Jaquet Droz CEO Alain Delamuraz
When Alain Delamuraz took the helm of Jaquet Droz in 2021, he didn’t simply adjust the brand’s direction. He redrew the map. By 2022, the maison stopped producing limited editions entirely. The Swiss manufacture now creates only unique pieces or ultra-limited art commissions. Every watch is bespoke. Every dial is a canvas. And no piece is ever repeated.
For Delamuraz, this bold shift wasn’t a break from heritage but a return to it. “Jaquet Droz’s tradition is producing pieces of art meant for kings and emperors,” he says. Today’s “kings,” he adds, are the collectors who can appreciate a six- or seven-digit masterpiece on the wrist. They value rarity and crave meaning. They expect a story only they can own. “We don’t do limited editions anymore,” he says with quiet certainty. “Every watch is unique. We don’t repeat any piece of art.”
A Three-Way Collaboration: Artist, Maison, Collector
Photo: Justin Tan
Art runs through the veins of the brand. It shapes every decision. Many of Jaquet Droz’s pieces are created in collaboration with celebrated artists. Delamuraz sees this approach as not only natural, but necessary.
“To buy a piece of art, you need to be an artist yourself,” he says. “Our collectors are artists too.”
Co-creation, he explains, is never linear. Each piece brings together three talents: world-renowned artists, the maison’s in-house artisans, and the final collector. Together, they produce a work that bridges imagination and intimacy.
The Tourbillon Dragon White Gold, created with Lord of the Rings artistic director John Howe, captures this bespoke journey beautifully. Howe’s dragon coils across the lower half of the dial in sculpted white gold. Grand Feu enamel floods the surface in deep midnight blue. Jaquet Droz artisans then add layers of hand-painted grey, giving the creature a striking three-dimensional presence. It feels alive, as if caught mid-breath.
“Our in-house artists can take a large painting and turn it into a piece of art you can wear,” Delamuraz says. “It is a collaboration between outside artists and our artisans. And the third artist is the customer who completes the story.” The intimacy, he adds, is part of the magic. “A painting stays at home. A watch travels with you. It becomes part of your story.”
The Poetry Of The Zodiac
Zodiac symbolism often appears in the maison’s work, especially for Asian collectors who prize storytelling and heritage. The Ophidian Hour, created for the Year of the Snake, continues this tradition with vivid artistic force. Offered in two 41mm renditions—one with engraved mother-of-pearl bamboo and the other in the vibrant Sonora Sunrise stone—each dial carries an enamelled snake designed by John Howe. Its scales form a ruyi motif, a symbol of blessings and good fortune.
Photo: Justin Tan
Next year brings the Year of the Horse, and Delamuraz shares early sketches as if revealing a secret. “Nobody knows this yet,” he says with a mischievous glint. The designs explore engraved and sculpted 3D horses, dynamic and powerful, inspired by the philosophies behind the snake.
“These are only the first ideas,” he says. “We show them to collectors. We listen. Every final piece adapts to each customer. Some collectors know exactly what they want. Others don’t. We stay flexible. We guide them gently, step by step.” There is tenderness in the way he describes this process. A watch is not sold. It is born with its collector.
Legends on the Wrist
Music icons have also entered the world of Jaquet Droz, adding another layer of cultural richness to the maison’s bespoke creations. The partnership with the Rolling Stones began when Mick Jagger sought a way to celebrate the band’s 60th anniversary—six decades of concerts, albums and stories etched into global memory.
“He wanted something memorable that would last,” Delamuraz recalls. “Something that captured the soul of their journey. He loves watches, so it felt natural.”
The result was extraordinary: 24 different automaton watches, each inspired by one of the band’s 24 albums. Though they share the same movement, no two watches look alike. Each dial is a tribute—album colours, motifs, instruments, symbols and rhythms brought to life in miniature. The automaton mechanism animates tiny drum sets, guitars or stage lights depending on the album’s energy.
“The box was personally signed by Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood,” Delamuraz adds. That detail still moves him. “It shows how personal this project was. They really cared.”
From Mick Jagger to Jon Bon Jovi
The emotional thread continued with Jon Bon Jovi, who approached the brand after seeing the Rolling Stones collection. For his 40th anniversary in music, he wanted something intimate—something that reflected both the band’s legacy and his personal philosophy.
Delamuraz visited him in his Palm Beach home to present the Tourbillon Skelet Red Gold. He remembers the moment clearly.
“He looked at the wings on the dial—the ones we created in white gold—and he paused,” Delamuraz says. “Then he said, ‘This feels like freedom.’”
The piece features two wings spread from the 12 o’clock appliqué, framing the number “40.” It captures motion, resilience and transformation—the essence of a performer who has carried audiences for four decades.
For Delamuraz, these collaborations are far from celebrity endorsements. They are shared artistic journeys. “They trusted us with their stories,” he says. “That is something you cannot buy.”
A Future That Collectors Will Inherit
Photo: Justin Tan
Delamuraz’s years at Blancpain refined his understanding of heritage. But at Jaquet Droz, he embraces an even deeper responsibility: to create art that outlives its owner. He wants each piece to feel like an heirloom, a gift whispered across generations.
“Innovation is our tradition,” he says softly. “Disruption is our legacy. We’re not making products. We’re creating timepieces that people will invest in and pass to the next generation.”
He pauses, the weight of the maison’s nearly 300-year history lingering in the air. “We are not selling watches,” he repeats. “We are creating art pieces.”
Honouring A Disruptive Legacy
This philosophy forms the heart of JD 8.0: A Disruptive Legacy, the maison’s new creative direction. The idea is simple but profound: to honour Pierre Jaquet-Droz not by replicating his past, but by imagining what he would create today.
“Respecting him does not mean copying him,” Delamuraz says. “If you copy, finally you die.” To survive, the maison must reinvent. By honouring its founder, it must challenge itself. To stay true to its roots, it must keep evolving. This balance—between reverence and rebellion—defines Jaquet Droz today.
And under Delamuraz’s leadership, the brand has found a new rhythm. One that echoes the past, speaks to the present, and sets the stage for a bold, artistic future.
