This week on The Business of Watches, we get to the heart of what makes a mechanical or quartz-powered watch tick. Jean-Claude Eggen is the Chief Executive Officer of La Joux-Perret, a Swiss movement manufacturer that's on the rise as it competes with rivals, including Sellita, as a supplier to brands ranging from mainstream mass market players such as TAG Heuer to upstart micro-brands, including Kollokium.

Eggen doesn't pull punches when discussing what's driving growth at LJP as he talks prices, movement development, and technology, and how to keep clients coming back. LJP has experienced massive increases in volumes and production under his leadership since 2020. From fewer than 10,000 movements annually less than a decade ago, LJP is now producing about 200,000 watch movements a year. He tells us how they got here and where they might go next, with new products boasting greater precision and smaller movements in both quartz and mechanical.

But first, a good news initiative about a new non-profit organization in Switzerland that's looking to give young watchmakers the skills and machines they need to carry on the metiers d' art (or specialized skills) that make high-end watchmaking so unique. Baudouin van Es is the young man behind Tad Kozh, and he drops by to tell us what the new program is and where it gets its unusual name.

Van Es has convinced some heavy hitters to help out with Tad Kozh, gathering a who's who of industry artisans, craftspersons, and veteran business executives to oversee and govern the program, with some exciting watch collaborations to come.

Show Notes

2:30 Tad Kozh
2:40 Tourbillon Watch (Beaudouin van Es)
3:05 Brittany region of France (Wikipedia)
5:26 Metier d'art in watchmaking (The Watch Pages)
6:50 Tad Kohz New Talent Award
8:04 Schaublin 70 Lathe in Action (YouTube)
8:05 Hauser Jig Boring machine (Exapro)
8:20 Luc Monnet (Europa star)
9:09 Jean-François Mojon (WorldTempus)
9:19 Pietro Tomajer (Monochrome)
10:30 Tad Kozh collaborations
14:07 Anita Porchet (FHH)
15:01 Ressence Watches
17:49 Théo Auffret (Hodinkee)
20:50 Max Büsser (Talking Watches Hodinkee)
21:17 Marc André Deschoux
21:44 Alex Ghotbi (Phillips)
21:44 Roy Davidoff (Instagram)
21:57 Guillaume Tetu (The Naked Watchmaker)
28:20 Jean-Claude Eggen (Dubai Watch Week bio)
28:57 La Joux-Perret 32:32 ETA (Wikipedia)
32:45 Sellita
33:40 LJP G100
34:10 Business News: Switzerland's COSC Unveils 'Excellence Chronometer' Level Of Certification (Hodinkee)
40:34 TAG Heuer Introduces The Formula One Solargraph (Hodinkee)
41:06 Business News: LVMH Buys Minority Stake In Swiss Movement Maker La Joux-Perret From Japan's Citizen Group (Hodinkee)
42:10 Citizen Group
43:06 Alpina Alpiner Solarmetre
44:10 Let The Sun Shine In: There's A New Day Rising for Solar-Powered Watches (Watchonista)

The Business of Watches [021] La Joux-Perret CEO Jean-Claude Eggen