The Wethanor building in Le Locle, screenshot credit Canal Alpha. Now and then, an event takes place which reminds us all how important security is to the watch industry. These prompts can take the form of stories about timepieces stolen on the street or during burglaries as well as thefts at watch stores or boutiques. Last week, news broke of a similar crime although this one was more unique than others.
At 7:20 in the morning of Friday, February 13, armed thieves broke into a building operated by Werthanor in Le Locle, Switzerland. The window broken during the heist. Screenshot credit Canal Alpha.I wasn't personally familiar with Werthanor (and they don't really have a social media presence), but they manufacture cases and bracelets. As recently as 2023, news reports indicate that the brand Yema sources components from Werthanor. And, Watchpro suggests that Werthanor "works with the world's biggest watch brands." Indeed, according to Audemars Piguet's own web page, Werthanor began supplying Royal Oak bracelets in the late 1980s. More specifically, Werthanor supplied bracelet number 944.
It appears that the heist involved breaking through a window near a back door. An investigator gathering evidence from the heist scene. Screenshot credit Canal Alpha. Later, police investigators were filmed swiping the "crash bar" opening the door from the interior (perhaps for DNA or fiber evidence). One Werthanor employee was injured in the attack. They went to the hospital and were discharged the same day.
The hooded thieves made off with precious metals (value not yet known) and fled across the border with France in a red Alfa Romeo, headed in the direction of Pontarlier. Special forces police gathering at the scene of the crime. Screenshot credit Canal Alpha. The border is less than three miles away from Werthanor's building. Swiss authorities responded in great number with a helicopter, investigative units, and masked, camouflaged "special forces" police carrying silenced rifles.
Let's hope that Werthanor employees are able to recover from this potentially traumatic event. Authorities request that anyone with information contact the police in Neuchâtel. This episode is another stark reminder to think about safety whether you are on the collector, retail, or manufacturing side of the watch industry.
My book on the history of Rolex marketing is now available on Amazon! It debuted as the #1 New Release in its category. You can find it here.
Late last year, I had a chance to visit a truly special space in the United States: the workshop of an independent American watchmaker. Lovell Hunter showing components on a bench in his workshop. Photo Credit: Lovell Hunter's YouTube channel. I've written about Lovell Hunter before, I posted my first story about Lovell right here on Horolonomics. There, I described his career as a watchmaker for Breitling and his decisions to strike out on his own and launch an independent brand called Love Hunter Watches. Lovell and I have kept in touch since then and he periodically reaches out to share updates on the progress of his watch design as well as other updates regarding his brand. At one point, Lovell invited me to visit his workshop, which is located in Connecticut's Naugatuck River Valley. The location couldn't be more appropriate given that "Brass City," aka Waterbury, is located on the northern portion of the valley. Brass has historically, and presen...
An email from a Yale librarian arrived earlier this summer. A modernist building on Yale's campus. She wrote that she didn't know where one of the watches was, but she was working on finding it. I simultaneously felt disappointment and concern. I was disappointed because I hoped to arrange a visit with the truant timepiece. I was concerned because I couldn't help but wonder if someone had made off with it. My concern faded after a second email a number of days later. The watch had been located. It was stored in a more secure location than other archival materials. And, my contact at Yale said I was welcome to see it. Let's back up a bit. I periodically look for Rolex archival materials in libraries. My interest stems from the materials I previously found in a UK archive, materials which served as the basis for my book on Rolex's marketing history. It was a good while ago that my archival searches surfaced the Rolex watch in question. I just hadn't taken ...
An AI generated image of a trendline overlaying the image of a watchshot. Back in April, I posted a summary of preowned watch price discounts from a major online retailer. The discounts were larger than I expected, averaging roughly 25%. This week, I received an email from the same retailer about another discount event, so I thought I would update the April exercise. Bottom line up front: the discounting continues but it may have slowed slightly. Let's get into the details. Chrono24's Chronopulse price index (disclosure: I participated in development of this index) shows that prices did increase by 6/10 of one percent heading into the beginning of May. Screenshot of some of the most recent market data from Chrono24's ChronoPulse. Aside from the traditional end-of-year holidays, graduation season in May / June is a high point for watch purchases as friends and relatives gift timepieces to new graduates. For this reason, the May uptick in prices may have been part...
Hi Brendan, It's "Alfa" Romeo.
ReplyDelete🤦🏼thank you, will fix.
DeleteThis reminds me of the theft at the watchmaking museum there, and of course of the Miranda case that predated the famous Ulysse affair
ReplyDeleteGood points. I need to read up on those. Thanks Stephen!
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