Jaquet Droz
- See also: Jaquet-Droz, Pierre and FH/Jaquet-Droz
Jaquet Droz is a Swiss watch manufacturer, currently part of the Swatch Group's Prestige and Luxury division.
History
The company is named after Pierre Jaquet-Droz (1721-1790), a famous Neuchâtel watchmaker. Pierre Jaquet-Droz was a brilliant manufacturer of watches, clocks and so-called "Automatons", mechanically driven characters. These machines were legendary world famous, and their inventor was almost burned at the stake for alleged witchcraft.
A new watch company named Jaquet Droz SA existed in the mid-20th century to no great renown. The firm dissolved in 1963.
The Jaquet-Droz name was revived as a shared brand by the Coopérative de Fabricants Suisses d'Horlogerie (FH) in 1965. For nearly 20 years, a wide range of "Jaquet-Droz" branded watches were distributed and sold worldwide but produced by "150 manufacturers." It was later incorporated as SAH. This concern finally failed in 1983.
The Jaquet-Droz brand was re-launched at Basel Fair in 1993. This brand, funded by Investcorp, was unrelated to either former concern. François Bodet and Yves Scherrer, formerly of Breguet Group, acquired the rights in 1995 and began producing replicas of Jaquet-Droz automatons before launching an upscale line of Jaquet-Droz branded watches. A 1999 infusion of cash from the investment firm, Cuopla Group betrayed the firm's dire financial state. In 2000, Swatch Group purchased Montres Jaquet-Droz SA, integrating it into its luxury watch group and moving it to La Chaux-de-Fonds.
Jaquet Droz Today
Today's models embody both classic style, restraint and value. They are noted for their artful characteristics and "spangled" dials, in which the traditional enamel method "Grand Feu Noir Absolu" is used. As part of the Swatch Group, Jaquet Droz draws from many manufacturing sources, including Manufacture Blancpain, which supplies movements.
Jaquet Droz produced "between 4,000 and 5,000" timepieces in 2013 according to company President, Marc Hayek.
Address
Montres Jaquet Droz SA
Rue Jaquet Droz 5
CH-2300 La Chaux-de-Fonds
Tel. +41 32 911 28 88
Fax +41 32 911 28 82