Buler

Buler is a Swiss watch brand dating to 1945 and currently owned by Hong Kong-based Free Town Watch Products.

History

Buler was founded in 1945 in Lengnau, Switzerland as a budget-priced maker of Swiss watches.

In the 1960s, Montres Buler SA was a member of the Roskopf Association and was focused on production of inexpensive pin lever watches. The company produced a variety of pendant, ring, and desk clocks as well as wrist watches using the Buler brand.

In 1967, Buler was a founding member of Economic Swiss Time Holding, a consolidated organization of Roskopf watch makers. Also included in this group were Agon, Ferex, and Basis. The company was headquartered in Basel and directed by Max Thommen of Basis and Walter Rüfli of Buler. This was a defensive move, as Roskopf watches were losing ground to cheaper Asian alternatives. The company set up a new factory at Reinfelden and workshops at Arzo to reduce Swiss labor costs. This was merged with SSIH, part of the Swiss giant ASUAG.

Buler became a pioneer brand for LCD watches in the 1970s, even partnering with automotive engineering firm, Bertone, to produce a "Stratos by Bertone" model in 1976.

In 1991, Buler, along with Le Phare Jean d'Eve, was purchased by Renley Watch Manufacturing and moved to La Chaux-de-Fonds. This Hong Kong-based concern was building a range of Swiss watch brands to go with its existing private manufacturing work. Buler remained active at least until 2016.