Rolex to Close 136-Year-Old Bucherer Watch Brand
February 17, 25
(IDEX Online) - Rolex is to close Carl F. Bucherer (CFB), the long-established watch brand it bought in September 2023.
The closure will affect the watchmaking operation, but not the Bucherer retail chain, which owns Tourneau in the US.
CFB lost $278m since the Rolex acquisition, according to Bilanz, the Swiss business magazine.
Rolex said it hope to re-employ 70 of CFB's 100 watchmaking employees at its new factory in Bulle.
Acquiring the Bucherer retail operation was designed to give Rolex greater control over its distribution network and better intelligence on its competitors.
CFB, founded in 1888 and based in Lucerne, was one of Switzerland's oldest luxury watchmakers. It sold Rolex watches at over half its outlets, together with other luxury brands, including its own brand, Carl F. Bucherer.
Former chairman Jorg G. Bucherer, aged 87, decided to sell the family business because he had no direct descendants to take it over. He was the last person still active and known to have worked with Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of Rolex.
The two companies had worked alongside each other for 90 years and Rolex said at the time that the purchase would preserve the long-standing partnership between them and perpetuate their shared history.
Pic courtesy Bucherer.