Roger Dubuis' visionary founder passes away

By

Dominique Muret

Translated by
Benjamin Fitzgerald

Published
Oct 17, 2017

Roger Dubuis passed away on Saturday, October 14, aged 79 years old. The death was confirmed in a statement from the Swiss watch brand of the same name, which today forms part of the Richemont group. In a presse release, the firm paid tribute "to his excellent knowledge of high-end watches, his vision, his audacity, his human values." 
 

Passionate since birth about watches and their mechanics, Roger Dubuis would frequent watch studios at a young age in his Swiss hometown, leading him to enrol in the School of Horology in Geneva (École d'horlogerie de Genève). He started his career at Patek Philippe, where he spent 15 years specialising in more complex watch movements. In 1980, Roger Dubuis founded his own atelier.
 
But it wasn't until 1995 that the official Roger Dubuis maison was born, from Meyrin, in the canton of Geneva. Encouraged by designer Carlos Dias, with whom Dubuis partnered and co-founded his firm, the watch connoisseur - aged 57 - did indeed finish up on this new venture, after much hesitation. 

Distinguished by its innovation and high-end quality, with all watches bearing the prestigious Poinçon de Genève stamp, the Roger Dubuis brand isn't stranger to success. It even develops its own calibres and movements, and is a master of tourbillon.
 
"I wanted a Genevan business, a Genevan product. As I had a specific idea, an interest in the history of past watches, it was a qualitative element that I wanted to see endure in the house. But at the same time, I found it important to encourage creativity," explained Roger Dubuis, in an interview online magazine 'Watches Passion', in January 2016.
 
Dubuis was 65 years old when he retired and ultimately left the firm. In 2008, five years later, the brand was picked up by luxury group, Richemont. In 2010, the house called upon its founder Roger Dubuis to be a consultant and brand ambassador.