Roger Dubuis

History

Origins and founding (1980s–1995)

Roger Dubuis, born in 1938, began his career in the late 1950s at Longines in Saint-Imier, mainly in the after-sales department, before joining Patek Philippe in Geneva, where he spent about fourteen years in the complications workshop. He left in 1980 to open his own workshop, restoring antique watches and clocks for collectors, auction houses and brands.

In the late 1980s, together with watchmaker Jean-Marc Wiederrecht, he developed a perpetual calendar module with a double retrograde display, commissioned by the New York jeweller Harry Winston. The watch was presented at Baselworld in 1989; this bi-retrograde display later became a signature of the Roger Dubuis brand. It was in Geneva during these years that Dubuis met Carlos Dias, with whom he went into partnership.

In 1995, the two men founded the company under the name SOGEM SA (Société Genevoise des Montres); its watches and catalogues carried the words "Roger Dubuis Horloger Genevois". The corporate name was officially changed to "Manufacture Roger Dubuis SA" in 1999.

Early collections (1995–2000)

From the outset the brand offered two lines: the Sympathie, with a cushion-shaped case often fitted with the bi-retrograde display, and the Hommage, a tribute to past watchmakers with a round case influenced by 1950s Patek Philippe chronographs. The earliest watches were certified with the Poinçon de Genève and tested as chronometers at the Besançon Observatory. Around the turn of the 2000s the brand released bolder collections — Too Much, Much More, Follow Me and Golden Square — characterised by large cases and unusual shapes.

The manufacture and the Excalibur collection (2001–2007)

The brand's first in-house movements appeared from 1999, all carrying the Geneva Seal. Its integrated manufacture was built in Meyrin in 2001 and inaugurated in 2002. In 2005 the brand launched its flagship Excalibur collection and unveiled its first skeleton calibre, developing two exclusive movements: the RD01SQ double flying tourbillon skeleton, presented as a world première, and the RD08 minute-repeater tourbillon. By 2006 the company claimed 28 proprietary calibres, all Geneva Seal–certified.

Acquisition by Richemont (2008–2016)

Roger Dubuis joined the Richemont group in 2008, when the group took a controlling interest; Richemont acquired full ownership in 2016, making the brand a wholly owned subsidiary. Before the 2008 downturn, the manufacture employed roughly 450 people and produced about 25,000 watches a year for revenue exceeding 100 million Swiss francs; output was sharply reduced afterwards, stabilising at around 5,000 watches a year by the late 2010s.

Death of the founder (2017)

Roger Dubuis, who had stepped back from operational management in the early 2000s but remained a brand ambassador, died on 14 October 2017 at the age of 80.

Contemporary repositioning and partnerships (2012–2023)

During the 2010s the brand asserted a contemporary identity centred on mechanical aesthetics, skeletonisation and large cases with proprietary triple lugs. It launched feminine and sporting collections (La Monégasque in 2011, Velvet and Pulsion in 2012) and entered into motorsport partnerships, notably with Lamborghini Squadra Corse and Pirelli, as well as the design studio Italdesign. Ambassadors of the period included the boxer Canelo Álvarez and artists such as Dr. Woo, Hajime Sorayama and Liu Wei. Chief executive Nicola Andreatta left in 2023, with Emmanuel Perrin serving as interim CEO.

Integrated production

Roger Dubuis is one of the few Swiss watchmakers to design, develop and manufacture in-house most of the components of its calibres, from the bare baseplate to the finishing. The brand states that it has developed more than 40 exclusive calibres since its founding.

Geneva Seal

Almost all Roger Dubuis watches carry the Poinçon de Genève, a certification that applies not only to the movement but to the entire watch head and imposes strict requirements on architecture, components and finishing. According to specialist press, only a very small share of Switzerland's annual watch production qualifies for the seal, which the brand presents as a distinguishing feature. Calibres are finished by hand using traditional techniques (anglage, perlage, polishing), including on contemporary materials such as carbon.

Notable calibres

The manufacture produces a wide range of mechanical movements, hand- or self-winding, from three-hand calibres to grand complications. Roger Dubuis makes only flying tourbillons, in which the cage is anchored at a single point. Exclusive calibres include:

RD01 / RD01SQ — skeleton double flying tourbillon with differential, presented as a world première in 2005.