Industry consolidation

The watch industry has dramatically consolidated during the 20th century to just a few watch groups. There were waves of consolidation in the 1930s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, all of which resulted in a few companies (Swatch Group, Richemont, LVMH, Kering, and so on) controlling most of the Swiss and European watch industry. Similar consolidation occurred in Japan, where Seiko Group and Citizen Holdings own much of the industry, and in America, which is dominated by Movado Group.

The Rise of Brands

1886

Rodolphe Uhlmann of La Chaux-de-Fonds began using Colombia, creating an early brand conflict

1889

May 27 - The Longines brand is registered in Switzerland by Ernest Francillon & Co. of Saint-Imier, establishing the first "marque de fabrique déposée" in watchmaking. Francillon had marked movements with "Longines" since at least 1869.
The Colombe brand is registered by Alb. Jeanneret & Frères, also of Saint-Imier

1890

The Diana brand is registered by Alb. Jeanneret & Frères, making this the first two-marque company. They would add Pigeon later that year and Excelsior in 1894.

1893

March 27 - The Longines brand is registered worldwide
The Zenith brand is registered

1895

December 17 - The Société des Fabriques de Spiraux Réunies SA is founded as a cartel to control all production of balance springs

1898

July 29 - The Société Suisse des Spiraux is founded to compete with FSR

1920

Indicateur Davoine lists 58 Swiss watch brands

The Great Depression

A 1930 conference was held to consolidate and organize Swiss watchmaking. The following individuals were present, and represent the major voices in favor of consolidation at this time:

1926

December 27 - Ebauches SA is formed

1927

The LeCoultre family form Société Anonyme de Produits Industriels et Commerciaux (SAPIC) as a holding company for their watch interests, including the Le Sentier watchmaking operation that would become Jaeger-LeCoultre

1930

Omega, Tissot, and Lemania join together to form the SSIH. Lanco, Cortebert, Marc Favre, Hamilton, and others are added later
Indicateur Davoine lists 77 Swiss watch brands

1931

August 14 - ASUAG is formed by Ebauches SA and FSR along with A. Schild, FHF, and AMSA

1932

September 5 - Fabriques d'Assortiments Réunies is founded
October 24 - Fabriques de Balanciers Réunies is founded
Gebrüder Schild & Co is divided into two parts within ASUAG: Watch production was reorganized as Eterna SA under General Watch Co., while the movement manufacture ETA SA Fabrique d'Ebauches (ETA) became part of Ebauches SA
Fleurier Watch Co. is split, with movements going to Ebauches SA
Auguste Reymond is split, with movements (Unitas) going to Ebauches SA and watches (ARSA) in ASUAG
Manzoni, Moser, and ED Kummer become part of Ebauches SA
Atlantic becomes part of ASUAG

1933

Peseux SA becomes part of Ebauches SA

1937

SAPIC purchases Etablissements Ed. Jawger, creating Jaeger-LeCoultre
SAPIC and Vacheron & Constantin swap shares, effectively merging the companies

1938

Champagne becomes part of ASUAG

1940

Indicateur Davoine lists 93 Swiss watch brands

1941

A major grant from the Swiss federal government resolves many of the remaining dissident watchmaker questions:
- Essor, Rossé & Affolter, Précimax, Gigantic, and Heliosa join ASUAG
- Derby and Nouvelle Fabrique join Ebauches SA
- Ega SA joins FBR
- Huot joins FAR
- Interchangeables, Melano, Meyer et Fils, and Orwa are closed
- G. Flury exits the watch industry

1942

Glycine becomes part of ASUAG

1944

Valljoux SA becomes part of Ebauches SA

1950

Indicateur Davoine lists 177 Swiss watch brands

From Watchmakers to Corporations

1959

Heuroplan is formed as a joint marketing organization for Cyma, Eska, Juvenia, Movado, and Nappey

1960

April 4 - The Coopérative de Fabricants Suisses d'Horlogerie is formed to help smaller watch producers compete with ASUAG and Ebauches SA
Indicateur Davoine lists nearly 200 European watch brands

1961

Rayville joins the SSIH, including the Blancpain brand
Manufactures d'Horlogerie Suisses Réunies SA (MSR) is founded by Roland Straumann of Revue Thommen and includes Vulcain, Buser, and Phenix

1965

Georges Ketterer trades his shares in SAPIC for control of subsidiary Vacheron & Constantin, leaving just a small stake connecting the company to Jaeger-LeCoultre, with the remaining holding company called SAPHIR
The Coopérative de Fabricants Suisses d'Horlogerie launches the shared brand Jaquet-Droz, featuring watches produced by all 150 members

