since 1886, - watch watches relojes pymes...

Over a century Of cOlOurful histOryOver a century Of cOlOurful histOry

since 1886,we have

travelledthe wOrld

tO tradeOur watches

Sir Thomas Edward Lawrence (1888-1935)

since 1886, we have travelled the wOrld tO trade Our watches

The West End Watch brand saw the day in the 1880’s. The West End,

a trendy district of London, inspired its name to Mr. Arnold Charpié who was the Bombay representative of the Alcide Droz & Sons firm, a watch company established at Saint-Imier in Switzerland.

At that time, a significant stock of watches with the ‘’Helvetia debout’’

effigy (the figurine that ornaments certain Swiss coins) featured on the dial was sent to him. No watch thus decorated was sold to Hindu and Moslem beliefs !It was then that Mr. Charpié suggested that new dials labelled ‘’West End Watch Company’’ be sent to him.The change initiated a great success and, in October 1886, Mr. Amstutz and Mr. Droz bought Mr. Charpié’s license for the exploitation of the trademark.

Until the middle of this century, West End Watch models were called

Sowar, Queen Anne, Keepsake, Standard, Extra, Sillidar…

The most popular model was Sowar, which is still manufactured today.

In Hindustani, ‘’Sowar’’ means ‘’warrior’’. However, it’s not this reason alone that accounts for the image of courage and fearlessness of the brand ; it is said that Sir Thomas Edward Lawrence and his sol-diers wore West End Watches. Thanks to his troops and to the Indian ar-mies, the reputation of the brand spread from Tibet to Aden !

The West End Watch Company also owes its keen reputation to the some-

times hazardous itineraries necessary to be followed to deliver the watches from Switzerland to the Indies, then to Middle East, China, and Southeast Asia.

At the dawn of the 20th century, the long journey from Switzerland to

Bombay was full of adventure. It involved taking the consignments by train to Mar-seilles, then by ship across the Mediter-ranean Sea, the Suez Canal, the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. Once checked, the watches were dispatched from Bombay throughout the Asian continent.

Delivering West End Watches has never been just a routine !

During the second World War, to avoid the Suez Canal and escape enemies sub-marines, some consignments were sent via Argentina and took one year to arrive ! The anecdotes that relate the adventures of the travellers and the watches during that time are numerous ; consignments torpedoed, or returned to Switzerland un-damaged after coming up against closed borders. Once again, the reputation of the brand was carried wide and far by the Eng-lish soldiers throughout Asia, from Burma to Japan passing through China.

Even today, West End Watches stand for adventure. For instance, when the

lowest roads of the Himalayas are unsuit-able for motor vehicles because of snow, deliveries don’t stop, and are carried along on the back of yaks !

For more than a century, the passion that drives all those associated with

the design, manufacture and commer-cialisation of West End Watches has in no way faltered. The passion also inspires, without any doubt, all those who like wearing watches so rich in history.

since 1886, we have travelled the wOrld tO trade Our watches

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The House of Parliaments with “Big Ben” clock tower - London - Great Britain I

Over a century Of cOlOurful histOry

10 MilestOnes in the Brand’s histOry

10 MilestOnes in the Brand’s histOry

1880’s– the roots of the brandThe company Alcide Droz & Sons established in St-Imier / Switzerland since 1864 develops the first attested waterproof watch called “L’Imperméable” – visible

nowadays at the International Watch Museum of La Chaux-de-Fonds / Switzerland.

1886– the foundation of the brand

The first West End Watches are produced by Alcide Droz & Sons and distributed on the

Indian market.

1914-1918– the 1st World WarWest End Watch Co produces its first wristwatches for the soldiers of the British

Army. The brand becomes legendary in the Middle-East.

1917Société des Montres West End SA (the Ltd.

company) is registered in Geneva. The sub-brand “Sowar” is officially registered in Switzerland.

1934West End Watch Co is the first brand to introduce in series the revolutionary Incabloc® anti-shock system invented by Mr Braunschweig.

1950’s-1970’s– the Oil Era

Millions of West End Watches are produced in Switzerland and distributed from the Red Sea to China.

1980’s-1990’sThe arrival of cheap quartz watches produced in Far East and upheavals on the historical markets weigh heavy on the sales of West End Watches. The annual quantity produced reduces from over 1 million to around 100,000 watches.

