History of the Mathey-Tissot watch manufacture

Mathey-Tissot is a Swiss manufacturer of high-quality watches, and Mathey-Tissot mostly worked for large, well-known companies.

Edmond Mathey-Tissot (1858-1929) founded a watch manufactory in 1886 in Les Ponts-de-Martel (Canton of Neuchâtel). The Boer War between England and South Africa broke out in 1890, and the demand for fine watches from Mathey-Tissot became so great that a new, larger factory was built. Among the orders received was one from a jeweler in Scotland who had been commissioned by a local nobleman to supply a gold repeating watch to every officer in his son’s regiment and a sterling silver model for every enlisted merchant.

As small as it may seem today, this order for 2,500 watches was enormous by the standards of the time. The company received several patents: August 15, 1893 for an improvement to a watch with quarter-hour repetition. September 30, 1901 - mechanism for minute repetition. May 31, 1903 - speed regulator for the gears of repeating watches. November 30, 1904 - repeating clock, LeCoultre design. December 31, 1906 - repeating clock. August 18, 1908 - alarm mechanism with 8-day power reserve. March 1, 1909 - case ring for watches with repetition. October 16, [[1912/de}1912]] - hour counter for chronographs

In 1914, Mathey-Tissot participated in the Kew Observatory competition with six chronometers, all of which were rated as "especially good." In the same year, Mathey-Tissot won the Grand Prix at the Swiss National Exhibition and first prize at the Geneva Observatory for 6 chronographs. Mathey-Tissot initially specialized in "repeater" watches, timepieces that strike the hour and half-hour. Soon after, the company took over the production of chronographs (stopwatches), which were manufactured with such ingenuity and precision that they were an immediate success.

In fact, numerous prizes and awards for the highest quality were collected throughout Europe. During the First World War, the company supplied the United States Army Corps of Engineers with precision chronographs, and Gen. John J. Pershing, commander of the United States Expeditionary Forces, chose Mathey-Tissot as the watch to present to his staff.

In addition to its regular business of manufacturing high-quality watches for jewelers around the world, Mathey-Tissot manufactured thousands of timepieces for the United States Armed Forces and the British Navy before and during the Second World War. The Mathey-Tissot company was taken over in 1929 by the founder's two sons, Jean Edmond Mathey-Henri (1887-1962) and Charles Etienne Mathey-Henri. In 1941, Jean Edmond Mathey-Henri was appointed president of the company E. Mathey-Tissot & Co., and Charles Etienne Mathey-Henri became secretary.

Jean Edmond Mathey-Henri remained president of the company for 20 years, left the company in 1961, and passed away in 1962 at the age of 75. 10 years later, his brother Charles Etienne also left the company. A few years earlier, Jules Elefant, a historic dealer for the United States, moved with his wife and three children to Ponts-de-Martel and took over the firm. Meanwhile, his brother, who remained in New York, took care of brand development.

Jules Elefant worked with Charles Etienne Tissot until 1975. After the death of Jules Elefant in 1981, his wife and sons took over the company. Mathey-Tissot and the house of high watchmaking, Bueche-Girod, collaborated to produce high-quality watches, and Mathey-Tissot became one of the most important suppliers to Cartier USA. From 1985 to 1993, the company was based at Rue Mont-Blanc No. 4 in Geneva.

From 1994, Alberto Frigerio Bonvicino became managing director of the company. A complete reorganization of the company and watch models followed. The brand opened up to international markets and implemented a structure to maximize quality control. The company was represented again at Baselworld in 2013. One year later, the Mathey-Tissot brand was acquired by Mr. Alberto Frigerio Bonvicino. Finally, SWP Swiss Watch Partners SA received the exclusive license for Mathey-Tissot.

It is noteworthy that this less-well-known watch brand worked with or supplied several prestigious brands, such as Zenith - Vacheron & Constantin - IWC - Movado - Ulysse Nardin - Girard Perregaux - Concord - Jaeger-LeCoultre - Longines - Heuer - Breguet - Piaget - Tissot - Alpina -Bulova - Moser - Louis Audemars & Cie, Orion Watch Co. and Cartier.

In the Cartier private museum, there is a travel alarm clock with an eight-day movement by Mathey-Tissot, originally purchased by the Duchess of Windsor (Cartier Inv. No. 21 CT-C40). The company was Elvis Presley's main supplier for wristwatches; in the crystal rim was written ELVIS PRESLEY.

Mathey-Tissot has nothing to do with the Swiss watch manufacturer Tissot. However, there is a pocket watch with a perpetual calendar and moon phase from E. Mathey-Tissot & Co. that was signed on the dial simply as Tissot; this was possibly supplied to the company Tissot SA.