1966

ASUAG creates Chronos Holding SA, which took over the newly-defunct Cyma and Tavannes brands, as well as taking a stake in Gruen
Venus is absorbed by Valjoux
The American firm Hamilton purchases Büren of Switzerland
Société Horlogeère de Production et de Participation SA (Sagiter) is formed, containing brands like Camy, Invicta, and Sandoz

1967

Ebauches SA creates Ebauches Electronic SA and begins production of quartz crystals, integrated circuits, and other electronic watch components
Ebauches SA purchases SEFEA in Annemasse, France and Durowe of Pforzheim, Germany
Economic Swiss Time Holding is formed as a federation of lower-priced Swiss watch manufacturers, including Agon, Basis, Buler, and Ferex

1968

November 22 - ASUAG creates Pierres Holding SA in Bienne for member manufacturers of watch jewels
Chronos Holding creates Synchron, which includes Cyma, Doxa, and Ernest Borel
Société des Garde-Temps SA (SGT) is founded, containing Elgin, Fleurier Watch, Invicta, Sandoz, and Waltham

1969

The Favre family purchases SAPHIR, bringing Jaeger-LeCoultre and Favre-Leuba together under SAPHIR Group
Movado and Zenith merge as Movado-Zenith
Mondia is added to Movado-Zenith, becoming Movado-Zenith-Mondia
The Coopérative de Fabricants Suisses d'Horlogerie is converted into Parsicor Holding, with 135 small watch makers as members, many producing watches under the shared Jaquet-Droz brand

1970

North American Watch Company acquires Concord after failing to buy Movado
Indicateur Davoine lists over 1,400 European watch brands

1971

February 18 - ASUAG begins the creation of General Watch Co. to manage production of complete watches. Seven companies are integrated, including Certina, Edox, Eterna, Mido, Oris, and Technos. Later in 1971, General Watch Co. adds Longines, owner of Record and Rotary
Economic Swiss Time Holding is integrated into the SSIH, including AGON, Buler, Continental, and Ferex

The Quartz Crisis

1972

June - Zenith Radio Corp. purchases Movado-Zenith-Mondia

1974

May 16 - Hamilton is absorbed into the SSIH after the Büren brand was retired
ASUAG's General Watch Co. expands with five more brands acquired

1977

January 1 - Nivarox SA is established

1978

Dixi Group purchases Movado-Zenith-Mondia from Zenith Radio Corp. Zenith and Movado become Zenith Movado Le Locle SA and Mondia is merged into Dixi
VDO purchases IWC
VDO acquires a 55% or 65% stake in Jaeger-LeCoultre from the SAPHIR Group; In the 1980s, Günter Blümlein purchases the 20% of Jaeger-LeCoultre owned by a Swiss bank and the 25% owned by Vacheron Constantin
Benedom acquires the Favre-Leuba brand from SAPHIR Group
Cyma is sold by Synchron and moved to the Doxa factory in Le Locle

1979

Cartier Monde is formed as a holding company for the various Cartier businesses
ETA SA and A. Schild (AS) are merged to become the modern ETA (Fabrique d'Ebauches ETA. SA) and movement production is focused from 136 to just 40
ASULAB SA is founded in Neuchâtel to coordinate industrial research for the group
ASUAG becomes a majority shareholder in Statek Corporation USA, which produces quartz crystals and electronic components

1980

Management consultant Nicolas G. Hayek recommends that ASUAG and SSIH be combined and redundant components be spun out or shut down
Synchron is sold by ASUAG, including Doxa, and Ernest Borel

1981

Jean-Claude Biver and Jacques Piguet purchase the Blancpain brand from SSIH
Lemania is sold by SSIH to investors
ETA is expanded to include ETA's Grenchen operations, FHF in Fontainemelon, EEM in Marin, SEFEA in Annemasse, France and Durowe of Pforzheim, Germany
SAPHIR Group, owner of Jaeger-LeCoultre and part of VDO, purchases the watch and distribution rights of Jaeger of France

1982

Oris is reorganized and spun-out of ASUAG in a management buy-out
Eterna is sold by ASUAG to PCW (Porsche Design)

1983

February Zenith Movado Le Locle SA (part of Dixi Group) sells Movado to North American Watch Company
May 23 - The merger of ASUAG and SSIH is announced in a press conference
July 29 - Swiss banks take expand their stake in ASUAG from 38% to 97.5%
December - ASUAG is merged with SSIH to become ASUAG-SSIH, predecessor to today's Swatch Group
Edox is spun out of ASUAG in a management buy-out

1984

Arnault Group purchases Dior
Auguste Reymond is spun out of ASUAG-SSIH in a management buy-out
Investcorp acquires Tiffany for $95 million
Swatch SA is formed as a joint venture with ETA under ASUAG-SSIH

