>SHOP

keep my inbox inspiring

Sign up to our monthly newsletter for exclusive news and trends

Follow us on all channels

Start following us for more content, inspiration, news, trends and more

Keep smiling
Beginner's Guide

Keep smiling

Wednesday, 21 December 2016
close
Editor Image
Christophe Roulet
Editor-in-chief, HH Journal

“The desire to learn is the key to understanding.”

“Thirty years in journalism are a powerful stimulant for curiosity”.

Read More

CLOSE
5 min read

Designer Eric Giroud and MB&F founder Max Büsser were both at Dubai Watch Week, where they revealed that a passion for timekeeping isn’t the only thing they share. Even at the height of crisis, they rank high on the horological happiness scale.

Introduced in 1934, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the widely accepted indicator of how a nation is faring. Over recent years, however, dissenting voices have challenged its relevance, and specifically the fact that it does not take account of a fundamental notion: the “feel-good factor”. This has prompted the emergence of alternative ways to measure progress. The increasingly influential Social Progress Index is one. Gross National Happiness (GNH), a philosophy coined in Bhutan in 1972, is another. Without coming down on the side of one or other system, there can be no denying that the four pillars of GNH – sustainable development, promotion of cultural values, environmental protection and responsible governance – reflect a solid understanding of what the Romans called res publica, or “public affairs”. Transposed to the world of watchmaking, how many “States” can lay claim to a healthy GNH when the sector’s traditional index, Swiss watch exports, has been in the red for over a year? Not an easy question to answer, and yet there are people whose corner of the industry is riding high on the GNH scale. Designer Eric Giroud and Max Büsser, founder of MB&F, are among them. Both were at Dubai Watch Week.

Eric Giroud
Eric Giroud © Johann Sauty

Listening to their laidback discussion of the current business climate is like a flashback to 2005, when the MB&F project was being hatched. Max Büsser, fresh from a seven-year stint at Harry Winston, was sitting at his kitchen table with Eric Giroud daydreaming about what could be. A dream that quickly became reality on the back of an innovative concept: to assemble “collectives” of freelance developers, technicians and designers who would make the “horological machines” that populate Max Büsser’s imagination. Eric Giroud was one of the first to hitch his wagon to the MB&F train, and has been part of the ride ever since. The journey, which this year took the form of the HM8 Can-Am, hasn’t always been smooth. “We’ve had three brushes with disaster,” Max Büsser recalls. “The first time was when our movement-maker was taken over. Two years later, in 2009, orders were dangerously low. Then in 2012 our case-maker could’n’t deliver on time for the HM5, some of our retailers declared mutiny, and we hit big problems with distribution in Asia.” Eric Giroud recalls 2013 as the annus horribilis. “Having had this experience,” he comments, “when we first started hearing about overstocking in the markets, around mid-2015, I knew we were heading for another crisis situation.”

When I launched MB&F, my objective was to produce 300 watches a year, with twenty other people, and generate CHF 15 million in sales.
Maximilan Büsser
"There's still plenty to do"

Crisis or no crisis, the two men are still in the frontline, and still smiling. Max Büsser refers to his company’s happiness point just as naturally as other bosses might talk about break-even point. “When I launched MB&F, my objective was to produce 300 watches a year, with twenty other people, and generate CHF 15 million in sales. We got there in 2013 and I see no reason to push for more. Any additional growth would be at the expense of creativity and the balance we’ve achieved. For me, it’s also a question of integrity. It’s the reasoning behind the company that accompanies every one of our timepieces and that I can explain to our customers. So many watch brands don’t dare take that road because their raison d’être revolves around a financial criterion, which is to pay out to shareholders. That’s not how it works at MB&F.”

The current climate brought me out of my comfort zone by inciting me to explore other areas than watchmaking.
Eric Giroud

“What impact has the current climate had on my work?” ponders Eric Giroud. “It’s actually had quite amusing effects! It’s certainly brought me out of my comfort zone by inciting me to explore other areas than watchmaking. You could also say it’s been a litmus test between those brands that have turned their backs and pretend they don’t know me, and those that ask me to sit tight until better days and in the meantime keep in touch. On a more interesting note, I’m working with new brands on four watch projects that should see daylight in 2017. These are all young, thirty-something entrepreneurs who aren’t watchmakers and who are investing their own money. Often in the past I’ve come across professionals in the watch sector who have lots of ideas but lack the cash. Not so these guys, who have other values and different expectations. It’s an incentive to stay positive. There’s still plenty to do!”

Back to Top