DeWitt's imperial roots inspire the creation of opulent watches

DeWitt founder Jerome Napoleon de Witt has always been passionate about watches. As a direct descendant of Napoleon Bonaparte, his family inherited a watch collection that belonged to the emperor.

When he fell ill one day, Jerome de Witt's mother presented the watches to him in an effort to console him.

He started tinkering with the watches until the parts unravelled. It took a long time for de Witt to repair the watches but eventually, he was able to fix them.

"That was how he started. He has never had any formal training but he is a very technical person. He even restores vintage cars. He likes putting things together. It's a natural gift," says CEO and managing partner Viviane de Witt. "He implemented a philosophy of high horology, making things that have never been done before."

Jerome de Witt's impressive ancestral heritage did not just come from being part of the Bonaparte family. He is also a descendant of King Leopold of Belgium.

Hailing from an imperial line, Jerome de Witt has strong leadership qualities. He defined a bold vision for the company: haute horlogerie. Jerome de Witt aims to be daringly different and unconventional to manufacture high complication watches. For Jerome de Witt, lending a new spin to a centuries-old tradition of watchmaking is what makes the company stand out.

DeWitt houses its watchmaking activities inside its 5,000 square-metre manufacture facility. Aside from design, production and quality control processes, DeWitt also has an in-house research and development department. This is where the company manufactures its own movement.

The manufacture facility is equipped with modern machinery to develop new watchmaking techniques. Even with the latest technologies, DeWitt still upholds traditional watchmaking techniques such as the guilloche engraving on historical 18th and 19th century rose-engine machines.

DeWitt unveiled its first exceptional timepiece in 2003, a tourbillion chronograph, the Pressy Grande Complication. Just two years after the launch of its first tourbillion, DeWitt was awarded first prize for innovation at the Grand Prix de l'Horlogerie de Geneve for another tourbillion, the Academia Tourbillon Differentiel. This distinction catapulted DeWitt to the top of the haute horlogerie hierarchy.

Fuelling the passion of watch collectors worldwide, DeWitt is launching three new watch lines at more economic price points as it celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

Still embodying the style and quality standards for which DeWitt is known, the new collections will serve as gateways for people who want to own timepieces that are products of the world-renowned Swiss watchmaking legacy.

DeWitt is tailoring new classical lines of watches that are lighter and smaller to match the desires of its customers, particularly the Chinese. Along with the new watch lines, the company will also package its watches in a newly designed iconic box that is recognisably DeWitt.

"We are keeping the DeWitt DNA with the new collection. We want our watches to be more available to many people," says Viviane de Witt. "We are expanding our collection to come across more collectors and other people wanting to acquire a DeWitt watch but could not do so because of the price."

DeWitt watches are marketed through the company's extensive retail network across the globe.

The company has points-of-sale in Singapore, Taiwan and Macau. There are also flagship boutiques in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing.

In line with its strategy to attract a wider base of customers, DeWitt is redesigning its flagship boutique in Hong Kong.

DeWitt intends to bring the brand closer to customers to share its fervour for watches. The company plans to open new points-of-sale to raise the brand's profile in Asia and to familiarise watch collectors with DeWitt watches.

DeWitt www.dewitt.ch/