Pierre DeRoche
Pierre DeRoche is a Swiss luxury watch brand founded by Pierre Dubois (CEO) and his wife Carole Dubois (Communication and marketing) in 2004.
Nestling between lake and forest at the heart of the Joux Valley, the village of Le Lieu is an idyllic natural playground for children. Pierre thrived in this environment and loved to catch the odour of oil wafting from the family workshops. Rural and industrial civilisations have rubbed shoulders in this unique location for over two centuries, but Pierre Dubois nonetheless wished to explore other horizons. Initially a gym teacher, he later studied economics and entered the field of banking. Nonetheless, the family heritage soon caught up with him, when a prestigious watch brand from the Joux valley offered him responsibilities as Financial Director and later as Operational Director.
Back on home territory, Pierre Dubois began to feel his heart beating to the rhythm of watch hands and an old dream was reborn: that of creating his own brand. Reynold the wise old watchmaker had told him that he bore the name of a rock, so the name was an obvious choice: Pierre DeRoche. Since 2004, this name has come to symbolize invention expressed in harmony with tradition.
At the dawn of the 20th century, somewhere at the heart of the Vallée de Joux, Marcel Dépraz 1 was busy at his work bench. A born inventor, the watchmaker could never be content with merely seeing a watch running; instead, he tirelessly pursued his goal of improving the reliability of timepieces. This quest for perfection led him to create his own movement company in 1901, which later became Dubois Dépraz. In due course, he handed over the reins to his son-in-law Reynold Dubois, who in turn passed them on to his own son Gérald, father of Pierre. Today, the two great grandsons of the founder, Jean-Philippe and Pascal Dubois, are at the helm of the firm.
Respect for a proud heritage, combined with the boldness to reach beyond it, might well be the motto of the Dubois family. In launching his own watch brand with his wife Carole, Pierre Dubois was no exception to the rule. He took up a truly daunting challenge to establish a new name in high-end watchmaking. Nonetheless, this approach also corresponded to an immutable rule, which holds that tradition only retains its vitality if it is constantly cultivated and reinvented in a pioneering spirit.
A designer and manufacturer of unique movements, Pierre DeRoche cultivates rarity. Mechanical jewels of this kind require infinite patience with each detail, no matter how tiny, receiving meticulous attention. And this does not include the long months of research and testing, nor the interminable nights when everything goes back to square one in order to attain the level of perfection to which Pierre Dubois, the brand’s CEO, aspires. As this modus operandi is respected at all times and as Pierre DeRoche does not design watches so much as living timepieces injected with their creator’s soul, only a few hundred watches leave the brand’s workshops each year, a philosophy diametrically opposed to the practice of industrial principles.
Pierre DeRoche celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2014.
One Family, Four Generations
For four generations, the family of Pierre Dubois, founder and CEO of Pierre DeRoche, has passionately cultivated the science of calculating time, a savoir-faire initiated in 1901 by his great-grandfather Marcel Dépraz, founder of Dubois Dépraz. He was succeeded by Reynold his son-in-law, Gérald his grandson, then his great grandchildren Jean-Philippe and Pascal, Pierre Dubois’ brothers. A heritage transmitted and developed from generation to generation, and marked by over fifty patents registered in 100 years.
First Generation – MarCel Dépraz (1874-1946)
Marcel Dépraz, the family’s great grandfather, was extremely talented. He had already shown his innate gift for making watch complications by the time he became a shop foreman at the age of 25. With considerable courage and ingenuity, he founded what has become Dubois Dépraz, a specialist in the manufacture and assembling of all kinds of movements. Teeming with ideas and highly inventive, he kept track of all his ideas in his little notebook. Among his best pieces were repeater watches and chronographs. A pragmatic man, he stopped doing “dummy assemblage” in 1907 and went directly to manufacturing chronographs in series.
Second Generation – Reynold Dubois (1901-1977), Son-in-law of MarCel Dépraz
With a watch diploma in his pocket and several years of experience in Switzerland and abroad behind him, Reynold Dubois returned to Le Lieu in 1937 to assist his father-in-law in manufacturing and assembling watches, a position he held until his retirement in 1975. A keen musician, he had a gift for making watch complications and excelled at the violoncello as well as a whole host of other instruments. It was under his baton that the factory expanded and was conducted along more productive and rational lines.
Third Generation – Gerald Dubois (1928 – )
In 1956, Gérald Dubois, Reynold’s son, developed the first automatic chronograph. Thanks to his expertise, he marked out a new path in complicated and sophisticated movements of all sorts. These products, continually re-worked and protected by patents, gave the watch sector a new impetus. Now retired and head of the family, he can devote himself fully to his children and grandchildren. Nor has he forgotten his native village of Le Lieu, where he is still very involved in several local clubs. However, with three children working in the watch industry, this world is never far away. Indeed, many of the ideas and projects at Pierre DeRoche have had their genesis in lively discussions between father and sons.
