Geneva Watch Days 2025 — Emmanuel Bouchet And Aurelie Picaud

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Real Time Show — Geneva Watch Days 2025: Emmanuel Bouchet and Aurelie Picaud
Date: September 7, 2025
Hosts: Rob Nudds & Alon Ben Joseph (with guest co-host Sam)
Guests: Emmanuel Bouchet & Aurelie Picaud

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Episode Overview

In this lively Geneva Watch Days 2025 episode, hosts Rob Nudds and Alon Ben Joseph (joined by co-host Sam) interview Aurelie Picaud and Emmanuel Bouchet of the eponymous independent watch brand. The discussion centers around the brand’s origins, Emmanuel’s philosophy on time, the technical and artistic innovations behind their newest watch, and their approach to bespoke horology and distribution. The dialogue is rich with detail, insight, and moments of humor, making for an engaging exploration of high-concept independent watchmaking.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Brand Origins and Emmanuel Bouchet’s Philosophy (01:34–04:05)

• Family Legacy in Watchmaking:

  • Emmanuel Bouchet comes from a multi-generational line of watchmakers—his grandfather and father both practiced the craft.
  • "He was never really thinking of creating his own watch brand... Even so, he's the watchmaker behind the Harry Winston Opus 12." — Aurelie Picaud (01:34)

• Catalyst for Creating the Brand:

  • Inspired by a radio quote about the fleeting nature of life and time:
    "Life is just a moment, a passing hour, a fleeting day." — Radio Quote relayed by Aurelie Picaud (01:58)
  • This sparked Emmanuel’s decision in 2014 to start a brand built around a unique philosophy of time.

• The Hidden Work:

  • In addition to his eponymous brand, Emmanuel runs “Macle,” a company specializing in complicated calibers for other brands (03:42).

2. Manufacture and Bespoke Watchmaking (04:17–05:08, 05:08–07:55)

• In-House Calibers:

  • “We are really like designing, developing, doing the construction and also producing most of the things for the movement... we do everything in-house.” — Aurelie Picaud (04:26)

• Custom and Bespoke Offerings:

  • Even strap colors can be bespoke; each piece is highly customizable.
  • “We really do also bespoke pieces... this is also a new movement, a new caliber.” — Aurelie Picaud (05:10)

3. Technical Innovations: The New Double Rotor Caliber (05:08–07:55)

• Purpose of the Double Rotor:

  • Designed to maintain stable amplitude throughout the 45-hour power reserve, especially when supporting complex complications.

• Philosophical Design — The Pillars of Time:

  • The new watch features “pillars of time”:
    • One rotating pillar tracks seconds. Another, at 3 o'clock, tracks 24 hours.
    • The 24-hour pillar revolves too slowly for the eye to track, symbolizing the unnoticed passage of time.
    • “This watch is really about reminding you that you should slow down and look at the details and focus on the right now.” — Aurelie Picaud (06:48)

4. Mother of Pearl Dial: Craft and Challenge (08:12–12:43)

• Artistry Meets Technique:

  • The dial’s ripple effect is achieved through a combination of CNC and hand-finishing.
  • “We start a little bit with the CNC but then we do everything by hand.” — Aurelie Picaud (08:47)

• Material Challenges:

  • Discusses the fragility of mother of pearl and the high standards of quality and reliability set by Emmanuel.

• Innovative Thickness:

  • Thicker, 2.5mm mother of pearl dials mitigate breakage risks for the first time in their collection.

5. Unique Rotating Ring & Symbolism (12:43–13:37)

• Controlled Clockwise Only Rotation:

  • The ring on the dial moves only clockwise, symbolizing the impossibility of going back in time.
    “We want really people to understand that you never go back in time... just focus on the right now and what’s in front of you.” — Aurelie Picaud (12:58)

• Technical Achievement:

  • The double rotor provides enough energy to reliably move the ring, which is in gold and set with diamonds.

6. Caseback Design Innovation (13:37–14:44)

• Engraved Sapphire Crystal:

  • The caseback’s sapphire crystal is “put in depth” (engraved/cut) to create space for rotor movement.
  • “The sapphire crystal has been... put in depth in order that you have the space, you got that space to move.” — Aurelie Picaud (14:28)

• Hosts’ Reaction:

  • “Incredible. Absolutely incredible. I’ve never seen that before. Oh, this is a watch of many firsts.” — Rob (14:44)

7. Production, Price, and Client Approach (14:44–16:43)

• Price Point:

  • The featured watch retails at 112,000 CHF.
  • “Bargain, bargain. We’ll take three, please. Each.” — Rob (15:00, jokingly)

• Manufacturing Model:

  • Production occurs per order; components are ready, then finished based on client preferences to ensure a truly bespoke experience.
  • “We want the... fresh from the oven, the watch to the client and involve the client as well.” — Aurelie Picaud (15:58)

• Limited Editions:

  • Some models are limited (e.g., only five pieces of the full sapphire-cased Complication One), while others are limited only by production capacity.