2001Société des Montres West End SA is taken over by new shareholders and the management is changed. The brand

repositioning starts.

2005West End Watch Co celebrates 120 years of uninterrupted presence in Asia with the

introduction of the “Silk Road” concept.

2008West End Watch Co launches a solid gold collection, the “Queen Anne”,

as a tribute to the soldiers of the British Army.

III


2) THE INDIAN RAILWAYS

Until the appearance of quartz watches in the 1970’s, the

main government organisations of India used West End Watches as a standard equipment. They notably helped securing the railway network of this huge country.

The East Indian Ry.The North Western Ry.

The Madras Ry.The Bengal-Nagpur Ry.

The Jodhpar-Bikanir Ry.The Eastern Bengal Ry.The Assam-Bengal Ry.

The Darjeeling-Himalayan Ry.Oudh and Rohilkhund Ry.

Rohilkhund and Kumaon Ry.Bengal and North Western Ry.

Assam Ry. and Trading Co.Port Commissioners Ry., Calcutta

Brand’s testiMOnials

1) THE BRITISH CAMEL CORPS

During the first World War, a large task of British and Indian soldiers was organised for an attack on

Mesopotamia, in an attempt to break the Germany-Turkey coalition.The troops that came to the region bought tremendous quantities of the highly reputed West End Watches, which were so ruggedly built that, according to the catalogue, could «withstand the roughest usage under the most trying conditions.»

An amazing 50,000 West End Watches were sold to the troops during the war. With West End on the wrists of so

many soldiers, the brand soon became familiar – and highly prized – in many parts of the Middle East.


Brand’s testiMOnials

3) ELLA MAILLART (1903-1997)

Ella Maillart and the English journalist Peter Fleming, elder brother of Ian Fleming, the

author of James Bond, undertook an astounding trek through some of the least known parts of the globe: From the Koko Nor to Central Asia, via the Tsaidam plateau, the Takla Makan desert, the Tarim basin, and from Kashgar across the Karakoram into Hunza.

Page 252:Ella Maillart mentions the presence of West End Watches in Western China in the 1930’s« He introduces us a robust Turki with blond beard whose West End Watch chronometer features an inscription in which Aurel Stein expresses his thanks to Musa Ahoun, his interpret. »

Forbidden Journey – From Peking to Cashmir

1935

4) WANG FU ZHOU

On May 25th, 1960 at 4h20 a.m. Wang Fu Zhou, team leader, and

2 fellow Chinese climbers reached for the 1st time the top of Mount Everest (8848 m) from the north face. On his wrist, to register the time of this pioneering achievement, a sturdy and dependable West End Watch.

V


distinctive features Of west end watches

distinctive features Of west end watches

e Waterresistant case exclusively made of Everbright® stainless steel

f Incabloc® anti-shock system

G Highly-accurate Swiss made movement finely-regulated into 5 positions

h Sturdy screwed case back with 10 flats

c Luminescent Arabic figures

B Skeleton-pears luminescent hands

a Black military-type dial

d Day and date calendarspure, effective desiGn

dependaBle swiss Made technOlOGy

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VII

ref. 8000«silk rOad i»

west end watch cO launches the silk rOad cOncept tO celeBrate

Over 100 years Of presence in asia.

Technical features: All stainless steel case and bracelet - Diameter 38 mm - WE-0739 automatic movement with day and date calendar (basing on ETA 2836-2)Waterresistant to 100 m - Also available with genuine leather straps with push-buttons butterfly buckle

Solid-links bracelet with push-buttons buckle

Eclusive sapphire magnifying on the day and date calendar (registered design)

Winding-crown with “W-logo” surrounded by black lacquer

Double-curved sapphire crystal

Subtly-faceted horns

ref. 8000 - «silk rOad i»

8000.10.0200 8000.10.0207 8000.10.3229 8000.10.3234

8000.20.3231 8000.20.3233 8000.30.2332 8000.30.3233 IX

Subtly-faceted case sides with alternation of polished/brushed surfaces

Flat sapphire crystal

Top luxury decorated movementvisible from the case back :

“Côtes de Genève” on the oscillating weight•“Perlage” and “diamantage” of the bridges•

Rhodium coating•

Winding crown positioned at 4h for an improved

comfort on the wrist

Solid-links bracelet withpush-buttons butterfly buckle

ref. 8020«silk rOad ii»

west end watch cO launches the silk rOad cOncept tO celeBrate

Over 100 years Of presence in asia.

