On the occasion of the Chopard manufacture's 25th anniversary, co-president Karl-Friedrich Scheufele shares how his expensive plan to elevate the company's high watchmaking skill has paid off
In the early 1990s, while the Swiss watch industry was still reeling from the aftereffects of the quartz onslaught, Karl-Friedrich Scheufele made the bold decision as co-president of Chopard to invest in a movement manufacture. Costly and risky, Scheufele felt that it would be to the company's benefit in the long run to possess the ability to create their own movements. He saw it as the only way for Chopard to gain independence as a watchmaker and become "the master of our own destiny."
The Fleurier manufacture became fully operational in 1996 and it commemorated its opening with the release of calibre 1.96 that combined a bi-directional rotor with twin barrels, a standard feature in Chopard's signature L.U.C watches. The calibre would eventually appear in the L.U.C 1860 the following year. "It was very important to me that we didn't launch just another automatic movement," stressed Scheufele then.
See also: Special Edition Chopard Watches Celebrating The 25th Anniversary Of Its Manufacture
What made the calibre 1.96 stood out were 1] the twin-stacked barrels that provided 65 hours of power reserve, 2] the bi-directional winding system (as opposed to the more common unidirectional rotor) that lent it greater efficiency, and 3] the Poincon de Geneve and COSC certifications that verified the authenticity of the calibre—not to mention a huge validation for the Chopard watchmaking team's hard work and dedication.
First and foremost, I wanted our watches to be really authentic and have integrity
The manufacture would only grow in strength. There have been many breakthroughs since, notably the L.U.C Quattro, the world's first wristwatch with four barrels, the L.U.C Chrono One which remains one of the most technically advanced automatic chronographs, and, of course, the L.U.C Full Strike, the world's first minute repeater with sapphire crystal gongs. The latter won Chopard the coveted Aiguille dOr prize, the highest honour at Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) in 2017.
See also: Why Chopard L.U.C Is The Perfect Watch For The Discerning Gentleman