Christoph Grainger-Herr

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Christoph Grainger-Herr - IWC Schaffhausen
CEO**

The first step taken by Christoph Grainger-Herr on the path which was to lead him to the top of the IWC Schaffhausen watch brand turned out be a portentous one: he was working for architects Smolenicky & Partner in Zurich when Richemont invited him to respond to a call for tender for IWC’s museum. Grainger-Herr accepted, and was delighted to do so. In fact, he ended up winning the contract.

Christoph Grainger-Herr

As a creative artist with a highly-developed sense of aesthetics, he thus caught the attention of IWC boss Georges Kern, who gave him a job in the company in 2006, and saw to it that he rose quickly through the ranks. The former military athlete eventually took over from Kern in 2017, having just turned 39. The task facing him was not an easy one: Kern’s immense personal impact could be felt throughout the business. However, today, even the harshest of critics could not fail to acknowledge that Grainger-Herr has not put a foot wrong, and indeed has done a very good job. As Richemont itself hints, more than one colleague in the group is impressed with IWC’s performance.


When it comes to management style, Grainger-Herr is the kind of leader who gets involved in production design. His programme calls for an unashamedly ‘Anglo-Saxon’ look: back to basics, clear lines, and nothing showy or superfluous, as is evidenced in the brand’s showcase collections such as the Portugieser, as well as in the Tribute to Pallweber limited editions launched in 2018. The same kind of thinking also served as the guiding principle for the construction of IWC’s new facility in 2018. To date, the Manufacture itself is undoubtedly the most visible contribution by its new boss. His studies in interior architecture at the University of Bournemouth and the Basel Academy of Art and Design made him well-placed to add a personal touch to the building, partic- ularly for the pavilion, the choice of materials, along with the surroundings.

*Written by Pierre-André Schmitt

*On the occasion of GMT Magazine and WorldTempus' 20th anniversary, we have embarked on the ambitious project of summarising the last 20 years in watchmaking in The Millennium Watch Book, a big, beautifully laid out coffee table book. This article is an extract. The Millennium Watch Book is available on www.the-watch-book.com, in French and English, with a 10% discount if you use the following code: WT2021.

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