8. Retail Approach & Distribution (16:43–18:27)

• Direct and Boutique Retail:

  • Existing relationships with select retailers; emphasis on curating partners who understand and reflect the brand’s values and communicate its story.
  • “What’s important for us is to have... the right partners... able also to understand... and tell also the story that those watches tell.” — Aurelie Picaud (16:49)

• Openness to Network Growth:

  • Invites interested retailers to reach out directly. “Our doors are open.” — Aurelie Picaud (18:04)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Philosophy on Time:
  “Life is just a moment, a passing hour, a fleeting day.” (01:58, relayed from a radio segment)

• Design Philosophy Manifest:
  “You never go back in time. So do not bother that they passed all the time. Just focus on the right now and what’s in front of you.” — Aurelie Picaud (12:58)

• On Reliability:
  “He actually... spent three years in order to work on the reliability because it's so important and he's very purist.” — Aurelie Picaud (10:13)

• Host Humor on Pricing:
  “Bargain, bargain. We'll take three, please. Each.” — Rob (15:00)

• Invitation to Retail Partners:
  “Please contact us directly... we are always very happy to talk to anyone and also to make people discover the manufacturer. So our doors are open.” — Aurelie Picaud (18:04)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:34 – Origins of the Emmanuel Bouchet brand
• 03:42 – Introduction of "Macle" (second company)
• 04:26 – In-house caliber discussion
• 05:08 – Debut of new collection and movement
• 06:48 – Philosophy and function of “pillars of time”
• 08:47 – Hand-finishing of the mother of pearl dial
• 12:00 – Material challenges with mother of pearl
• 12:58 – Rotating ring, philosophical symbolism
• 14:28 – Sapphire crystal caseback innovation
• 15:00 – Pricing and production model
• 16:49 – Distribution and retail approach
• 18:04 – How to contact the brand

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Tone and Atmosphere

The conversation is open, warm, and occasionally playful, with moments of technical deep-dive and philosophical reflection. The hosts maintain a balance of curiosity and humor, while Aurelie brings detailed insights and passion for Emmanuel Bouchet’s unique vision to the table. The episode offers both granular watchmaking detail and the “big picture” philosophy behind the brand’s creations.

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For More:
Interested retailers or enthusiasts can contact the brand directly via their website or by emailing Aurelie Picaud for more information or to arrange a visit to the manufacture.

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This summary captures the heart of the conversation, ideal for listeners seeking both technical insight and the emotion behind Emmanuel Bouchet’s creations at Geneva Watch Days 2025.

Transcript

[Aurelie Picot]

Foreign.

[Rob]

Watch fans and welcome back to Geneva watch days 2025 in the glass igloo outside the pavilion by Laclaman. In the center of watchmaking, we are joined by Emmanuel Boucher and Aurelie Picot of Emmanuel Boucher, the brand, the talk of the town, the most exciting new thing on the block. And we're about to learn a little bit more about it, thanks to these two more lovely guests. Welcome to you both to the studio.

[Aurelie Picot]

Thank you.

[Sam]

Welcome, welcome. And if you're thinking, why am I sitting next to Rob? It's hot and steamy. In the end, sitting with Rob is extremely steamy. Very, very nice. But there's a reason why I'm here. Usually we only have three in the igloo because we simply don't have enough space and not enough mics. But what I love most doing on the real time show is going into an interview blank.

[Rob]

We're good at that.

[Sam]

And I've been following the brand a little while, and I don't know much about it. I was looking forward to this so much. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to schedule this earlier in the week, but I could not miss this whatsoever. So I'm very excited for the story. Who goes first?

[Rob]

Who goes first? Let's see. Let's get a little bit of background. Let's start with a history, and then we'll have a look at some of the watches that you've brought along. Because, to be quite honest, I caught a glimpse of one that Emmanuel had in a case, and it blew me away. So I can't wait to learn more about it.