The Rise of Modern Groups

1985

A massive reorganization of the Swiss watch industry results in the creation of SMH (Swiss Corporation for Microelectronics and Watchmaking Industries Ltd) as a holding company for ASUAG-SSIH and all of its components
Roamer is spun out of ASUAG in a management buy-out

1986

VDO sells 40% of SAPHIR Group (owner of Jaeger-LeCoultre) to Audemars Piguet to raise money and strengthen ties with that brand

1987

LVMH is formed as Louis Vuitton and Moët Hennessy are combined
All watchmaking components under Ebauches SA are reorganized under ETA
Investcorp acquires Breguet from Chaumet
Investcorp floats Tiffany shares in an IPO
Investcorp purchases Chaumet out of bankruptcy amid a fraud case involving the Chaumet brothers

1988

April 26 - Cartier Monde acquires 60% of Piaget and Baume & Mercier
Bernard Arnault's Arnault Group initiates a hostile takeover of LVMH, adding Dior to the group
SMH divests its stake in France Ebauches
Investcorp acquires half of Gucci
Sowind Group is established by Luigi Macaluso as a distributor for Breitling, Girard-Perregaux, and Hamilton in Italy and soon purchased a minority stake in Girard-Perregaux

1990

Günter Blümlein and IWC begin working with Walter Lange to re-launch A. Lange & Söhne

1991

VDO's three watch companies (IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, and A. Lange & Söhne) are organized as Les Manufactures Horologes (LMH) under Blümlein
VDO is acquired by Mannesmann, which also owns Jaeger
SMH acquires Porta Micromechanic (PUW and Rowi) of Pforzheim and VEB Uhrenwerka Ruhla

1992

July - SMH acquires Blancpain and Frédéric Piguet
Investcorp acquires Nouvelle Lemania as a movement partner for Breguet
Sowind Group acquires a majority stake in Lorane Holding SA, owner of Girard-Perregaux

1993

Cartier Monde is renamed Vendôme Luxury Group and IPOs
October - Richemont separates its tobacco interests into Rothmans International and its luxury goods business into Vendôme, including Baume & Mercier, Cartier, Alfred Dunhill, Montblanc, Piaget, Karl Lagerfeld, Chloé, Sulka, Hackett, and Seeger
Investcorp acquires the remainder of Gucci

1994

Investcorp acquires Ebel from the founding family
Roamer is purchased by Chung Nam
Investcorp renews the Gucci manufacturing license amid much public drama

1995

July 30 - LVMH acquires Fred and Benedom, owner of Favre-Leuba and producer of Dior and Céline watches
LVMH begins to acquire Gucci shares as a prelude to a hostile takeover
March - LVMH acquires Céline
Investcorp lists 48.2% of Gucci on the New York Stock Exchange

1996

April 15 - North American Watch Company is renamed Movado Group; the group owns the Concord, Esquire/ESQ, and Movado brands and controls distribution of Piaget and Corum
December 12 - Vendôme acquires Vacheron Constantin
Investcorp sells most of their shares in Gucci to the public

1997

Q1 - An internal audit recommends that Audemars Piguet divest of the 40% of Jaeger-LeCoultre it holds; Stephen Urquhart leaves Georges-Henri Meylan as sole CEO
Vendôme acquires Officine Panerai and Lancel
LMH is restructured into a holding company under Günter Blümlein with IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, and A. Lange & Söhne still operating independently
November 26 - Richemont announces that it will buy the remaining 30% of Vendôme
Movado Group begins producing Coach brand watches under license

1998

February 19 - SMH is renamed Swatch Group on Nicolas Hayek's 70th birthday
Richemont completes a 2-year plan to purchase the remainder of Vendôme and dissolves it
Sowind Group's Lorane Holding, owner of Girard-Perregaux, buys the 45% of GP Manufacture owned by Bulgari

1999

September 10 - PPR reaches an agreement with LVMH to acquire its 34% stake in Gucci, ending a long battle for the company
September 13 - LVMH acquires TAG Heuer for CHF 1.2 billion
September 14 - Swatch Group acquires Breguet and Nouvelle Lemania from Investcorp as they exit the watch business
October 20 - LVMH acquires Chaumet and Ebel from Investcorp for $460 million
November 15 - LVMH acquires Zenith from Dixi Group
Swatch Group acquires Léon Hatot
Richemont acquires part of Van Cleef & Arpels
Richemont begins divesting of Rothmans (tobacco)
Movado Group begins producing Tommy Hilfiger brand watches under license

