My favorite places where watches are made all have something in common. They’re timeless. Whether that’s ironic or on the contrary to the point is up for debate. Either way, Stila SA, at the heart of La Chaux-de-Fonds, itself at the heart of Swiss watchmaking, is exactly that. Tradition and modernity under the same roof with a single goal: making unique, beautiful and yet robust watch cases.
Founded in 1933, the company that employs about fifty people is currently run and owned by Julien Vallon, who readers of this blog have already “met”. Vallon, who started at Stila as an employee in 2000, bought the firm from his own grandfather, who had acquired it in 1981.
Who Stila makes cases for is a well kept secret. Sure, visiting the facility, I definitely recognized some familiar shapes. But nothing was confirmed and, more importantly, any hypothesis I emit here would earn me well deserved wrath. What I can say though is that we’re talking high-end brands here, including many independents, in limited – although not minuscule – quantities.
Without further ado, here’s what really struck me throughout the visit: it’s so much more complicated to make a case than I ever thought! I mean, a movement, a hairspring, even a bracelet. Those look complicated. It’s obvious that producing them is going to be a headache. But cases, really? Even the best ones, in fact, especially the best ones look pretty straightforward. Turns out, making them is a different story.
It all starts in the bureau technique. Brands send in their technical drawings, and the team at Stila gives them a first set of feedback on feasibility, considering technical constraints such as water resistance and movement compatibility. The plans are adjusted as needed over many weeks of back and forth. While their focus is on design, the bureau technique team is fully immersed with production, on the ground floor, a few steps away from all the machines and the noise.
The raw material is received in – super heavy – discs. From then onwards, many machines are involved. From big CNC ones, to cut out the basic shapes, to micron-level precision holder rings. Perhaps what made the biggest impression on me is the welding process.
There’s a whole room dedicated to welding. As soon as you walk in, the vibe is different. It’s no longer machines cutting stuff, but individuals adjusting things in a very delicate way. An atmosphere closer to actual watchmaking. Speaking of atmosphere, atmospheric pressure is critical to the welding. After having been electronically positioned, the cases go into special ovens. Even with precisely set pressure, many things can happen and the pieces can go back into the ovens up to eight times until they’re ready.
As a final – and nerve-racking – step, the cases are polished. The pressure – not atmospheric this time, but psychological – is huge. All the work mentioned above can be ruined in a fraction of a second.
Stila produces value, but is also very much about values. They don’t hire temporary workers but rather focus on long term investment in their staff. They’ve remained independent, something increasingly rare among case suppliers. And they’ve stuck to what they do – perhaps better than anyone – ignoring temptations to expand into other fields.
As I’ve written many times here before, my love for watches is first and foremost for the human input behind them. Spending a day with my sister – who took those great pics – at Stila, a family-run business where each employee seems to genuinely care and play a key part, only increased my appreciation. Once more, I learned things that made me look at every watch in a different way, and, in this case, pun intended, enjoy them even more.
Photography by my talented sister Jeanne Grouet
