Exploring H. Moser & Cie.’s Past, Present and Unique Watchmaking Language

Popularly dubbed the enfant terrible of Swiss watchmaking, not only has H. Moser & Cie. embraced the zany epithet, it has garnered significant acclaim and following for its daring in re-examining prevailing design principles and industry practices to truly blaze an inimitable path.

The Swiss Alp Watch Final Upgrade playfully takes on a celebrated smartwatch while introducing the audience to the stygian Vantablack®.

And despite boasting a modern gamut of avant-garde timepieces, the fully integrated independent watch manufacturer has a rich legacy spanning nearly two centuries.

A Legacy Far Greater Than Watchmaking

H. Moser & Cie. takes its name from the eponymous founder; a young entrepreneur named Heinrich Moser, born into a family of watchmakers in Schaffhausen. A sponge for knowledge, a visionary and a risk taker, initially, he followed in the footsteps of his forefathers to learn the ins and outs of the watchmaking business, before arriving in Saint Petersburg and swiftly winning over the city’s aristocratic circle with his horological acumen.

Heinrich Moser was more than a watchmaker; he was an industrialist whose ethos still permeates the halls of H. Moser & Cie. today.

With the inception of the brand in 1828, he also constructed a manufacturing facility in Switzerland, employing hundreds of artisans to produce a range of watches. He was a pivotal figure in the industrialisation of Schaffhausen, famously building Switzerland’s first dam equipped with hydro-mechanical turbines to generate electricity. Moser was credited by historians for lifting Schaffhausen out of poverty and into an industrial hub, laying down the foundation for the town to become a locus for watchmaking activities it is synonymous with today.

With an entrepreneurial empire and social impact that reverberated beyond watchmaking, he was nevertheless a watchmaker at heart. It was estimated that over 500,000 timepieces were produced throughout his lifetime, ranging from traditional three-hand models to magnificent grand complications.

Moser’s Industry and Ingenuity Live On

Today, Moser’s descendants continue to uphold his legacy in various capacities; they play an active role at H. Moser & Cie. Notably, great-grandson Roger Nicholas Balsiger serves as the honorary chairman.

Roger Nicholas Balsiger, great-grandson of Heinrich Moser serves as H. Moser & Cie.’s honorary chairman today.

“At H. Moser & Cie., we always decided to be a company that does things differently – technologically, creatively, in our design, in our quality, and as a brand. And that also means that we limit ourselves to a maximum number of particular watches we sell in a year. And in our designs and their quality, we will always maintain the standard that we feel our clients expect from us,” says Balsiger.

Edouard Meylan has assumed the role of CEO at H. Moser & Cie. since 2013.

Fittingly, H. Moser & Cie. stands out with a remarkable tagline: Very Rare. A guiding principle it strongly abides by, the brand keeps the annual production of timepieces in the low thousands, with focus particularly trained on quality, innovation and exclusivity. Under the stewardship of CEO Edouard Meylan, a charismatic character who himself hails from a family steeped in watchmaking and who assumed ownership in 2012, H. Moser & Cie. has gone from strength to strength.

Innovation Meets Imagination

At H. Moser & Cie., innovation doesn’t only materialise in the form of patented mechanisms, it has created some of the most memorable moments in contemporary watchmaking through sheer ingenuity and whimsy. It pushes the boundaries where traditional brands dare not. Evidence of its irreverent approach can be seen in the Nature Watch that reaffirms its commitment to sustainability, the Swiss Icon Watch that pays homage to the Swiss watch paragons, the Swiss Mad Watch that redefines the Swiss Made conventions, and the Swiss Alp Watch that satirises smartwatches.

While the standard Endeavour Perpetual Calendar encapsulates the brand’s endemic minimalism, the Tutorial version acts as a facetious sidekick.

Not everything is done with tongue-in-cheek. As a fully integrated independent watch manufacturer, H. Moser & Cie. takes its craft seriously. It produces some of the most innovative and industry-leading components found in mechanical watches today. Every timepiece is handmade, as well as its technical movement being designed in-house, to the extent of the intricate reshaping and hardening of each individual hairspring. Much like how the brand started, skilled artisans continue to be the enablers of innovation. Among the patented mechanisms include a hairspring made of the paramagnetic niobium-titanium alloy, a double hairspring where two identical hairsprings compensate for positional errors, and the Double Pull Crown system.

Beyond technical breakthroughs and humorous marketing campaigns, the H. Moser & Cie.’s aesthetics is rooted in minimalism with an emphasis on the purity of haute horlogerie complications and artisanal crafts. This philosophy is embodied in novelties such as the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar that pares down the superficial excess and complexity while highlighting the centrality of the perpetual calendar complication. The fumé dial too has become a signature thanks to an astonishing gradient concept. A trailblazer who constantly looks outside of watchmaking for inspiration, H. Moser & Cie. has introduced collectors to uncharted territory. One such example is the incorporation of trademarked materials like Vantablack® into its timepieces in order to create novelties in the truest sense of the word.

H. Moser & Cie.’s Collections Explored

H. Moser & Cie.’s eclectic panoplies are demarcated into Streamliner, Pioneer, Endeavour, Heritage and Exceptionals. Inspired by the aerodynamics of automotive and locomotive designs of the 1920s, the Streamliner collection melds contemporary elegance into the brand’s own interpretation of minimalism. It boasts an original design language, best expressed through the integrated steel bracelet and cushion-shaped case that are at once gorgeous, ergonomic, sporty and durable.

The Streamliner collection is notable for its distinctive case and bracelet design.

A perfect combination of elegance and sportiness, the Pioneer collection exudes energy and class simultaneously. It is designed with versatility in mind, where every timepiece can fit seamlessly into a day’s itinerary from the outdoors to the dining room, bolstered with an exquisite yet robust case. The Endeavour collection, on the other hand, exemplifies the notion less is more with a crisp design. It features a classically sculpted case juxtaposed with a striking tableau of unusual materials and colours for an extra touch.

With the Heritage collection, the brand revisits its archives to unearth a new facet to a past design. Rather than reprising an old model, it prefers to inject new elements such as the three-dimensional Globolight® into a case evocative of pocket watches. The result is a stylistic clash of ancestral and modern savoir-faire done well. The Exceptionals collection represents the pinnacle of H. Moser & Cie’s watchmaking know-how. It is haute horlogerie at its bona fide best. Comprising limited-edition and bespoke timepieces, the collection is a convergence of artisanal techniques of gem-setting, hand-engraving, engine-turning and enamelling, underscored with H. Moser & Cie.’s ingenious manufacture movements.

A Chorus of Accolades

A visual spectacle, the Pioneer Cylindrical Tourbillon scooped the Tourbillon prize at the 2022 GPHG.

Acknowledgement doesn’t come sweeter than peer recognition. Certainly with H. Moser & Cie., its timepieces are exceptional. A prolific winner at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG), the Academy Awards of watchmaking, its Pioneer Cylindrical Tourbillon received the Tourbillon prize in the 2022 edition, while the Streamliner Flyback Chronograph Automatic Watch and the collaborative Endeavour Cylindrical Tourbillon with MB&F won the Chronograph and Audacity prizes respectively in the 2020 edition. Other outstanding timepieces have also been selected as finalists on numerous occasions over the years.