The First Families of Watchmaking: The Indomitable Spirit of Indies
In part one of this two-part series, we focused on the big names behind organizations like the Swatch Group and the Movado Group, names like Arnault, Grinberg, and Hayek. Today, we look at the independent watch brands – large and small – where the concept of keeping it in the family reigns supreme.
By Roberta Naas
Special Correspondent
For the first installment of this two-part series, we took an in-depth look at groups like LVMH, Swatch, and Movado that are still operated by the founding families or their descendants, thanks largely to next-generation talent bringing new-gen ideas to the forefront.
At the end of that first article, we looked at the current owners of Chopard, the Scheufele family, to give you a taste of what we’d be exploring next: independent watch brands. And as we learned from the Scheufele family, passing the baton is not only about having a legacy to carry on from generation to generation but also about having that legacy infused with contemporary ideas and visionary thinking.
Today, we take a closer look at a few more of the independent brands with new blood already stepping in.
Jacob & Co.
No list of the most families prominent families in watchmaking would be complete without Jacob & Co.
The brainchild of Jacob Arabo, who came to the United States from the former USSR (Uzbekistan, to be precise) with his family when he was a teenager, Arabo became an apprentice with a watchmaker during his first summer in America. While there, he garnered a sense of the mechanical aspects of watchmaking and deepened his love of jewelry and beautiful objects
As a result, Arabo went on to get further jewelry training and began designing his own pieces, vowing that, one day, he would start his own brand that would focus on exceptional craftsmanship and visionary innovation.
Arabo fulfilled this vow in 1986 when he founded Jacob & Co. in New York City’s diamond district. His work began with diamond jewelry; however, he quickly started creating pieces with gemstones set into incredible designs that caught the eyes of celebrities and musicians. Thus, “Jacob the Jeweler” built a successful business.
By the new millennium, Arabo had returned to his watchmaking roots and expanded his jewelry business to include timepieces. As a result, today, Jacob & Co. produces some of the most innovative, often outrageous, watches on the market.
Extremely limited in numbers and with many price tags ranging upwards of half a million dollars (or MUCH higher), the Jacob & Co. line appeals to a very discerning clientele, many of which are celebrities from around the world.
In 2017, Jacob’s son, Benjamin, started overseeing the strategy and management for all the company’s social media campaigns. Young, creative, and in tune with the new generation, Benjamin made great strides in presenting the brand to a younger audience through social media and digital content. He didn’t stop there.
Today, with Jacob actively involved as Chairman, Benjamin Arabov (he prefers the original spelling of the family name) now serves as the brand’s CEO. In addition to continuing to build the brand’s digital presence, he works alongside Jacob to develop high-profile relationships and drive business through global expansion and product development.
Richard Mille
Luxury watch brand Richard Mille unveiled its first timepiece to the world in 2001. The eponymous company comes from the mastermind of Richard Mille, who began developing the brand in 1999. However, early in the development process, Mille knew he would need to enlist the help of some major players who could support his ideas for innovation without regard for costs.
First, he turned to one of his best friends, Dominique Guenat, as his business partner. Then, Mille and Guenat teamed up with incredible innovators in the watch world, such as Renaud & Papi and Audemars Piguet, to bring their ideas to fruition. And from tourbillons to flyback chronographs to record-breaking works of horology, Richard Mille’s “racing machines for the wrist” have wowed the world for decades.
More important than wowing the watch world, however, is changing it. For you see, Richard Mille was the first brand to insist that its “ambassadors” actually wear its watches during play on a tennis court, walking the links, on the race track, wherever.
Keeping all we’ve just discussed in mind, it is hard to deny that Richard Mille is one of the most intriguing success stories in independent luxury watchmaking. And while founder Richard Mille and business partner Dominique Guenat are still deeply involved in the business, so too are their children.
Each co-founder has two children who play active roles in the brand.
