Structuring a strong creative baseManuel Emch to head Romain Jerome
The Geneva watch company, Romain Jerome S.A., has announced the appointment of Mr Manuel Emch as its new CEO. Mr Emch, a Swiss born in 1972, studied design at the Art Center in La Tour de Peilz, before gaining a Master’s degree in business at Lausanne University’s Faculty of Business and Economics (HEC). He began his career as a business process re-engineering consultant and a marketing manager in FMCG before joining the Swatch Group in 2001, where he successfully revived the Jaquet Droz brand, transforming it into one of the finest references in the field of fine watchmaking. He was also appointed to the Group’s Extended Management Board, with special responsibilities for a broad territory encompassing Russia, other Eastern European countries and Central Asia.
The winner of several watch design awards, Manuel Emch is gifted with considerable skills in the field of establishing and consolidating brand identity, which he ably demonstrated at Jaquet Droz, notably by initiating and designing two of his “brainchildren”: the iconic Grande Seconde and the now legendary Machine à Ecrire le Temps. He also brings to Romain Jerome his considerable experience in the fields of production and sales, having contributed to the construction of the brand-new Jaquet Droz manufacturing facility; as well as supervising the creation of a worldwide distribution network including 200 points of sale and 6 own-name boutiques.
Structuring a strong creative base
Romain Jerome, founded in 2004, has become renowned for its “DNA of Famous Legends”. This bold theme was first introduced with the Titanic-DNA watches incorporating material from the sunken liner, and which turned watchmakers’ fiercest enemy, rust, into an unexpected ally. Most recently, Romain Jerome has chosen to celebrate another legendary and truly universal human adventure with its Moon Dust-DNA, made from the metal of spacecraft and moon dust, and accompanied by a certificate from the Association of Space Explorers (ASE). Commenting on this appointment, the company directors expressed their satisfaction with having recruited a talented individual with proven abilities in terms of structural organisation and brand building, specifying that he will be supported in his task by the existing team, along with the new Sales Director, Giancarlo Mantuano, formerly Distribution Director for Zino Davidoff.
The Board also reaffirmed its determination to support the new management by pursuing investments in all fields essential to corporate development including production, marketing and distribution. Mr. Emch stated his intention to pursue a strategy based on the philosophy of legends, exploring the concept in new directions, as well as continuing to focus on the emotional content of Romain Jerome watches.