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Omega
Swiss • b. 1848
Biography
Omega's rich history begins with its founder, Louis Brandt, who established the firm in 1848 in La Chaux de Fonds. In 1903, the company changed its name to Omega, becoming the only watch brand in history to have been named after one its own movements. A full-fledged manufacturer of highly accurate, affordable and reliable watches, its sterling reputation enabled them to be chosen as the first watch company to time the Olympic Games beginning in 1932. Its continued focus on precision and reliability ultimately led their Speedmaster chronograph wristwatch to be chosen by NASA in 1965 — the first watch worn on the moon.
Key models sought-after by collectors include their first, oversized water-resistant chronograph — the reference 2077, early Speedmaster models such as the CK 2915 and 2998, military-issued versions of the Seamaster and oversized chronometer models such as those fitted with their prestigious caliber 30T2Rg.
Insights
The Omega "Tourbillon 30 I" prototype achieved 1,428,500 CHF during the 12 November 2017 Geneva Watch Auction: SIX. Highest result ever achieved for an Omega at auction.
Omega is the only brand to mass-produce a version of the co-axial escapement invented by late British watchmaker George Daniels, first introduced in an Omega watch in 1999.
Omega is now part of the Swatch Group, contributing the largest percentage of sales across all of its brands.
Omega operates their own museum at their current headquarters in Bienne, Switzerland, showcasing the history of their brand: www.omegamuseum.com.
"A manufacturer of highly accurate, affordable and reliable watches, its sterling reputation enabled them to be chosen as the first watch company to time the Olympic Games beginning in 1932."