Zenith - watch manufacturer since 1865

Zenith – A star that never burns out

It's hard to believe, but the Swiss company Zenith has been in the luxury watch business for over 150 years. This makes the well-known watchmakers among the industry's veterans – and they can be truly proud of that. Competition in the watch market has been growing ever more fierce recently. Year after year, both long-established competitors and newcomers are positioning themselves and battling for the attention of watch fans. The range is booming, and some may eventually lose track. The market is oversaturated – but Zenith is well known. Yet the brand endures and endures – and rightly so, in our opinion. Looking back at Zenith's long history of success, it becomes clear that this manufacturer is not just any brand – this company is steeped in a wealth of watch history and tradition. Below, we'll give you an insight into the impressive world of Zenith watchmaking.

From Dream to Success – A Swiss revolutionizes the watch world

Zenith was founded in 1865, but back then under the name of its owner, Georges Favre-Jacot. The Swiss founder's vision was to produce the world's most precise and reliable timepieces, thus leaving a lasting mark on the art of watchmaking. And he actually succeeded. To construct the highly complex mechanisms necessary for his fine watches, workers could no longer work independently in small, separate workshops. The result? Favre-Jacot simply had large buildings built where the individual trades could work together – the birth of the very first watch manufacturer. Thanks to Favre-Jacot, it became possible to produce timepieces entirely in-house – which made the high quality of our esteemed luxury watches possible in the first place!

The integration of the entire manufacturing process was a huge step in watchmaking history. Favre-Jacot's innovation was revolutionary at the time and therefore quickly spread – as a result, general interest and demand for his watches boomed around the world. In order to produce all the pieces and satisfy his customers with the highest quality, the visionary had to come up with some innovative machines and production methods – he achieved this, among other things, by guaranteeing a long lifespan for his masterpieces using interchangeable components and by automating some of the production steps. Here, too, he was a pioneer in the market with his own concepts – a pretty clever mind, in other words. After all, the "Favre-Jacot Manufacture" has been called Zenith since 1911. The inspiration for the unusual name, incidentally, was the highest point of the firmament, a symbol of the excellence of the "brand with the star." In the area, the company was also known as the “manufactory with 2,000 golden and silver hands,” an expression of the high level of expertise of Favre-Jaqot’s skilled workers.

A top-notch winner – Zenith has always been the leader in terms of prices

Zenith's successful beginning marks only a part of its impressive company history. The brand is the winner of the year – almost every year! Below is a brief overview of the most important awards and achievements Zenith can boast:

1948 : The legendary wristwatch movement Caliber 135 with small second and a diameter of only 29.3 mm is released and is awarded a proud 235 (!) prizes.

1960 : The caliber 5011 K set a new precision record in its category. It was used in marine chronometers, pocket and table clocks, as well as a special edition of the Pilot's Montre d'Aéronef Type 20.

1969 : The El Primero, the very first integrated automatic chronograph, was launched. To this day, it remains the most precise production movement in the world. Thanks to a frequency of 36,000 vibrations per hour, it can measure short periods of time with an accuracy of one-tenth of a second.

1994 : The first automatic movement operated with computer-aided design (CAD), the Elite, is presented and is voted “Movement of the Year” by the press due to its extreme thinness, robustness and reliability.

2003 : The brand with the star invents the Open concept, a hole in the dial that reveals the escapement of the El Primero caliber. The beating heart of the watch is visible, and the fascination of a high-frequency mechanical movement is more evident than ever.

2010 : The Academy Christoph Colomb Equation of Time model wins the prize for the best grand complication at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) – one year later, the model wins the prize again!

2012 : This time, a different model won an award at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève: the Pilot Big Date Special received the "Petite Aiguille" prize. Furthermore, on October 14 of that year, Zenith made history with Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner, who became the first person to break the sound barrier in free fall. He jumped from a space capsule at the edge of the stratosphere, from a height of over 38,969 meters. Zenith was the official timekeeper for this event: Baumgartner wore a Stratos Flyback Striking 10th with Zenith's world-famous El Primero movement.

2013 : The award for Best Sports Watch at the Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix goes to the Chronomaster El Primero Stratos Flyback Striking 10th, which, in addition to its precision, has had a lasting impact on design in the watch market. One year later, the lightweight version of the model is again named Best Sports Watch.

2015 : The company celebrates its 150th anniversary with a special edition of the El Primero, limited to 150 pieces, which also celebrates its 150th anniversary.

2017 : Zenith once again revolutionized the watch world with the Defy El Primero 21. This model enables mechanical timekeeping with an accuracy of 1/100 of a second, redefining precision and reliability. The Defy Lab is also introduced, taking mechanical timekeeping to a new level. The watch features a new, slim regulator made of monocrystalline silicon that is immune to magnetic fields, the effects of gravity, and temperature fluctuations. With this process, Zenith is offering strong competition to the conventional hairspring. The case of the Defy Lab is also made of Aeronith, the world's lightest aluminum composite, a second world first for this watch. The incredible precision of the Defy Lab is unparalleled in the entire industry. This makes the model a triple pioneer in the market and marks a completely new approach to the design and innovation of mechanical watches. It's no surprise, then, that the Defy Lab won this year's Innovation Award at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève!

Last year's latest model developments are the best example of how Zenith's inventive spirit hasn't diminished even after 150 years, and the company knows only one path: forward. Since its founding, the Swiss have decisively guided and shaped the development of the watch world. They will surely continue to be an important guide in the future. We look forward to more oohs and aahs at the presentations of the latest innovations from Zenith!

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