Oris watches: history, main models and innovations
Oris watches: history, models and innovations
Oris was founded in 1904 in the city of Hölstein, and its name comes from a stream flowing nearby. The brand stands out as one of the few independent brands in its entire history if we exclude a short period.
In 1911Oris became the biggest employer in the area and offered his employees accommodation in houses built in the area. Hölstein's is only the first in a series of six factories by 1925, including one in Italy, in Como.
The handover from Christian to Herzog
In 1927Georges Christian, one of the two founders, passed away. Oscar Herzog, Christian's brother-in-law, takes on the company as General Manager, leading the brand until 1971. In 1936Oris opens a factory for the production of dials and, in 1938, begins the production of its escapements.
Oris watches during the second world war
During this period, Oris has a total production of 200,000 watches per year. The brand's business suffers from not distributing its watches outside Switzerland and focuses on the creation of alarm clocks instead. The outcome is the launch of an eight-daypower reserve model in 1949.
The first Oris automatic watch
In 1952, Oris presented the first watch with automatic movement, equipped with a power reserve indicator at twelve. It housed the Oriscaliber 601.
1965: the first Oris diving watch is born
Oris unveils the forerunner of the current Divers Sixty-Five collection. The first Oris diving watch is water-resistant up to 100 meters, has a graduated unidirectional rotating bezel and large luminescent Arabic numerals.
In 1967 Oris presents its first chronometer
The Swiss "Watch Regulations," introduced in 1934, prohibited Oris from using new technologies, but in 1966 this legislation was finally abolished. Two years later, the company unveils the Oris caliber 652 (which adopts a lever escapement). This timepiece was soon awarded the chronometer certificate (the highest recognition for accuracy) by the Observatoire Astronomique et Chronométrique.
Oris first joined the Asuag Group, then became independent once again
By entering the AsuagGroup, which would later become the Swatch Group, Oris faces the quartz crisis like many Swiss brands, a period during which the brand undergoes a hard reduction in volumes. The turning point came in 1982 when Rolf Portmann and UlrichW. Herzog conducted a management buy-out operation. They founded Oris SA, whose mission is to focuses exclusively on the production of mechanical watches.
Oris focuses exclusively on producing mechanical watches.
Since Oris became independent once again, it returned to its roots, by focusing exclusively on producing mechanical watches, offered at a competitive price point. In 1984, the brand debuted the Oris Pointer Calendar, and, in 1988, the first automatic Oris watch with an alarm.