RJC certification for three subcontractors in the watchmaking world

A week before the SIHH, an informal open breakfast was held at the hotel Tiffany in Geneva for a group of consisting of special guests, journalists and friends. They had all been invited by Ramon Iso, a former jewel-setter-turned-entrepreneur: his businesses, which are spread out between Thônex, the Joux Valley and the right bank in Geneva, employ up to 200 people with a variety of skills. The atmosphere at the Tiffany is frank and even when sub rosa is straight from the horse's mouth. You must realize that in this kind of encounter, when a key actor in watchmaking subcontracting starts speaking off the cuff, you really begin to find out who is doing what and for whom in the watchmaking world of the prestigious brands. Suddenly you become aware of the reinvigorating fact that watchmaking remains a weave shaped like a mosaic and populated by specialized suppliers and featuring diverse competencies. It's a cloth that runs along the line of a geographical arc mainly spanning French-speaking Switzerland. And it is not made up of isolated, hermetic and ultra-verticalized manufacturers, as the great and powerful brands would have us believe.

Val Heure

Humility and skills

It's a humble celebration, without any special effects, and yet Iso is not without a sense of pride that goes down rather well in the round as it recognizes the work of his dedicated teams:  "The Group I lead is proud of having received the RJC certifications," says Ramon Iso, gesturing towards Isabelle Schleich, his right hand woman in charge of the massive project. "This is the result of the commitment shown by many employees all working ethically and responsibly for the Group, in order to guarantee high-quality services."  Indeed, you have to be a little on the masochistic side to launch a request for RJC affiliation three times. Even if the three companies are connected by the same boss, and even if they share a common vision and complementary system, Sercab, Proserto and Val'Heure are each independent units. So three audits were performed, conducted independent firms hired by the RJC. Three sets of tests and various evaluation procedures were launched to determine whether the companies are part and parcel of the logic of social responsibility that can be expressed in the way they manage natural as well as human resources.

Finally, once the procedures were terminated, the accession of the three companies to RJC membership was merely a way to crown and consummate a group-wide awareness that was already part of the entrepreneurial genes of the companies created by Ramon Iso. Because earlier already, these fond dreams of being in harmony with a certain ethical way of doing business and of healthy values were already expressed in an empirical and instinctive manner. "Our economic robustness was built up on the quality of human relations and a respect for the environment," Ramon Iso explains. Today, he has harvested the recognition, the professional feeling is now ingrained and it is providing an opportunity for sustainable adjustments.

In February 2010, the watchmaker's blog bloghorloger.ch noted: "Gradually, the gold you have on your neck, your finger, or your wrist, which represent both the insecurities of the planet, or an instance that is supposed to remain memorable, will be without sin."  On that morning of January 2015, the café mignardise tasted all the better for it. After all, for a few moments of authenticity nourished by the credibility and charisma of Ramon Iso – his surname would seem a form of predestination – we could imagine that the civility initiated in 2004 by about fifteen founding RJC members led by Cartier would, bit by bit, compel all the players in the field of luxury and fine manufacturing to conform. Today, the RJC has over 500 members. At the end of the value chain, it's the consumer who stands to gain. Companies like Sercab, Val d'Heure, Proserto, and many others players on the Swiss horological subcontracting scene, had already turned this affirmation into a mission statement.

Sercab's craftswoman

About Sercab, Val’Heure, Proserto Group

Over a period of 25 years of continuous growth, the Sercab-Val’Heure-Proserto Group has become a key player in stone-setting for high-end jewelry and watchmaking. The three companies work using a combination of traditional craftsmanship and state-of-the-art industrial technologies. Focus is on the manufacturing items with high added value. In addition to finishing of watches and manufacturing the cases, the Group offers manufacturing of metal bracelets and stone-setting for watch components or jewels. The Sercab, Val’Heure, Proserto Group is a specialist in all types of stone-setting: grain, mechanical, traditional, watchmaking and jewelry, baguette and invisible for diamonds and colored stones. Founded with Swiss capital exclusively, the company has 180 employees in Switzerland. Geneva, Chêne-Bourg (Geneva) and in Sentier (Canton of Vaud), one of the key locations of the Swiss watchmaking industry.

What is the RJC?

The Responsible Jewellery Council is a not-for-profit international certification organization. It has more than 500 member companies that span the supply chain from the mine to the jewelry retailer. RJC Members commit to and are independently audited against the RJC Code of Practices.  This is an international standard for responsible business practices for diamonds, gold and platinum group metals The Code of Practices addresses human rights, labor rights, environmental impact, mining practices, product disclosure and many more important topics in the jewelry supply chain. RJC also works with multi-stakeholder initiatives on responsible sourcing and supply chain due diligence. The RJC’s Chain-of-Custody Certification for precious metals supports these initiatives. The RJC is a full-fledged member of the ISEAL Alliance, the global association of sustainability standards.