The watch industry is controlled by a handful of luxury conglomerates. Swatch Group, Richemont, LVMH—between them, they own nearly every name you know. This is a guide to the brands they don't own.
Swatch Group owns Omega, Longines, Tissot, Breguet, Blancpain, and Harry Winston.
Richemont owns Cartier, IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, and Vacheron Constantin.
LVMH owns TAG Heuer, Hublot, Zenith, and Bulgari.
That's most of what you see in airports, magazines, and sponsored posts.
Independent watchmakers answer to no holding company. Their designs aren't committee-approved. Their prices aren't inflated by marketing budgets. When you buy independent, you're buying someone's vision—not a quarterly earnings target.
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