Maurice Lacroix

Brand history

Founded 1975 (parent company Desco von Schulthess dates to 1889). The Saignelegier manufacture in the Swiss Jura produces all in-house complications for the Masterpiece line: Seconde Mysterieuse, Calendrier Retrogrades, Gravity tourbillon. Commercial HQ in Zurich. Swiss-owned and independent. The Aikon (2016) became the commercial engine; Masterpiece sustains technical credibility.

Founded 1975 in Saignelégier, Jura, Switzerland, as the watch distribution arm of Desco von Schulthess, a Swiss luxury goods company. "Maurice Lacroix" was chosen as an appealing French name for a new brand, it doesn't correspond to a historical founder. The brand adopted in-house caliber production with the Masterpiece Gravity (2011), which uses a lever escapement positioned vertically on the dial, the caliber ML150, designed in-house, was the brand's first proprietary mechanical caliber. The Aikon (2016), an integrated-bracelet sport watch whose design references the Royal Oak, became the brand's strongest commercial success and established Maurice Lacroix in the CHF 1,000–2,000 sport tier. The Pontos line covers dress and classic-sport. Priced CHF 700–3,000 for most catalog references; the honest positioning is "good Swiss finishing and in-house complication capability at Tissot-adjacent prices."