2000

February 4 - Vodafone acquires Mannesmann for $190 billion (the largest merger in history) and soon puts VDO (and LMH) up for sale
March - Bulgari makes it known that they are not interested in buying LMH
May 15 - Mannesmann officially puts LMH up for sale in a press release
June - Richemont and Audemars Piguet are rumored to put together a joint bid for LMH based on the 40% ownership of Jaeger-LeCoultre the latter already holds
July 14 - The deadline for offers on LMH includes official bids from Gucci/PPR, LVMH, and Richemont/Audemars Piguet
July 21 - Richemont announces the acquisition of LMH for CHF 2.8 billion, plus CHF 280 million to purchase Audemars Piguet's 40% share in Jaeger-LeCoultre
April 25 - Swatch Group acquires Jaquet Droz
October 9 - Swatch Group acquires Glashütte Original and Union Glashütte
December - Gucci acquires Boucheron
July - MSR, one of the longest-lasting independent groups, declares bankruptcy and puts the Marvin, Revue Thommen, and Vulcain brands up for sale
LVMH recovers the Dior brand license

International Industrial Groups

2001

November 12 - Fossil Group acquires Zodiac from Dixi, along with Synergies Horlogères, Meliga Habillement Horloger, and Montres Antima
February - PPR's Gucci acquires 66.7% of Bottega Veneta; it acquired 11.8% more in July
July - Gucci acquires 91% of Balenciaga
Bankrupt MSR sells the Vulcain brand to PMH

2002

August 31 - LVMH launches Luis Vuitton Watches at its new Tokyo office
MSR sells Marvin to Time Avenue

2003

March - LVMH sells the Favre-Leuba brand to Valentin; rumors suggest LVMH will exit the watch business completely
December 23 - LVMH sells the Ebel brand to Movado Group for $47.3 million, keeping Ebel's "Private Label Development" arm and renaming it Les Ateliers Horlogers, a developer of high-end watch movements for Dior and others
Richemont acquires the rest of Van Cleef & Arpels

2004

PPR acquires the final minority shares of Gucci
December - Movado Group acquired the Boss watch license from Tempus Concept
The bankrupt MSR licenses the Revue Thommen name to Grovana

2006

Richemont acquires Minerva

2007

October 4 - Citizen Group acquires Bulova and Wittnauer for $250 million, their first acquisition outside Japan
Fossil Group spins out part of Synergies Horlogères (including Antima)
September 17 - Richemont acquires the manufacturing assets of Roger Dubuis; it would acquire majority control of the brand the following year

2008

August 11 - Richemont acquires 60% of the Roger Dubuis brand
April 24 - LVMH re-commits to the luxury watch industry by purchasing Hublot for est. CHF 490 million, bringing Jean-Claude Biver to the company

2009

Roamer is reorganized by Chung Nam with Swiss Watch Group

2010

January - LVMH's Hublot acquires the assets of bankrupt high-end movement specialist BNB Concept

2011

March 5 - LVMH acquires Bulgari
June 29 - China Haidian acquires Eterna, including the Porsche Design brand license, for $23 million
July 4 - PPR acquires Sowind Group with Girard-Perregaux, JeanRichard, and GP Manufacture
LVMH's Louis Vuitton acquires La Fabrique du Temps, successor to high-end movement specialist BNB Concept, which was purchased by the company a year earlier

2012

March 5 - Citizen Holdings acquires Prothor, owner of La Joux-Perret and Arnold & Son
October 25 - MELB Holding is formed to acquire Hautlence
Q3 - MELB Holding acquires H. Moser & Cie. and Precision Engineering AG
Fossil Group acquires 51% of movement maker STP
LVMH's Louis Vuitton acquires dial maker Léman Cadrans

2013

January 14 - Swatch Group acquires Harry Winston
April 24 - China Haidian acquires Corum for CHF 86 million
June 18 - PPR is renamed Kering

2014

April 14 - China Haidian acquires Dreyfuss Group (owner of Rotary) for HK 351 million
July 2 - Synergies Horlogères, part owned by Fossil Group, merges with Christopher Ward to become Christopher Ward London Holdings
July 7 - China Haidian is renamed Citychamp
July 30 - Kering purchases Ulysse Nardin and places it under Sowind Group

2016

January 22 - Richemont acquires the remaining 40% of the Roger Dubuis brand it did not purchase in 2008
May 26 - Citizen Holdings acquires Frederique Constant, including Alpina and Ateliers deMonaco

2019

November 25 - LVMH announces that it will acquire Tiffany €14.7 billion, though it would take two years to complete the deal

2021

January 7 - LVMH completes the acquisition of Tiffany at a lower price than announced two years earlier