The Bovet Family: Pascal Raffy on Craft, Integrity and the Human Hand
This coverage features a conversation between Wei Koh and Pascal Raffy, owner and CEO of Bovet, discussing the brand's integrated high watchmaking manufacture. The discussion centers on Raffy's vision, the expansion of Bovet's facilities in 2006, and the importance of artisans, mutual respect, and the human hand in luxury watchmaking. It highlights Bovet's in-house capabilities, including movement components, cases, hairsprings, and decorative arts, as exemplified by watches like the Virtuoso XI, Récital 28 Prowess 1, and Récital 30.
The conversation traces Bovet's expansion through Château de Môtiers and the manufacture in Tramelan, which began as a pursuit of independence.
Raffy describes Bovet as a house built around artisans, mutual respect, shared standards, and 'positive pressure'.
Bovet's in-house capabilities discussed include movement components, cases, hairsprings, regulating organs, decorative arts, hand engraving, pad printing, and assembly.
The discussion emphasizes why the human hand remains central to Bovet's definition of luxury.
Recent Bovet creations like the Virtuoso XI, Récital 28 Prowess 1, and Récital 30 are mentioned as reflecting technical ambition and the collective work of the people behind them.