Tiffany & Co wants to reclaim its place in watchmaking

The jeweller is reviving its forgotten watchmaking heritage with pieces like the Bird on a Flying Tourbillon

- Wong Kim Hoh Features Editor

When Mr Nicolas Beau walked away from his 19-year tenure at Chanel to join Tiffany & Co in 2021, he was not simply changing jobs – he was stepping into a time machine.

The French horologist’s mission? To resurrect the jeweller’s long-forgotten watchmaking heritage.

With the firepower of LVMH – which acquired Tiffany in 2021 in the biggest deal in luxury history – Mr Beau has both resources and momentum on his side, plus a vault of 300 archival timepieces dating back to 1874.

They range from ornate pocket watches to dazzling jewellery ones, proof that Tiffany’s watchmaking past is far richer than most realise.

“I discovered an incredible past I couldn’t have imagined,” says the vice-president of Tiffany Horlogerie, who was in Bangkok for the opening of Legendary Legacy.

The exhibition, which runs till Sept 7 at One Bangkok, Tower 4, showcases Tiffany’s most iconic creations – from its legendary diamonds to rarely seen archival timepieces – offering a sweeping look at 185 years of artistry.

For the American luxury house, the watch push is no side project. It is a strategic bet to claim a slice of the booming high-end watch market and to stand shoulder to shoulder with Swiss rivals, turning a dormant chapter of its history into a growth engine for the future.

Mr Beau frames it simply: “We’re going back to where we would have been, if Tiffany had followed its tracks in watch-making.”

He adds: “In 1874, Tiffany already had a Swiss manufacturer for an American brand, and there aren’t many American names that old which were actually producing watches in Geneva.”