Technical features: All stainless steel case and bracelet - Diameter 39 mm - WE-0799 automatic movement with day and date calendar (basing on ETA 2836-2)Waterresistant to 100 m - Also available with genuine leather straps with push-buttons butterfly buckle

ref. 8020 - «silk rOad ii»

8020.20.3255 8020.20.3257 8020.20.3258

8020.10.3254

8020.30.3255 8020.30.3257 8020.30.3258

8020.10.3256 8020.10.3259

XI

ref. 6832the MOdern replica

Of a leGendary Military watch.

“Antique” winding-crown

Extra-thick conic sapphire crystal

Historical blued pear hands

Top luxury decorated movementvisible from the case back :

“Côtes de Genève” on the oscillating weight•“Perlage” and “diamantage” of the bridges•

Rhodium coating•

Technical features: All stainless steel case - Diameter 39 mm - WE-0796 automatic movement with small second (basing on ETA 2895-2) - Waterresistant to 30 m

Guenuine leather strap withpush-buttons butterfly buckle

ref. 6832Q

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Exclusive military-type packaging

6832.10.32456832.10.3244

Exclusive military-type packaging

XIII


10 Basic definitiOns Of west end watches

WARNINGWest End Watch Co, West End, Sowar, Prima, + in a circle, W in a circle, Everbright are registered trademarks of

Société des Montres West End SA, Leytron/Switzerland.

10 Basic definitiOns Of west end watches

WEST END Trendy district of London, the capital of Great Britain, famous for its luxury residences, theatres and parks

SOWAR Cavalry officer of the British Army This trademark was registered by West End Watch Co in

1917.

PRIMA “First” or “first quality” In the 1930’s West End Watch Co was the 1st watch company

to use in series the Incabloc® anti-shock system preventing the balance axis of breaking in case of strong shocks or falls.

+ IN A CIRCLE Historical symbol for West End Watches featuring a centre second hand, enabling the precise reading of the seconds (notably by doctors or nurses, therefore the stylised cross sign).

For technical reasons, watches were historically equipped with a small off-centred second hand which was sometimes difficult to read.

The first watches with centre second hand appeared in the 1930’s.

SWISS MADE Conceived and manufactured in Switzerland

AUTOMATIC Mechanical watch movement working by itself The movements of the arm wind the mainspring

of the watch mechanism by means of a rotor that turns freely on its arbour.

WATERRESISTANT Protected from water and dust

Everbright®STAINLESS STEEL Unalterable steel alloy used for high-quality

watch cases

SAPPHIRE 2nd hardest material on earth (after diamond) obtained from the fusion of Al2O3 powder and used for the production of scratchproof watch glasses

ACCURACY Automatic West End Watches are regulated into 5 wrist-positions with a rate between +0 and +20 s/day

XV


a traditiOnOf Quality

prOductsdevelOpMent

a traditiOn Of Quality

A view of the movements assembly line in Leytron - Switzerland

PRODUCTS DEVELOPMENT

The collaborators of the West End Watch Co are constantly concerned with the development of new collections.

The creations must fulfil - or better surpass - customer’s expectations while keeping in line with the brand’s image.

The West End Watch Co is regularly co-operating with well-known watch designers.

A TRADITION OF QUALITY

For 120 years West End Watches represent the very best of Swiss watch-making.

Severe entry controls of compo-nents as well as strict assembly procedures performed by highly skilful and motivated technicians ensure that only watches of irreproachable quality leave the West End factory of Leytron.

The relatively high proportion of handwork makes of each West End Watch a timepiece of particularly long-lasting value.

XVII

Official distributor / retailer:

For general enquiries:

Société des Montres WEST END SA - Rouatope 24 - 1912 Leytron - SwitzerlandTel. +41 27 305 66 66 - Fax +41 27 305 66 77

For general enquiries:

Société des Montres WEST END SA - Rouatope 24 - 1912 Leytron - SwitzerlandTel. +41 27 305 66 66 - Fax +41 27 305 66 77

All West End Watches are manufactured to the highest standards of precision and reliability of Swiss watchmaking.They are guaranteed against any manufacturing defects for one year from the date of purchase.

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