Cyma

Cyma is a brand of Swiss watches originated by Schwob Frères and Tavannes but now independent.

History

Schwob Frères was founded in 1862 in La Chaux-de-Fonds to assemble and market watches under a number of brand names. Shortly after the Tavannes Watch Co. was established by Henri Sandoz in 1891, Schwob Frères began marketing their watches. Around 1900, the Cyma brand appeared on watches manufactured by Tavannes and sold by Schwob Frères.

The Cyma brand expanded rapidly in the 1920's and 1930's, with the company claiming at one point to be the largest watch manufacturer in Switzerland. Waterproof watches appeared as early as 1915, with dive watches remaining a symbol for the brand. Cyma launched an automatic watch in 1943 and began using ETA movements in 1957.

Branding was somewhat fluid throughout the 1940's and 1950's. Tavannes watches often have Cyma movements and vice-versa, and some watches are branded "Cyma-Tavannes", "Ta-Cy", or "Tacy". Similarly, Tavannes' "Admiral" model name often appears with the Cyma brand.

The Cyma and Tavannes brands declined rapidly in the 1960's, with production ceasing by 1966. That year, ASUAG's Chronos Holding acquired both names, restarting production under their Synchron group in 1968. Cyma continued as a sister brand for Doxa and Ernest Borel under Synchron through the 1970's before production stopped again late in the decade.

In 1978, the Cyma brand was sold and production moved to the former Doxa facility in Le Locle. Ownership has changed hands since then, but the brand continues with a Le Locle address to this day.