Today, I have the pleasure — and above all the honor — of serving as steward of this icon of La Chaux-de-Fonds. The address remains the same. The building remains one of a kind. And the determination to continue an extraordinary adventure that began exactly 70 years ago is unchanged.
I have never worked anywhere but CORUM. I began here as a watchmaker in 2011, and in 2025 completed a management buyout — a decisive step I was honored to take, both a privilege and a commitment to the future of this house.
My entire career has been devoted to these monuments of horology — the Golden Bridge, the Admiral, the Coin, and many others. Our heritage is exceptional: we hold 350 museum pieces, each one a testament to vision, design, and complication. In a word: a story. And it is that story we now intend to continue writing.
Here, with humility and with pride, are the first pages of this new chapter. They mark our return to the forefront of contemporary watchmaking — and, we trust, the beginning of a renewed momentum.
CORUM ReLoaded
Beyond the circle
Defining CORUM is a delicate exercise. Since 1955, the brand has remained independent. Very few institutions of this stature still exist in La Chaux-de-Fonds — of this caliber, one might say.
And the word is not chosen lightly. We are indeed speaking of a house of fine watchmaking whose creations often belong to the highest expressions of Haute Horlogerie in its most technical and complex forms. And yet, one constant emerges: at every horological summit stands an exercise in style. CORUM is singular in this respect — design and movement are inseparable. The baguette movement is its archetype, though not its only expression. The designer and the technical office do not work across from one another, but side by side.
It would be going too far to claim that the round case is the exception at CORUM… but not by much. Golden Tube, Ingot, Trapeze, Ti-Bridge, Rocket, Buckingham, Rolls-Royce and others have shattered the limits of the circle, venturing to the outer edges of audacity.
Even the iconic Admiral — today round like a buoy — was first presented in a square version.
Seventy years on, one fact remains: no one has ever copied CORUM. Iconoclastic and impossible to classify, the house has built its own territory —proportionate to its boldness.
A stable foundation for what comes next: CORUM’s enduring values
A for Audacity
Audacity is not proclaimed — it is demonstrated. CORUM has never relied on mainstream products or passing trends. Every year since 1955 has brought its share of new forms, complications, and unexpected materials. Without exception, for more than 70 years.
B for Birthplace
La Chaux-de-Fonds is the cradle of watchmaking — and the cradle of CORUM. The two are inseparable. For many years, the name of the city was the brand’s sole signature: “CORUM – La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.” The house remains deeply rooted there, and most of its partners continue to be based in La Chaux-de-Fonds.
C for Creativity
CORUM has built its place in watchmaking not only on models and collections, but on a defining value: creativity. What can be expected from CORUM is surprise, boldness, and a touch of irreverence. CORUM is, above all, a state of mind.
D for Danger
By continually challenging itself, CORUM embraces the inherent risk of a brand that advances into uncharted territory. There have been first attempts, masterstrokes — and projects that may well be rediscovered decades from now. CORUM stands by them all. A brand that does not move forward inevitably falls behind.
F for Family
CORUM was founded by a man and his nephew and has always remained, at heart, a family endeavor. A family of women and men. A family of collections — where Admiral and Golden Bridge stand as the elder siblings of a lineage beneath which multiple personalities, ranges, and expressions unfold. And a family of collaborators, many of whom have served the house for years. Haso Mehmedovic, who applied for his first position at CORUM and never left, embodies this continuity.
G for Golden Bridge
Few designs have left such a lasting impression on collectors. The quintessence of design and the absolute fusion of case and movement, the Golden Bridge embodies the very essence of CORUM — where caliber and case converge to give birth to a watchmaking project unlike any other. The Golden Bridge has never been copied. It likely never will be.
H for Heritage
To challenge its own conventions, a house must know where it comes from. The CORUM archives comprise thousands of drawings, plans, and creative concepts. They form the brand’s heritage, a portion of which is periodically displayed in its museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds. For CORUM, heritage holds value only when it serves as a springboard for the future.
I for Iconic
When can a creation be called iconic? When it establishes itself among connoisseurs and continues to be produced irrespective of fashion or trend. Two collections embody this stature at CORUM: Admiral and Golden Bridge. It is upon these two pillars that the house now builds its renewed momentum.
J for Jean-René Bannwart
It would be impossible not to mention the son of CORUM’s founder. It was thanks to his father and his uncle, Gaston Ries, that CORUM came into being. At 80 years old, Jean-René Bannwart retains a deep affection for the brand and continues to speak of it with undiminished emotion.
K for Key
“The Key of Time Since 1955” is the brand’s signature. The key has identified CORUM since its creation — a literal key to success, as this identity has never changed by even a fraction. It is, and will remain, the CORUM emblem to which collectors remain deeply attached.
M for Materials
Feathers, gold coins, sapphire, meteorite, mineral dials — unconventional materials have always been part of CORUM’s collections. Yet they are meaningful only when they convey a specific emotion or bring tangible value to design or movement. The same applies to calibers as to dials: each element must integrate into a coherent, unified, and creative whole.
N for Nonconformist
CORUM has never sought to align itself with prevailing trends. It is in its DNA to follow its own path, regardless of market expectations. A salutary choice: CORUM might otherwise have waited a very long time for the market to request a case shaped like a Rolls-Royce grille or a Chinese hat.
P for Pioneer
Being “the first to” has never been an end in itself for CORUM. Yet in service of its creative vision, the brand has consistently drawn inspiration beyond traditional watchmaking spheres. Its early use of sapphire, feathers, and meteorites stands as testament — among many other examples.
R for Risk
It takes courage to split a coin through its thickness in order to house a movement. To compose a caliber in a perfectly linear baguette form. Or to design a watch crowned by a sapphire crystal shaped like a bubble. Such risks have become defining markers of CORUM’s identity.
S for Sailing
Admiral, Admiral’s Cup, or AC — through its various names, the collection has long been devoted to the world of sailing. This identity is expressed through its dial framed by nautical pennants corresponding to the international maritime code of signals, arranged as hour markers along a twelve-sided bezel.
T for Twist
CORUM watchmaking often resonates with traditional horological codes — yet always with a subtle twist that gives it character. A touch of fantasy. A hint of irreverence. A CORUM timepiece invariably carries that additional spark which defines its originality.
V for Visibility
Visibility occupies a singular place in the CORUM universe. It was through sapphire crystal that the Golden Bridge first revealed the full architecture of its baguette movement. It is once again through sapphire that the brand unveils its new signature oscillating weight. More than a protective element, transparency at CORUM is a defining strand of its identity — allowing the movement not merely to be seen, but to be fully experienced.
Novelties 2026
CORUM unveils 11 new Admiral references built around four key developments: a redesigned case, new dials, a new integrated bracelet, and a new 100% proprietary caliber developed in collaboration with its partner and neighbor in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Concepto.
These novelties replace the entire previous Admiral collection and are divided into six references in 39 mm and five references in 36 mm.
At the same time, CORUM presents 6 new Golden Bridge Sapphire references — three models, each offered in two movement finishes: gray gold or 5N gold. Their shared distinction is a new 100% sapphire case, the first ever created for a Golden Bridge, reconnecting the model with the spirit of transparency that defined its earliest versions.
The first model is executed in translucent sapphire. The second, a Golden Bridge, in blue titanium with a 5N gold movement. The third, a Miss Golden Bridge, in translucent pink sapphire.
Finally, CORUM introduces two Heritage pieces: a new Coin (featuring an unprecedented $50 gold coin) and the return of the Golden Book. Both will be produced in strictly limited annual quantities.
