Q & A with Michael Brader-Araje and Jean-Marie Schaller of Louis Moinet

Louis Moinet was a renowned expert in the creation of fine timepieces, many of which were acquired by the wealthiest and most influential people throughout the Western world such as Thomas Jefferson, Napoleon, James Monroe and King George IV. In 1848, Moinet wrote his famous Traite d'Horlogerie (Treatise on Watch making), which is still regarded as one of the world's most comprehensive and skillfully written books on the subject.

Today, a limited supply of Louis Moinet timepieces is available for esteemed watch collectors and connoisseurs thanks due to the efforts of Jean-Marie Schaller, chief of Les Ateliers Louis Moinet Switzerland and worldwide Louis Moinet distributor (beyond North America) and Michael Brader-Araje, President of Louis Moinet North America.


Michael Brader-Araje (l) and Jean-Marie Schaller (r)
Q: What inspired you to join the watch business?

Michael Brader-Araje, President of Louis Moinet North America: I have always been fascinated with watches and time, even as a young boy.  I can remember sitting in the family car on long trips and just watching the seconds pass on my watch.  I even remember my first Swiss automatic watch - given to me by my grandfather on a visit to Germany - a Cimier automatic encased in a military style plastic case. I still have that watch and it reminds me of all the fond memories I have of spending time with my grandfather in Germany.  I have been collecting various watches over the course of my life and the decision to join the business was really a function of a rather serendipitous meeting I had with Jean-Marie Schaller, the owner of Louis Moinet.  Introduced by a mutual acquaintance, he and I struck up an almost instantaneous friendship over our mutual passion of mechanical timepieces.  Jean-Marie had been looking for just the right partner in North America to introduce the brand, and I was very intrigued by the opportunity to turn a passionate hobby into a vocation  The rest, as they say, is history - our fast friendship was the springboard to our partnership and Jean-Marie and I have grown ever closer over the course of the last year as we have introduced the brand in the North American market.

Jean-Marie Schaller, Chief of les Atelierts Louis Moinet in Switzerland and worldwide Louis Moinet distributor beyond North America: I have been in the watch industry for over twenty years serving in various leadership capacities working with brands like Perrelet, Lacoste, Daniel Roth, Omega, and Bertolucci. The watch business has always been in my blood. Coming from the Jura mountains, the world surrounding me evolved around one thing: the watch. I grew up knowing that "a watch" is not a product, but something important. Important because it is a cultural testimony, a legacy inherited from a generation of people. In a watch, you will see the brain of the engineer, the heart of the designer, the eye of the artist and the hand of the watchmaker.

I believe that if the 200-year old technology of the mechanical watch still exists, it is because indeed a watch is much more than a product. It is an object in synchronicity with the real values we have inside ourselves, us human beings.

Q: Why dedicate yourself to selling the Louis Moinet brand?

Michael Brader-Araje: I really found the brand and its legacy to be quite compelling.  As I mentioned before, I wasn't necessarily looking to be in the business of fine timepieces so there was no sense of urgency on my part to become a distributor.  However, after meeting Jean-Marie and learning of the rich history and legacy of Louis Moinet, seeing the timepieces and all the care that goes into manufacturing them I felt compelled to take advantage of this opportunity.  There are a number of elements I love about Louis Moinet including its artistry, history, design, and uniqueness.  I also really enjoy working together with a small, family owned, manufacturer.  However, the element I enjoy most about Louis Moinet is working together with people that share the passion I have for the craft. 

Jean-Marie Schaller: Louis Moinet was both an artist and a brilliant watchmaker. He was one of the most influential watchmakers of his time. Surprisingly enough, his name had been forgotten. I loved the idea of rejuvenating his heritage of mechanical art under the light of the new technologies. It is a privilege we have to develop this concept, as it is quite unique. Our idea of uniqueness is to blend the heritage with inventions. Design-wise, we have created and protected the "cotes du jura" as well as four different case constructions. The most complicated is the one of the Vertalis tourbillon, made up of nearly 100 different parts. Technically, we have applied for no less than four different patents in the past 12 months. The Tempograph for instance is the first and only retrograde watch with a see-through mechanism.  To answer your question, why dedicate all our energy to Louis Moinet? Love.

Q: How does Louis Moinet differ from other luxury watch brands?

Michael Brader-Araje: Louis Moinet is one of the few brands building a genuine bridge to the past via the history of Louis Moinet, watchmaker to some of the most important people of his time.  World leaders like Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Napoleon, and King George IV all owned Louis Moinet timepieces.  We want to capture the essence of those days, not simply by just slapping the Louis Moinet name on a watch, but by building an authentic bridge to the past - for example, the movement on the Twintech is based directly on sketches and writing of Louis Moinet in his famous Traite d'Horlogerie published in 1848 - likewise, the dial of the Chronovintage is also based on sketches from this significant masterpiece on watchmaking.  In this way, Louis Moinet is able to imbue its modern day creations with the uniqueness that comes from the combination of modern day technologies and old world artistry. 

