The Maison
Portrait
Jean-Marie Schaller established Les Ateliers Louis Moinet in Saint-Blaise in 2004 as an independent brand. His objective was twofold: reinstate Louis Moinet to the pantheon of watchmaking and produce contemporary avant-garde timepieces. Every Louis Moinet mechanical watch is made as a unique piece or as part of a limited edition, inspired by themes of Cosmic Art or Mechanical Wonders. The brand's cardinal values are creativity, exclusivity, art and design.
History
Louis Moinet was born in Bourges in 1768. As a young man he studied classical subjects but his childhood interest in horology never left him. By 1800, watchmaking was taking up all his time. Now based in Paris, Louis Moinet spent long periods in Switzerland. He worked closely with the great Abraham-Louis Breguet, becoming both his close friend and advisor. During his lifetime, Louis Moinet made a number of exceptional clocks for the eminent personalities of his day, including Napoleon Bonaparte. He also produced clocks for maritime and astronomical use. In 1816 he produced the "Compteur de Tierces" for his observations of celestial bodies – making Louis Moinet the inventor of the chronograph. He is also remembered for his Traité d’Horlogerie, published in 1848. Louis Moinet died in Paris in 1853, at the age of 85. When Jean-Marie Schaller acquired the Louis Moinet name in 2001, the only historical element in his possession was a biography of the watchmaker. He went on to create Les Ateliers Louis Moinet SA: a fully independent company which he established in 2004. His objective was to pay tribute to Louis Moinet and at the same time produce avant-garde timepieces. Jean-Marie Schaller and his team devote themselves to making contemporary watches with a distinct personality. These are always unique pieces or part of a limited edition, in two collections: Cosmic Art and Mechanical Wonders. Such creativity has earned Louis Moinet many prestigious awards: a UNESCO Merit Award, six Red Dot Design Awards, a Gold Medal at the International Chronometry Competition, ten Good Design Awards, three Middle East Watch of the Year Awards and two Robb Report "Best of the Best" Awards. In addition, the judges at the Salon Exceptional Watches presented Jean-Marie Schaller with the Horological Creativity Contribution Prize for his "outstanding overall contribution to watchmaking."
