Despite launching as a watch brand some 98 years ago, Carl F Bucherer has been absent from the UK until now. Here we take a closer look at the family-owned manufacture.

by James Buttery

You could probably count the number of family-owned Swiss watch manufactures on the fingers of one hand, certainly those still owned by the family that founded them. But here in the UK few would mention the name of Carl F Bucherer because, until now, the brand has barely had a presence in the UK.
Established in 1888 in Lucerne – the medieval city whose picturesque wooden bridges still zig zag the waterways – when Carl Friedrich Bucherer opened a boutique selling jewellery and watches. It wasn?t until 1919 that the retailer launched its own Art Deco-styled collection of women?s watches, a move which signaled the arrival of a Swiss watchmaking powerhouse. Carl F Bucherer then spent the middle of the 20th Century producing chronometers and sporty chronographs, at one point even becoming one of Switzerland?s biggest producers. By the end of the 1960s, Carl F Bucherer joined forces with the likes of Patek Philippe and Omega to help develop the BETA 21 quartz movement.
Today the company is owned by Jörg G Bucherer, the third generation family owner, who took over the business in 1976. His tenure has seen considerable investment in R&D and production including a move to larger manufacturing facilities, first in 2002 and then in 2015 as well as the 2007 acquisition of a movement a...