Fourth Generation – Jean-Philippe, Pascal and Pierre Dubois
More than a brand, Pierre DeRoche is all about a family spirit that of the Dubois and the Dépraz families, living since the 1500’s in Le Lieu, a small village in the Joux Valley, in the heart of Switzerland’s watchmaking region. Today, it is through the Pierre DeRoche brand that Pierre Dubois and his two brothers Jean-Philippe and Pascal explore the boldest ideas and create technically sophisticated and exclusive timepieces, following in their predecessors’ footsteps.
Pierre and Carole, Founders of Pierre DerRoche watch brand
Constantly drawing upon their roots while relying on cutting-edge technical expertise, Pierre and Carole Dubois daily strive to develop Pierre DeRoche. He is by nature passionately dedicated, altruistic and protective, while she is determined, vivacious and well organised. Partners in life and in business, they enjoy perfect chemistry, and it is as a team that they are definitively establishing the brand identity and setting their signature on their horological masterpieces.
While watchmaking is in Pierre’s blood, Carole caught the virus at a later stage. An immersion in the world of the Dubois family and a naturally entrepreneurial spirit drew this strong-minded woman into the watchmaking field. She breathes a sense of femininity and enthusiasm into the brand.
Innovations
Mechanics has always been in the genes of the Dubois family. In 1901, Marcel Dépraz founded his company, now Dubois Dépraz, which was subsequently headed by his son-in-law Reynold, his grandson Gérald, and now his great-grandsons Pascal and Jean-Philippe Dubois. Their brother Pierre founded his PIERRE DEROCHE brand in 2004. Together, all three regularly develop new mechanisms, thereby perpetuating a family heritage punctuated by the registration of around 50 patents in a century. All of them represent major breakthroughs in the field of horological complications, as is confirmed by the movements presented here.
Quarter repeater (1925) – The snail – the strike control element in repeater mechanisms and a speciality of Marcel Dépraz in his early days – used to be cut out by hand. In tribute to the origins of the family company, this four-pointed star in the centre of the mechanism now appears in the PIERRE DEROCHE logo.
Chronograph 13 3/4, Calibre 48 (1937) – Marcel Dépraz sparked a mini-revolution in the chronograph field by replacing the classic column wheel by a cam system that is less complex and thus less expensive to implement. This mechanism, steadily improved by Reynold and Gérald Dubois, was produced until 1970 in a total run of more than 3.5 million.
Chronograph Calibre 74 (1948) – A high-end column-wheel chronograph movement designed by Reynold Dubois, Calibre 74 symbolises the dynamism and creativity of the Swiss watch industry in the postwar period. Equipped with an original pusher and bolt activation device, it is distinguished by an instant date calendar – a rare feature in an era when the date transition generally took almost an hour.
Chronomatic Calibre 12 (1969) – Chronomatic Calibre 12 developed by Gérald Dubois was the first chronograph mechanism to be fitted on a self-winding movement. Another novel feature lies in its modular design that facilitates its insertion as well as testing and dismantling. 350,000 examples of this world-first innovation were produced for the most prestigious brands.
Chronograph 2000 (1983) – Gérald Dubois gave a new boost to the mechanical chronograph with this calibre that can be fitted on either quartz or mechanical self-winding watches by means of a special clutch. This module mounted on the dial side enables direct display of all the hands and requires no corrections or adjustments once assembled with the movement.
Concentric Chronograph (2003) – The world’s only chronograph displaying the seconds, minutes and hours on a single counter, the concentric chronograph was developed by Pierre Dubois and his brothers Jean-Philippe and Pascal. The driving force behind the SplitRock Collection by PIERRE DEROCHE, this movement enables fast and intuitive read-off of the measured times.
TNT Royal Retro (2009) – The first calibre able to house six retrograde seconds mechanisms, this complication testifies to an entirely original approach: the six retrograde hands are driven by gears instead of cams; and they are returned to the original position by a strip-spring rather than a classic balance-spring system.
Watch Collections
TNT: These dial less timekeepers reveal the virtuosity of the Joux Valley watchmakers: bridges, gear-trains and rotors form the power centre of these watches with their nerves of steel.
Grand Cliff: Retrograde functions, flyback chronograph, annual calendar, large date, power reserve, GMT, countdown: the GrandCliff Collection reveals a wealth of perfectly mastered complications in harmony with the traditions of the Joux Valley master-watchmakers. The GrandCliff variations are the epitome of contemporary watchmaking and feature cases distinguished by their complex architecture, along with innovative dial displays.
Split rock: A unique chronograph displaying seconds, minutes and hours in one single counter, the SplitRock offers a rapid and intuitive reading of the measured times. A strong rectangular case, finely worked dials and noble materials are the hallmarks of this collection.
Shiny pebbles: In its ladies’ collection, Pierre Deroche captures nature’s magic in meticulously worked settings. Shimmering colours, sparkling reflections and refined elegance come together on the wrists of women seeking the ultimate in perfection.
Contact details
Pierre DeRoche SA
Le Revers 1
CH–1345 Le Lieu
Switzerland
Website: http://www.pierrederoche.com
