The Swiss Watch Passports have arrived: a collection of passport guides on the theme of watchmaking.

With regard to format and cover, they resemble the old Swiss passport. The Swiss Watch Passports, for your information, is a series of themed passport-style booklets, distilling the very essence of a watchmaking culture based on the transmission of knowledge. The Prowatch association takes on a two-pronged mission.

Proudly proclaiming its Swissitude, with its spotless ad-free cover sporting embossed white and gold markings against a Swiss red ground, the Swiss Watch Passport, no less, is a streamlined addition to the current media landscape in the contemporary Swiss watchmaking world: a handy-sized booklet that fits neatly into the inside pocket, an independent mine of information based on the notion of service, a unique format that already has nearly 5,000 subscribers and that will also be sold in bookshops and in the top tourist spots.

The result of five years’ work by an ardent collective of watchmaking enthusiasts, collectors and industry players, the themed Swiss Watch Passport collection will be rolling out its first edition by the end of 2012. No, not another magazine, but rather an ensemble of watchmaking creations crafted in the form of a series of booklets, themed guides, updated from one issue to the next. Behind this unique project is the not-for-profit association Prowatch (for the promotion of Swiss culture and watchmaking expertise), who has entrusted the editorial task to Joël A. Grandjean, specialist journalist and founder of TàG Press +41, a press agency with a strong presence in the world of watchmaking. The first theme, still top secret, will be unveiled shortly.

Swiss Watch Passports

100 high-profile portraits, three levels of content
‘The editorial content of the Swiss Watch Passports captures the pure unadulterated essence of watchmaking genius. They are a tribute to the art of miniaturisation, the principles of which have been similarly applied to the carefully worded copy, where the accent is on quality not quantity’, confides Joël A. Grandjean on behalf of the founding collective. The keystone is a gallery of portraits of around a hundred watchmaking brands. ‘Ask anyone to come up on the spot with the names of a few Swiss brands and they will be able to cite 5 or 6; they are often the same and the best-known. Thanks to the Swiss Watch Passports, anyone travelling to Switzerland, or living there, will be aware of the sheer wealth of the watchmaking legacy. In addition to the 100 portraits rich in historical and cultural detail, 150 other active brands will receive a mention through the inclusion of their website addresses.’

The second level of content comprises a section devoted exclusively to the reader’s needs, including a glossary, useful addresses, a watchmaking roadmap, names of institutions, public and private museums, collectors’ associations. Finally, the third level sets the editorial tone of the whole publication by establishing the theme of the edition. ‘The list of themes, from complications to watchmaking territories or classification systems, is never-ending. Not including the re-editions, there should be enough to keep us going for a good ten years!’, claims Olivier Broto, Vice-President of Prowatch, journalist and inveterate collector. For example, if the chosen theme happens to be Asia, the Swiss Watch Passport will indicate, by means of a symbol, which of its ‘gallery of 100 brands’ are present in China, giving their retail outlets in Switzerland. Then, through a series of feature articles on the theme, the Swiss Watch Passport will describe how the love affair between China and the Swiss watch came about and flourished. The reader will be swept back into the Imperial era and given an exceptional insider’s sneak peek into the Forbidden City.

A discerning approach
Needless to say, the Swiss Watch Passports will not be addressing those brands that do not have at least the minimum amount of Swiss-made content. Allowing only a limited number of hand-picked advertisements, based on a discerning mix of prime positioning and scrupulously selected symbolic brands, the Swiss Watch Passports have been structured in such a way as to cultivate an independent tone and content. Before the publication announcement, the Prowatch association looked to the non-watchmaking luxury environment, financial world and symbolic Swiss companies for support. It now has all the necessary ingredients for making this an economically viable new adventure… What is more, a key industry figure will be penning the preface of each edition, in reference to the chosen theme.

press release