Raymond Weil

Raymond Weil founded his company in Geneva in 1976, which was close to the worst possible moment: Swiss mechanical watchmaking was being dismantled by quartz, and established houses were closing. Starting one from nothing took a particular kind of nerve.

The company survived and stayed independent, which is rarer than it sounds — most Swiss names of comparable size were absorbed into Swatch Group, Richemont or LVMH. Raymond Weil is still owned and run by the founding family, with his grandson Elie Bernheim as chief executive.

Music runs through the brand deliberately rather than decoratively. The collections are named for it — Maestro, Toccata, Tango, Freelancer — and the company has built long partnerships with orchestras, conservatoires and record labels.

The watches sit where Swiss watchmaking is still attainable: slim dress pieces, chronographs and skeletonised automatics, mostly on Sellita and ETA calibres, with the Millesime line taking a more vintage-minded direction in recent years.

Raymond Weil holds 68 models, from £650 to £3,595. Half cost less than £1,595, and a quarter less than £1,195. 39 of 68 are automatic. 66 are stocked by more than one retailer, giving 143 offers in total. Prices are checked nightly against the retailers’ own feeds.

1976

Founded in Geneva at the height of the quartz crisis.

1983

The Amadeus line begins the brand's association with music.

1996

The Parsifal collection establishes its dress-watch identity.

2014

Elie Bernheim, the founder's grandson, becomes CEO.

2022

The Millesime line moves the range in a vintage direction.