Breitling buys Universal Genève
The auction house Christie's in Geneva held an auction for “important watches” this week, and the results show that Rolex continues to be more than red hot.
Text: Britta Rossander
The Swiss watch industry has had a new acquisition. This time it is Breitling who has bought Universal Genève and the new owners have promised the sellers, the Hong Kong based Stelux Group, to restore the prestige of a name that previously played an important role in the world of luxury watches.
Universal Genève was founded as early as 1894 but it was during the beginning up to the middle of the 1900s that they made an enormous international success with their innovative design and technical skill. But when the quartz crisis came the company was considerably weakened and since 1989 it had been owned by Stelux Group and lived a little in the shadows.
With the new acquisition Breitling is aiming to restore the time-honoured brand to its former glory, founded on Swiss tradition spiked with contemporary relevance.
-We are excited about the acquisition and aware of the heritage and understand that our task is to let the brand regain respect, says Georges Kern, CEO Breitling.
-Universal Genève was previously hailed as watchmaking's couturier, known for its own movements and mythical models. It is a brand that many watch enthusiasts have wished would get the chance to make a permanent comeback, says Alfred Gantner from Partners Group and chairman of the board at Breitling.
-Rebuilding a brand with such a rich history is not done in the turn of a hand, it is a work that we will let develop over the coming years. A dedicated team will be established which means that Breitling and Universal Genève will operate as separate brands, says Georges Kern.
Both Kaplans and Bukowskis get watches from Universal Genève in now and then and they go for rather good prices. It seems as if the brand has had a good position on the Swedish market.
The genius Gerald Genta has designed for Universal Genève. The watch in question Genta was the Polarouter (later renamed Polerouter, but still pronounced Pol-a-router). The first hundred were stamped with the Scandanavian Air logo on the dial and are extremely rare. The first Polerouters were released in 1954, with a case diameter of 34.5 mm and a dial without a date window.
Flying over the North Pole meant the challenge of handling the earth's magnetism which could cause havoc on the time instruments. SAS therefore asked Universal Genève to make their pilots' watches tough enough to withstand that magnetism and therefore the today so sought-after Polarouter was born.
-We are convinced that Breitling is the best choice to take Universal Genève to the next level, says Joseph Wong, chairman of the board and CEO of Stelux Group.
It will be interesting to follow this journey and see how Breitling as owner manages Universal Genève's rich heritage when it comes to interesting models.
