Hi! My name is Alex and I moved to Bienne almost five years ago. As someone who loves watches, it’s been a treat living here. When watch fan friends from Zurich, Geneva, or outside of Switzerland come visit, they’re amazed at how much there is to see and feel around watchmaking here. I put together this blog to help share it. 

Located midway between Geneva and Zurich, Bienne is the (not always known) capital of Swiss watchmaking. A town of 55,000, it’s the home of Omega and Swatch and where Rolex was born, also hosting its largest production site. The Swiss Watch Federation is in Bienne, and so are are many other brands such as Hamilton, Hermès, Doxa and Certina to name a few (full list here). Many key watch industry suppliers are also based here or nearby. 

Bienne, Biel in German, is also Switzerland’s largest bilingual city. This contributes a lot to the open-mindedness for which the town is known. It’s something I personally appreciate a lot. The cultural and ethnic diversity is huge for a city this size, creating a fantastic atmosphere.

Made in Bienne is here to make the local watch scene more accessible to everyone, both remotely and through local experiences. This is a one-person side project (although I am trying to get help from my kids!), so it’s full of imperfections, but hopefully you’ll understand, and I’ll do my best to improve things over time. 

For those interested, I’m also the author of an online travel guide for Swiss watchmaking experiences, Swiss Watch Explorer, and of a novel (in French) about a watch collector. 

I can be reached via Instagram or on madeinbienne@gmail.com