Louis Moinet aims at being one of the most creative brands on the market. The new products, such as the Tourbillon incorporate patent pending technology. They represent a new vision of traditional watchmaking and fall under the common value of "mechanical art in limited editions".

Jean-Marie Schaller: Louis Moinet wants to explore creative avenues connected with mechanical art. It is a very strong and unique concept, part of the brand dna since 1806! We are developing this concept in-depth, giving importance to the product. As a newcomer on the market, our public considers Louis Moinet as one of the most creative brands. For instance at Baselworld 2008 we were the first and only brand in the world to craft a watch with a genuine moon rock! This moon rock has been used for the moonphase display of a unique watch called Magistralis.

Louis Moinet positions itself as a brand offering special watches. We don't want to be the biggest, but we do want to be thought of as something special and unique in the marketplace.

Q: In your opinion, what does Louis Moinet represent to you and to your buyers?

Michael Brader-Araje: ouis Moinet offers our owners the opportunity to share in the passion surrounding the work of historically significant watchmaker, Louis Moinet.  True collectors care about the heritage of a brand and they gain great satisfaction from being able to share the story of the watches they own.  What people wear on the wrists is so much more than just being able to tell time.  For most, it is a subtle expression of who they are as a person.  A Louis Moinet is but one way of expressing a passion for the art of fine watchmaking.

Jean-Marie Schaller: All of our watches have a story to tell. Our production is small, less than 1,000 watches per year. Every time one is leaving our atelier, we have the same feeling ... It is like letting your child go on his own in the world! We hope every one of them will go in a collection or on a wrist of someone who will become a friend, one day. My biggest pleasure is to meet with Louis Moinet owners and discuss together the one thing we have in common: love of craftsmanship.

Q: What is the relationship between Louis Moinet today and the great historical watchmaker, Louis Moinet, who died in 1853?

Jean-Marie Schaller: Upon his death in 1853, Louis Moinet left behind a legacy of remarkable timepieces, art, and writings. However, very little else survived in the way of inventory or projects that were in progress. So, when we acquired and revived the legacy of Louis Moinet about seven years ago we had to conduct a great deal of research in order to build an authentic bridge between the past and the present. We quickly discovered a great deal of innovations attributed to Louis Moinet. For example, Moinet invented a counter that displays a 60th of a second, which he called Compte-Tierce, the goal of which was to enhance astronomical observations. This device makes Moinet one of the fathers of chronometry. Another Moinet invention was a jeweled escapement that oscillated at 216,000 beats per hour without any trace of wear or increased friction during prolonged use.

The Traite d'Horlogerie has become the backbone of the brand, however, we do not simply want to repeat the past. We are updating the designs to make them more contemporary and developing new watches that tip their hat to the technological prowess of Louis Moinet but have modern day applications. The upcoming Tempograph is a great example of this. A world's first retrograde with a see-through mechanism so the cam that powers the retrograde can be clearly seen. The dial layout is eye-catching and distinctly Louis Moinet.

Q: Where are Louis Moinet timepieces manufactured?

Jean-Marie Schaller: While it is true that many companies are trying to bring as much production as possible in house, we are returning to the ways of old in our manufacturing process. Design, logistics, marketing, and distribution are headquartered out of our offices in St. Blaise, Switzerland. We then work with a network of small suppliers to provide us the finest parts imaginable as these suppliers typically specialize in only one aspect of the production process. For example, we have a very specialized case for the Tempograph that is comprised of 48 pieces. This required a very specific talent and a very specialized casemaker. Likewise, the movement for our Twintech is derived directly from Louis Moinet's sketches and required an intimate partnership with a small, independent movement manufacturer to produce an exclusive movement for Louis Moinet. By working with the best independent suppliers in Switzerland we believe we adhere to the traditions of old and produce some of the finest timepieces available. This freedom from attempting to do everythng in one facility enables us to find the best talents in all of Switzerland for individual parts of the production process. All of our suppliers share our passion for the spirit of Louis Moinet, otherwise they would not be working together with us.

Q: What advice would you like to give to collectors as they consider buying their next watch?

Michael Brader-Araje: This is a question I get quite often and I think the answer is an incredibly personal one.  Perhaps it is the movement being used, the design, the history behind the brand, or the type of complication.  For me, it may even be something that draws upon something symbolic within my own family.  Ultimately, I only buy watches that I feel some sort of connection with for one reason or another.  In this way, as my collection grows, it continues to be an expression of the person that I am.

Jean-Marie Schaller: To follow their instinct. There is a profusion of beautiful watches these days. The one you collect depends on your taste only. It is a personal matter. There is no other rule to follow in my opinion.

We have thought of the value of collecting by limiting our watches. All our new collections are limited either to 1, 12 or 60 pieces worldwide.


Schaller and Brader-Araje at Basel 2008. Brader-Araje holds a piece of the moon in his left hand.