The Buzz Behind the Berneron Mirage

Based in Neuchâtel and Jura, Switzerland, Berneron is a two-year-old company with exactly one collection – the Mirage. This asymmetrically shaped mechanical watch comes in either 38mm or 34mm and has four models (Sienna, Prussian Blue, Tiger Eye, and Lapis Lazuli).

Yet, despite this modest output, the Mirage topped many 2024 “Best Of” lists. The Sienna even won the Audacity Award for the most non-conformist, offbeat approach to watchmaking at the 2024 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève.

So how did this independent make such a big splash in such a short time? We have a few theories.

With the Cartier Crashes cornering secondary market sales and big boys like Audemars Piguet making hay with the asymmetric [RE]Master02, shaped watches are a hot niche in collecting circles right now. And, of course, hardstone dials are also experiencing a resurgence in popularity. Thus, in 2024, when Berneron embraced both trends, this young, unknown brand managed to stand out from its esteemed competition.

Interestingly, the brand took its Mirage in this direction because its co-founder Sylvain Berneron realized that a mechanical movement could be more efficient if you freed yourself from the constraints of the traditional round case.
 

More importantly, Berneron realized that while we love our Dalí-esque Cartiers, the originals were kitted out with wee mechanisms designed for ladies’ cocktail watches, which has been a turn-off for collectors who don’t want a watch’s aesthetics to compromise its complications. Enter the Berneron calibre 233.

According to Sylvain Berneron, “Our philosophy when designing the calibre 233 was to give free rein to the mechanics…To offer a modern and unrestricted approach to mechanical watchmaking. We then used the Fibonacci sequence to finalize the case proportions and obtain a harmonious whole.”
 

According to the spec sheets, the Mirage 38’s calibre 233 blends art and technique in a brand-new way. Neither a traditional circular nor squared movement, the mechanism employs a larger barrel, which boosts the power reserve. The handset has also been inverted (the hour hand sits on top) to allow for a slimmer case profile.

“Designed without restrictions, the gear and escapement trains take the natural space they need on the main plate to be technically optimal,” explains the brand on its website. “Together with the large 72h barrel, they create an asymmetrical shape that not only breaks free from the circle but also was the starting point to design the case shape.”

Another reason to believe that Berneron is not a one-hit wonder is that the brand has an unconventional story. Co-founders Sylvain and Marie-Alix Berneron don’t come from a typical watchmaking background. Creative director Sylvain was an industrial designer, while Marie-Alix started with two degrees in business and then retrained as an architect.

While both worked in the industry (Sylvain spent five years with Richemont and another five at Breitling, and Marie-Alix worked in product development at Chanel Horlogerie), they were still walking the line between art and commerce. Yet both wanted to investigate the creative side of the boundary more.
 

The journey was not without risk; Sylvain spent nearly $900,000 of his own money to develop the watch’s movement. However, despite the financial risk, the duo has remained uncompromising about what they wanted the Mirage to embody.

For example, they could have cut back on materials and finishes, even though producing an extra-thin movement in 18K gold took 18 months of technical development to refine the calibre 233’s architecture and achieve an overall thickness of 2.30 mm. It is only for reasons of rigidity and torque that the movement’s winding and timing gears are steel.
 

Moreover, the movement’s decoration makes stunning use of traditional techniques such as guillochage, colimaçonnage, anglage, cerclage (hour wheel), traits tires, and nuagag.

Meanwhile, the Mirage’s sector dial, with its swoopy sub-dial, numbers, and hands, turbocharges the surrealistic quality of its unusual case shape, drawing the elements together like a beautiful dream rather than an awkward mishmash.

Basically, a lot going on, but none of it feels superfluous.

Enthusiasts are getting tired of disruption. Berneron is not trying to smash the system; it is just upholding traditional watchmaking through an approach built for modern times.

From the get-go, the brand didn’t want to merely court collectors. Instead, it approached esteemed luxury watch collectors such as Roni Madhvani, Laurent Picciotto, and Auro Montanari to better understand how a timepiece becomes legendary.
 

“We met [Madhvani] for lunch. I had a dummy of the watch, where even the dial was in paper,” Sylvain told the Robb Report. “At the end of this lunch, he was like, ‘Can I have an invoice, and can I pay a deposit?’ I basically opened the company two years ago with an invoice to Roni. This is how it started.”

Within a year of introducing the 38 mm models, the brand introduced the Berneron Mirage 34 and, with it the calibre 215, a new, smaller caliber with either a tiger’s eye or lapis lazuli stone dial. These hardstone surfaces underline the creative theme of the Mirage collection – an absolute refusal to comply with the current watch-as-commodity business norms.
 

For example, Berneron could have increased profit margins by making a less challenging follow-up to the 38mm version. However, the brand also wanted to push its creative boundaries a little further by sculpting the small second counter directly into the mainplate.

According to the brand, this hand-sculpted monobloc dial has never before been offered on the market. The calibre 215 movement is also unique to the brand and offers all the refinement and precision of the calibre 233‚ including the 72-hour power reserve.

But why create a new mechanism for a slightly smaller-sized watch? The brand has a very strict “one watch, one movement” philosophy, “therefore, we naturally created an all-new calibre for the Mirage 34mm.”
 

Despite Berneron’s success, the brand’s staff is currently capped at five full-time employees, with production for each model currently limited to about twelve of each model per year. The plan is to avoid producing overstock and ensure it can provide after-sale service in the long term.

We think these are all excellent goals for any watchmaker, established or start-up, and we hope Berneron continues to capture our imagination. To learn more about the brand, check out Berneron’s website.