Swatch Group

File:Swatch Group Logo.jpg

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The Swiss Swatch Group is the largest watch trust worldwide.

The start of the story: the Swatch watch

The foundation for this group was laid by the trend and fashion watch, which gave this trust its name: the Swatch watch. Here the fascinating history of the Swatch is decribed in detail:

• The history of the Swatch

The largest watch group worldwide

In brief: The Swatch Group of Switzerland (formerly SMH) was founded in 1985 and after the purchase of many watch manufacturers has become the largest group in the world of watches. Today the following watch manufacturers belong to it (categorizations from Swatch Group).

Swatch also owns the chain of watch boutiques known as Tourbillon, Hour Passion, and single-brand stores.

Overall, Swatch Group claims net sales of nearly SFr8.5 billion as of 2018, with over SFr8.2 billion coming from watches and jewelry. This equates to just over 1/3 of the entire Swiss watch and jewelry industry. The company claims over 37,100 worldwide employees, with more than 18,000 in Switzerland.

Watch Brands

Swatch Group owns three of the largest Swiss watch brands. Omega, Longines, and Tissot each recorded over SFr1 billion in watch sales in recent years, out of seven companies that can make this claim. Swatch Group had produced Calvin Klein watches from 1997 but this agreement was ended in 2019.

• Prestige and Luxury
  • Under Marc Hayek
    • Breguet (CH, acquired September 14, 1999)
    • Blancpain (CH, acquired July, 1992)
    • Jaquet Droz (CH, acquired April 25, 2000)
  • Harry Winston (CH, former US, acquired January 14, 2013)
  • Glashütte Original (D, acquired October 9, 2000)
  • Léon Hatot (FR, acquired 1999)
  • Omega (CH)
• High Range
  • Longines (CH)
  • Rado (CH)
  • Union Glashütte (D, acquired October 9, 2000)
• Middle Range
  • Tissot (CH)
  • Balmain
  • Certina (CH)
  • Mido (CH)
  • Hamilton (CH, former US)
• Low Range
  • swatch (CH)
  • flik flak (CH)
• endura DYB Swatch Group Les Boutiques

Component Companies

In addition there are several suppliers, including the most important Swiss watch movement manufacturer ETA SA and the battery manufacturer Renata AG.

Other companies in the compound of the Swatch Group are as follows.

Production

• ETA SA (Grenchen/Villeret/Fontainemelon/Sion, movements)
  • Meco SA (Grenchen, external watch components)
  • Novi SA (Les Genevez, movement and watch assembly)
  • Longines (St-Imier)
  • FBB (Villers-le-Lac)
  • Assemti (Riazzino)
  • Diantus (Mendrisio)
  • Ebauches SA
    • FHF (Fontainemelon, movements)
    • Valjoux (Les Bioux, raw movements)
    • Unitas (raw movements)
• François Golay (Le Brassus, watch wheels)
  • Valdar (L'Orient, micro-mechanical components)
• Blancpain Manufacture (Le Brassus, watch movements)
  • Frédéric Piguet (Le Sentier, watch movements)
• Breguet
  • Nouvelle Lemania (raw movements)
• Nivarox-FAR (Le Locle, drive springs)
  • Nivarox SA
  • Fabriques d'Assortiments Réunis
• Comadur (Le Locle, materials)
• Rubattel & Weyermann (La Chaux de Fonds, watch dials)
• MOM Le Prélet (Les Geneveys-sur-Coffrane, watch dials)
• Universo (La Chaux de Fonds, watch hands)
• Manufacture Ruedin (Bassecourt, watch cases)
• Lascor (Sesto Calende, watch cases and bracelets)
• Simon Et Membrez (Delémont, watch cases)
• Swatch Group Assembly (St-Imier/Genestrerio, watch assembly)
  • Groupe Habillage Haute Horlogerie
• Dress Your Body (Corcelles-Cormondrèche, gem setting and jewelry)

Electronic Systems

• EM Microelectronic (Marin-Epagnier, microchips)
  • Ebauches Electroniques
• Renata (Itingen , batteries)
• Micro Crystal (Grenchen, quartz crystals and oscillators)
• Swiss Timing (Corgémont, time measurement in sports)

• LASAG (laser)

Literature

• Swatch Clopedia 2002. Catalogue for Swatch watches; Author: Michael Steiner; ISBN 393597602X

Weblinks

• www.swatchgroup.com