Richard’s daughter, Amanda, serves as Brand and Partnership Director, which means she is in charge of managing relations with VIPs and partners in sports, arts, and other realms. Additionally, Richard’s son, Alexander, is Commercial Director and has helped shepherd the brand to new heights of distribution and growth.
Interestingly, Richard Mille’s General Director is the youngest of the children, Maxime Guenat, who joined the company in 2018 in logistics, then movement purchasing before joining the general management of the brand in August of 2022.
Last but certainly not least, Cecile Guenat is Richard Mille’s Director of Creation and Development. She’s helped conceive some of the brand’s more unusual timepieces and collections, including the brand’s first automatic tourbillon caliber and the beloved Bonbon series released during SIHH 2019 that reimagined women’s luxury timepieces.
Parmigiani Fleurier
An exclusive brand that focuses on elegance and creativity, Parmigiani Fleurier had its start back in 1976 when watchmaker Michel Parmigiani – an expert watch restorer – opened a workshop dedicated to restoring antique clocks and watches.
His passion led him to create his own timepieces, and in 1999, the Sandoz Family Foundation purchased a respected atelier to support Michel’s quest. The Sandoz Foundation now owns the Parmigiani Fleurier brand, but it’s still considered independent.
Today, Michel Parmigiani remains the Maison’s top watchmaker, while his daughter, Anne-Laure Parmigiani, has been heading up product development for two decades.
In her tenure, she’s made a significant impact on the artistic side due to her expertise in engraving and infusing new techniques into the brand’s métiers d’arts pieces. For instance, she was the force behind the brand’s signature use of the intricate yet understate grain d’orge (barleycorn) guilloché pattern on the dials of the Tonda PF collection.
Bovet 1822
An haute horlogerie brand that appeals to insiders, Bovet 1822 is owned by Pascal Raffy, an entrepreneur with a passion for watches. Previously in the pharmaceutical field, Raffy purchased the majority share of the small brand known as Bovet in 2001 and, within a few years, managed to acquire the rest.
Raffy vowed to keep the brand incredibly elite with small production numbers and quality hand craftsmanship. With this commitment, plus the acquisition of a components supplier called Dimier 1783, he has built Bovet to incredible heights while keeping production at fewer than 4,000 watches per year.
As of 2024, Audrey Raffy, Pascal’s oldest daughter, has been with the brand for nearly five years. Audrey works closely alongside her father and fills a multitude of roles at Bovet, including acting as the company’s Vice President, spokesperson, digital and social media creator, presenter, and partnership manager.
Biver
Those in the know within the watch world understand the legend of Jean-Claude Biver. This man is a kingmaker, building brand after brand and leading them to phenomenal success.
From OMEGA to Blancpain (the latter of which he bought and launched before selling the highly successful company to the Swatch Group), from TAG Heuer to Hublot, Biver has charged forward with visionary thinking and pioneering marketing.
Sure to go down in the watchmaking history books as one of the most important leaders of the contemporary watch industry, Jean-Claude Biver retired a few years ago. But, to paraphrase the man himself, you can’t retire from your passion.
That may be why, so far, his retirement has consisted of co-founding an eponymous watch brand in 2023 with his then 22-year-old son Pierre, who also acts as Creative Director.
Today, just one year after the brand debuted its first pieces during Geneva Watches Week 2023, the two continue to work side-by-side on the growing Biver watches, creating exquisite hand-made, hand-assembled, high-complication timepieces in incredibly limited numbers.
Philippe Dufour
Now 76, master watchmaker Philippe Dufour – one of the most dedicated watchmakers to the traditional arts – is devoted to passing his knowledge on to new generations.
In 2021, his daughter, Danièla, graduated from watchmaking school and joined the business, creating her hand-made version of the brand’s Simplicity model that same year as her ”school watch.”
While these are the key brands currently amping up with next-gen brains and innovations, several other top brands, including Patek Philippe, are bound to have incoming generations soon enough.