Year after year, MB&F surprises connoisseurs with watches that look and function totally unlike all other familiar timepieces. In this wide-ranging Q&A from our 2018 Design Special Issue (on sale now), Max Büsser, the founder and creative mastermind of this Geneva-based brand, talks about his concept, which sees a watch as a work of art.
Max Busser MB&F – seated
WT: How would you explain your brand?s concept to someone who has never heard of MB&F"

MB: MB&F is a decision about life. It?s not a business idea. Why we exist is probably more important than what we do. To explain MB&F, I have to tell you my life story. I was a very creative child. I wanted to be an automobile designer. Later I was an extremely boring young adult. Watchmaking saved my life. WT: How"

MB: After I had earned a degree in microtechnology, I expected to work for a big Swiss company. But one day while skiing, I chanced to meet Henri-Jean Belmont, who was Jaeger-LeCoultre?s CEO at that time. He asked me what I wanted to do with my life. I said I would like to work for a big corporation. He said, ?If that doesn?t pan out, I could offer you a job.? One week later, he asked someone on his staff to phone me and invite me to a meeting. I traveled to Vallée de Joux and underwent the most amazing job interview of my entire life. It lasted three hours. Belmont didn?t ask me a single question the entire time. He simply tried to convince me to join his team. Why" Be...