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What Makes Movado one of the Most Trusted Names in the Watch Business?

In Esperanto – the “Universal Language”– Movado, translates to “always in motion.” This is the motto that inspired the creator of the world famous line of luxury designer watches, Achille Ditesheim, to design what would become some of the most sought after and coveted of all timepieces: The Movado watch. These watches were first conceived and designed by Ditesheim in the late 1800s, around 1881, when the young 19 year old entrepreneur decided to start making his own line of watches, as well as a name for himself, while working as a watch-maker in La Chaux-de-Fonds; a tiny little village in the Jura Mountains (a range of mountains that connect three countries, France, Switzerland, and Germany).

Achille Ditesheim and his dreams of Movado began humbly with only himself in 1881, but is his workforce steadily grew to more than eighty workers and watchmakers by the year 1897—all striving to make what Ditesheim envisioned as the most quintessential of all men’s and women’s timepieces. By that time in history, Movado was distinctly recognized as the largest of all luxury watchmakers in the region, and in the entire country. What really made the brand stand out and rise up against the ranks of fierce competition was the fact that they were one of the only watchmakers of the era to first implement the usages of machines to make their watches.

Other watch companies were still greatly relying upon other tools and workers’ hands to make fine watches, whereas Ditesheim had already revolutionized the industry by adding complex machinery to the equation, as well as assembly line production, and therefore was able to easily increase his daily output and successfully compete against rival companies, while at the same time adhering to his revered model of Esperanto. Because of the machines that Ditesheim used to make his watches, they quickly would come be recognized as some of the most sophisticated and advanced watches of the time, over their rival counterparts.

This mantra of Ditesheim and a quality and luxurious, machine-manufactured timepiece would spread the world afar, and fast. By the early 1920s there were more than seven hundred different brands of Movado watches that consumers from all over the world could enjoy wearing on their wrists with confidence.There were two distinct Movado watches that really became iconic during this early era in the company, where a once one man work force would rapidly transverse and ascend, growing into a corporate conglomerate in fewer than three decades; one that enticed consumers further with classics like the Valentino, and the astute and uber luxurious Ermeto line, which featured a snakeskin encasing.

Amongst the many different lines of watches that the company featured and sold during this time period, they became well known and respected for not only designing groundbreaking timepieces, but ones that were gaudy too; many of their men’s and women’s watches were encrusted with rare gemstones and other precious metals and stones, easily attracting the super wealthy to their candor, workmanship and brilliance.

As the world turned, the innovation behind Movado watches followed suit. During the thirties and forties, Movado watches was accredited with the design, patent and creation of the world’s very first automatic winding wrist watch—something that they fondly called the Tempomatic; which was later changed to the Kingmatic. In par with the many revolutions that the watch company strove to make, there is another landmark milestone they reached: the company is also credited with creating the very first digital wrist watches, a telling sign of the constant visionary approach that their corporate model dictated.

During the sixties the company would forever secure their name in watch making history with the creation of the Museum Watch; designed by an American artist named Nathan George Horwitt, who later donated the original prototype to the Museum of Modern Art in New York—where it can still be seen on display today.Today, Movado watches are considered to be some of the most desirable and luxurious of all timepieces. Now known as the Movado Group, a final name change that stemmed from a temporary one – when they were for a short period of time known as the North American Watch Company – is one of the largest manufacturers of luxury watches in the world.

The company continues to grow, working with other behemoth watchmakers, like Concord Company, ESQ, Vizio, Coach, Piaget, and Corum, amongst many others. The quality of Movado watches is what has been paramount to their successes over the past hundred and ten some-odd years, allowing them to create a recognizable brand that is still, even in today’s economical market, a highly regarded and well respected international brand of luxurious and reliable watches.