Guillaume Têtu

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Guillaume Têtu - Ralph Lauren
1 minute read
Vice-President Watches and Jewelry

At the turn of the third millennium, this specialist in industrial design had been working at TAG Heuer for three years after an initial experience with a Rolex sub-contractor where he produced 3D models. There, he managed and trained a team of engineers aimed at improving manufacturing processes, before taking charge of product development at TAG Heuer, from design to mass production. At the end of 2004, the adventure called Hautlence (an anagram of “Neuchâtel”) began with two partners. As co-founder and managing director of this new high-end brand with character, Guillaume Têtu used his experience to take the reins of R&D and production. Hautlence immediately stood out for its unique case and movement architecture and for its singular interpretation of time. Collections and partnerships followed one after the other.

Guillaume Têtu

In 2010, Têtu became CEO of Hautlence, developing the brand and its distribution network, then sold the company to Swiss investors MELB Holding (headed by Georges-Henri Meylan, former CEO of Audemars Piguet). In 2016 their paths diverged and he was hired by Ralph Lauren as its Director of Product Development for Watches and Jewellery, where he worked closely with the U.S headquarters and the founder of the eponymous brand. The latter entrusted him with the helm of the ship in the spring of 2018, where he succeeded in anchoring the Ralph Lauren style in their watches.

*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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