text by Ellfian Rahim
H. Moser & Cie. boutique in Sincere Fine Watches
At last year’s Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Geneve (GPHG)— the annual horological awards celebrating the most remarkable watch creations worldwide—H. Moser & Cie picked up the Tourbillon Watch Prize for the Pioneer Cylindrical Tourbillon Skeleton, adding to its impressive tally of award wins thus far.
This latest award won by the dynamic Swiss watchmakers joins the double wins in 2020 for the Endeavour Cylindrical Tourbillon H. Moser & Cie x MB&F (Audacity Prize), and the Streamliner Flyback Chronograph Automatic (Chronograph Watch Prize).
These are just the most recent achievements for the Schaffhausen-based watchmaker, which was established in 1828, some 40 years before its neighbour, IWC started up. In fact, H. Moser & Cie was making watches some 11 years before the brand that would become Patek Philippe was founded, and close to 50 years before Audemars Piguet got its start. Despite this, it may surprise you to learn that in 2012, the firm was staring down the barrel of bankruptcy.
Fortunately, the MELB Holding, as an independent Swiss family group owned by the Meylan family knew a winner when it saw one. This is likely to be because the family itself was steeped in the watchmaking trade – the Meylans are related to watchmaking legend Charles- Henri Meylan, who was very active in Switzerland’s Le Brassus watchmakers’ enclave at the same time as Jules Audemars and Edouard Piguet.
Moser Brothers
Now, Edouard Meylan has taken the reins of H. Moser & Cie as CEO, supported by his brother Bertrand, and leaned into innovation and disruption to create an outstanding future for the independent watchmaking firm. The two brothers were recently in Kuala Lumpur as guests of Sincere Watches – perhaps one of the most established names in luxury watch retail in this region.
The famed retailer first began operations in 1954, and has since blossomed spectacularly into a leading retailer and distributor of the world’s top watch brands in Asia. Now, to celebrate its 70th anniversary, it has worked with H. Moser & Cie. to come up with the captivating Pioneer Perpetual Calendar Concept MD Purple Enamel Sincere Platinum Jubilee Edition timepiece.
Pioneer Perpetual Calendar Concept MD Purple Enamel Sincere Platinum Jubilee Edition
Limited to 20 pieces, this special edition celebrates Sincere’s remarkable 70-year journey of unparalleled service and dedication in cultivating watch appreciation in the region, reveals Edouard.
“For this watch for Sincere, it’s got a traditional outlook with lots of enamel on the dial – but it’s also got a modern twist to it with the purple hue. This exquisite dial represents a harmonious fusion of tradition and innovation, meticulously crafted by our master enamellers using the labour-intensive “Grand Feu” enamel technique.
It’s a new reinterpretation that makes it look contemporary even though enamel was previously used on old pocket watches of the past centuries. And of course, when one uses enamel on a contemporary, sporty timepiece, the results can be rather dramatic.”
The dial boasts a striking texture in an alluring purple shade
Designed for optimal legibility, the Pioneer Perpetual Calendar Concept MD Purple Enamel Sincere Platinum Jubilee Edition features two large windows to display the month and date, augmented by H. Moser & Cie.’s innovative “Flash Calendar” function, enabling an instantaneous date change at midnight. The date can be set at any time of day, forwards or backwards, without risking any damage to the movement.
Showcasing a strikingly minimalistic design, the dial is stripped of almost all indications except for the plus and minus signs that indicate the power-reserve at 9 o’clock, an offset small second at 6 o’clock, and with a leap year cycle indicator concealed on the movement side. The partially skeletonized leaf-shaped hands are filled with Super-LumiNova to further enhance readability.
The HMC is a hand-wound manufacture movement offering a power reserve of at least seven days.
Meanwhile, at the heart of the timepiece is the HMC 808 hand-wound manufacture movement that offers a power reserve of at least seven days, thanks to its double barrel design. The movement epitomises unparalleled simplicity and innovation, and unlike conventional designs where the calendar mechanism is a modular addition, the HMC 808 seamlessly incorporates the calendar mechanism into the core architecture of the movement.
An exceptional blend of form and function, the HMC 808 exemplifies a dedication to precision, reliability, and innovation, pushing the boundaries of fine mechanical watchmaking. Edouard then goes on to remind us that simplicity is the essence of everything that comes from H. Moser & Cie, and the Perpetual Calendar is perhaps the key movement developed by the watch house that embraces this philosophy.
“Celebrating simplicity is very Germanic and there’s always this Bauhaus philosophy which is that important connection between function and design and the Perpetual Calendar is a paramount representation of this – you remove everything that is not necessary and you make what’s left very practical for the user. So, what you end up with is the most minimalistic, yet the most user-friendly and spectacular Perpetual Calendar,” he says.
The watch is crafted in 18 carat red gold with black DLC-treated titanium inserts.
But perhaps more than anything else, H. Moser & Cie is a brand that is fresh and exciting, especially to newer fans of fine horology. Recognisable before you even see the logo, watches by H. Moser & Cie are a strikingly modern ode to nearly 200 years of watchmaking excellence. With its innovative new products featuring unique characteristics, the family business has shown again and again how to reinterpret tradition.
“But most important of all, we make watches for us,” stresses Edouard. “So, I suppose, as long as we project a youthful vigour in all that we do, then our ideas correspondingly become attractive to younger watch appreciators who seem to enjoy our creations over the years.”
“Afterall, what the younger generation of watch lovers like in watches these days, in my honest opinion, is something that respects tradition, elegant and at the same time, also displaying an unmistakable sense of modernity. That’s why at H. Moser & Cie, we like to believe that the brand effectively bridges tradition and modernism, and I believe that’s why the brand speaks so well to the latest generation of watch lovers.”
