It has been ten years since H. Moser & Cie. and its sister company, Precision Engineering AG, were acquired by MELB Holding, the parent company of the Meylan family, and taken under the direction of Edouard Meylan and his brother Bertrand.
Ordinarily, Swiss watchmakers would mark such a landmark with the creation of a special anniversary edition of one of their watches.
Admirably, in the case of Moser, the company is celebrating by sharing the story of how the business was turned from an all-but bankrupt company into one the world’s most respected independent watchmakers.
“Summer 2012: H. Moser & Cie. is on the verge of bankruptcy, with seemingly no buyers on the horizon,” the story begins in the style of a Hollywood blockbuster.
Its situation was desperate and its performance catastrophic, despite owning a fully integrated manufacture that creates innovative products built on a rich and unique history.
The early years of the turnaround were tough. Independent watchmakers were struggling to gain traction with retailers around the world, which made it difficult for collectors to experience their watches.
That changed dramatically during the early months of the pandemic, when lock downs pushed people to stay at home with little to do other than spend time in front of screens. Many used the time to learn more about watches and to expand their horizons.
Moser was one of the great beneficiaries, and a process of revival that began in 2012 accelerated.
Production today is now five times higher than a decade ago at around 3,000 watches per year, and sales are up eight-fold.
Today, the MELB Group employs around a hundred people across sites in Schaffhausen, Hong Kong, Dubai and New York.
Moser CEO Mr Meylan says the turnaround was rooted in the history and inherent strengths of the brand and its watchmaking capabilities.
“The idea was to draw on what had already been done well – and there were lots of good things – and to further improve this by adding a bit of our own personality, i.e. by respecting the past but incorporating a contemporary and occasionally irreverent edge,” he says.
Not that Moser has been a slave to its past. Sixteen manufacture calibres have been developed, and five new collections introduced, including one-offs such as the Swiss Alp Watch and the Venturer, as well as permanent ones for the Heritage, Pioneer and Streamliner lines, which complement the core Endeavour collection.
All the while, the team was growing and strengthening, and investment in the latest watchmaking technology was opening up opportunities to shift into new directions.
The most important new direction was into the red hot market for luxury sports watches with integrated bracelets with the launch in 2020 of the Streamliner collection.
Streamliner has become that most valuable of commodities for watchmakers: a platform watch that can be frequently updated and tweaked while adhering to a tight set of design and engineering parameter.
Having struggled to get any traction with retailers a decade ago, they are now banging on Mr Meylan’s door.
New retail partnerships have been established across the world, supported by Moser’s subsidiaries in Asia, the Middle East and America.
The next step in the company’s journey is to open its first monobrand boutique, which is expected to happen this December in Hong Kong, but retailers are assured that this is part of a commitment to its partners, not a means of replacing them.