Invicta Watch Group: The History of the Invicta Watch Company

In 1837, a man named Raphael Picard, in the quaint town of La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, established the esteemed Invicta (Latin for ‘Invincible’) Watch Company.

La Chaux-de-Fonds was reputed for its premium watchmaking industry (Home to Tag Heuer, Omega, and the like), and its proximity to the French border has always made it a perfect trade center.

Picard’s goal in creating this company was to bring quality timepieces to the common people at an affordable sum. At the time, timepieces were highly prized by the most affluent members of society, and were hardly available to the “common man.”

Invicta, however, enjoyed immediate success with its watches, which were highly praised by aficionados of the time as being comparable to the already established watch brands of that era.

The Invicta Watch Collection During the War Years

Invicta commanded a comfortable popularity as a respected timepiece manufacturer, keeping up with other luxury brands while offering products at a fraction of luxury prices.

They made military watches for Switzerland during World War II, which only helped to make Invicta watches even more recognizable on the world market.

Many of these original Invicta watches, including those that were produced for military clients, are on display at the world-renowned Musee International d’Horlogerie, or International Watchmaking Museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.

When it comes to the Invicta watch collection, the pinnacle of their popularity was during the intervening years between the war, and the advent of the quartz movement in the 1970s.  Coupled with the digital offerings of companies like Timex and Casio, the quartz movement resulted in the mass production of extremely cheap (and many times unreliable) watches.

This almost ended the high-end timepiece industry, especially for Invicta, who nearly had to close its doors during that period of time.  However, the Invicta Watch Company would see a resurgence in demand during the 1990s, as the Invicta watch mens offerings rediscovered its fan base.

Invicta Rises from the Ashes: A New Era for Affordable Luxury Watches

The Picard family maintained continual ownership of the Invicta company from its inception until 1991, when a United States-based investment organization purchased the business and moved the company’s headquarters to Hollywood, Florida. With

The new facilities house a large staff of highly-trained and experienced watchmakers, a professional, Swiss-caliber repair facility, and an industry-leading customer service call center.  Eyal Lalo is now the Chief Executive Officer of the Invicta Watch Group, and brings his substantial experience as a third-generation Swiss watchmaker to this high-end timepiece manufacturing company.

In addition to promoting its well-built, durable watches to the public, the Invicta Watch Group has taken on several large, charitable projects over the years.

Their non-profit organization, the Invicta Care Foundation, is responsible for the charitable activities of the Invicta Watch Group.

The first and probably most well-known of these was the company’s relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  Almost $130,000 was raised during this period, and proceeds benefited those who had lost everything in the horribly destructive Hurricane Katrina.

In 2010, the Invicta Care Foundation took on the challenge of sending aid to a section of Ecuador suffering from extreme poverty conditions through the Emmaus Medical Mission.

The Hetrick-Martin Institute in New York enjoyed contributions and charitable assistance from Invicta in its work with disadvantaged and at-risk young people.  The Invicta Watch Group has continually, throughout the years, sent free, high-end watches to United States servicemen serving in overseas conflicts, thus maintaining its high reputation among the military.

The Invicta Watch Group has also launched several other brands since its reorganization in 1991. Among these are such celebrated labels as Technica, Potger-Pietri, and S. Coifman.

The design of these watches now takes place in the company’s headquarters in Florida, but the manufacturing has been outsourced to several overseas locations.

In order to keep up with the company’s goal of offering affordable, high-end watches and timepieces, much of the manufacturing processes are handled in the Far East, primarily in Japan.  Some models, however, are still 100% Swiss-made timepieces, and obviously comprise the upper echelon of Invicta’s offerings.  In this way, Invicta has managed to maintain a catalog of products ranging from economy to luxury models.

Invicta Marches Forward

Invicta now offers, across its multiple labels, over a thousand different watch models.  Among these are Invicta’s Pro Diver Series, the Invicta Bolt Zeus for former NFL player Jason Taylor and The Lupah.  These models could easily be considered the flagships of the Invicta Watch Group’s catalog of products.  The Pro Diver Series competes directly with Rolex’s Submariner watch, at a fraction of the price.  The Lupah is marketed to a younger generation, and can be customized in almost 200,000 ways thanks to the wide variety of options available for that particular model.

The Invicta Watch Company/Group is steeped in a history of high-quality watchmaking techniques and generations of experience and expertise.

Its ties to the old-world, and its foundation in Swiss manufacturing practices make it a leader in the timepiece industry.

Invicta survived the “quartz invasion” of the 1970s and 80s, and through its reorganization in 1991 has managed to stay on top as a leader in the watchmaking industry.

In an effort to give back to the community in thanks for nearly two centuries of continued primacy in the industry, Invicta has involved itself in several charitable activities.  Now, Invicta has managed to sustain its feasibility in the market be continuing to offer high-quality watches at affordable prices, with many models designed to appeal to various segments of society.

Check Out the Very Masculine Invicta Bolt Zeus and Invicta Venom Reserve Watches – Click the Image: