MONDAINE - Full Steam Ahead

Mondaine Group CEO André Bernheim explains how busy this spring has been for his company, culminating in a new factory.

WORLDTEMPUS - 10 March 2010

Roberta Naas

The Mondaine Sport I Night Vision. © Mondaine

The Mondaine Group, which encompasses Mondaine Watch Ltd., Luminox, Camel, a host of private label brands, and most recently the Marlox Group (Esprit, Joop! and Puma), is moving full steam ahead with its products, brands and plans for 2010. The company recently opened a state-of-the-art factory in Solothurn for all of its brands and is bringing select Baselworld guests to visit during the fair on an historical train that once ferried famous statesmen — including Sir Winston Churchill — all over Switzerland.

The factory is in the same town as the brand’s original workshops, but the space is four times as large. It incorporates a dust-controlled assembly room, component stocking for all brands, packaging, and point-of-sale materials. According to André Bernheim of Mondaine, assembly takes place using a Just-In-Time (JIT) system based on customers’ orders. The group does not carry stock of finished watches; instead, once orders are received, assembly is started and completed within three weeks. This system ensures fresh batteries in all timepieces, low inventory expenses, and flexible assembly.

The new Mondaine Watch Group factory.  © Mondaine

The production and assembly system also allows for new product innovation. The Mondaine Watch Ltd. brand — creators of the official Swiss Railway watch collection licensed by the Swiss Railways SBB — introduces a number of interesting products at Baselworld this year, including the Retro Automatic powered by ETA Caliber 2878 and the Mondaine Valjoux 101, which gets its energy from the ETA Valjoux 7750 chronograph caliber.  

Other introductions include the sporty, yet elegant and functional, Mondaine Night Vision and Sport Day Date watches. These quartz pieces are water resistant to 10 ATM. The Mondaine watches with Night Vision undergo additional manufacturing steps that other watches do not require. The self-powered illumination system employs tiny self-powered micro gaslights that are fitted in to the hands and markers. These watches need no external light source to “charge” the points on the dial or hands in order to glow, as do conventional luminous watches. This system allows one to view time at a glance, even in complete darkness. These lines complement the ever-evolving Mondaine Classic Collections, and Ronnie and Andre Bernheim see them positioning the brand as affordable Swiss luxury. 

The new Mondaine Classics Trio is sold in a set with a 30mm, 33mm and 36mm quartz watches. © Mondaine

Visitors to the Mondaine Group booth in Hall 1.1 will also be able to witness newest products from sister brands such as Camel, Luminox, M-Watch and the Marlox brands.