Swiss Mad Watch in 2017. It will be auctioned off after the Salon. The proceeds from the sale will be donated to the Fondation pour la Culture Horlogère Suisse and will be used to support apprenticeships in the watchmaking professions and to safeguard expertise in the related watchmaking arts and crafts.