[Aurelie Picot]

Okay, so maybe a little bit of a background, actually. So Emmanuel is coming. Like, I think it's important to mention he's coming from a family of watchmakers. His grandfather, his father was both were both watchmakers. And he's a very talented, talented one, obviously, but he was never really thinking of creating his own watch brand. Even so, he's the watchmaker behind the Harry Winston Opus 12. And even at that time, he never thought of really doing his brand. But then, you know, one day he had like a. He was really completely stroked by a statement about time that he heard on the radio. And this statement was actually summarizing everything he always says about time and the philosophy of time. And this statement was, life is just a moment, a passing hour, a fitting day. And from that day, he really decided to actually do his own complications and watches in order to express his philosophy of time. So Emmanuel created the Emmanuel Boucher watch brand back in 2014. Emmanuel started with the complication one watch, and then he focused then for a few years or so on unique pieces for clients. And also because he has another company doing also complication calibers and watches for other brands. But, you know, he tries now. Not that he tries, but he decided I will actually apply my own time philosophy to myself as well. And I want to really focus now on my own watch grant. So that's why we are here at Geneva watch days for like the really like the chapter, the next chapter of Emmanuel Boucher continuing with the same philosophy and communities really like novelties. And we have novelties for the next few years.

[Sam]

I have no idea where Rob went to. It's becoming so hot and steamy in here. And he got so excited by the fleeting time philosophy. That's amazing. May I ask what the second company is called?

[Aurelie Picot]

Yes. The second company is called macle.

[Sam]

Macle spelled M A C L E F is the. I know the Swiss don't like that so much, but I always ask any partners, you can mention their names for.

[Aurelie Picot]

I'm not sure about that.

[Sam]

Hey, this is the real time show. We push the limits. I've tried, guys. At least I tried. So you start 11 years ago?

[Aurelie Picot]

Yeah.

[Sam]

Is how much of it in house proprietary?

[Aurelie Picot]

Sorry?

[Sam]

How much of the watches and calibers are done in house?

[Aurelie Picot]

All the calibers actually. Emmanuel is really. So we are really like designing, developing, doing the construction and also producing most of the things for the movement. Except obviously for some components which are very specific, like the rubies of the movement. But otherwise, regarding the calibers, we do everything in house and we have really eminel Boucher manufacture calibers.

[Rob]

I want to look at them. May we please explore some of these novelties? So alons just picked up the one that caught my eye before. And I have to say it is extremely arresting is what I would say. It stopped me in my tracks. The color of the strap, the beautiful dial, Is it mother of pearl?

[Aurelie Picot]

Yes, the dial is mother of pearl indeed. And just to mention as well that our pieces can be really, really bespoke, that this TR also to be like a. A small manufacture. And here that's an example, even the color of the strap. But we. We really do also bespoke pieces. And if we go into really like this new product, this is not only a new collection, but this is also a new movement, a new caliber. So the caliber is a double rotor movement. So you have two rotors. And why doing this movement? It's because Emmanuel is always thinking of complication and you know, Getting sometimes, I would say a bit frustrated about it, that most complications take so much of the force that the amplitude is going down very picky. And so he wanted really, in order to be able to develop any type of complication that he wants to develop, really have a movement which is actually keeping. It's not to extend the power reserve, but really to keep the amplitude of the power reserve stable. For example, if you have 45 hours power reserve with full performance, the idea of the double rotor is to keep without having a decrease in the amplitude. So that's for the new caliber. And if we go into this watch itself, what it does, it's actually making people reflect about time and our relationship to time. This is really using complications in order to be able to make people slow down. So just few explanations. On that watch, in terms of function, you have a dial for hours and minutes and you have then what we call the pillars of time. So you have one pillar which is actually rotating at the speed of the second. One of the other pillar at 3 o', clock, it's actually rotating at the speed of the 24 hours. Like the day and night. Why? Because the day and night you're not able to really see the rotation. It's too slow. Emmanuel wants actually to make people understand and to be reminded that actually, you know, in life many important things happen and you don't. You do not even realize that an hour has passed, that actually a day has passed or your life has passed. So this watch is really about reminding you that you should also. Even if you do not see the rotation, thanks to the location of the stones on the pillars of time, you see that they have moved. You will never see yourself the rotation. But you have to be reminded to slow down and look at the details and focus on the right now.

[Sam]

Oh, really? I was so mesmerized. The words I have here, I did not get any. Can you please repeat that? No, I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I'm sorry, I. Listen, I'm kidding. I am. My wife says not. But I think I can do two things at once.

[Rob]

Yeah, yeah, that's right. As always. Look, this mother of pearl dial has got me captivated. The pillars of time are incredible. They're sculptural. They're like nothing we've ever seen before. But is this dial CNC'd or cut or how is it formed? It's got a ripple effect in it.

[Aurelie Picot]

Like. You mean the mother of pearl that is the curd.

[Rob]

Yeah.

[Aurelie Picot]

Okay, so we have. We start obviously with the raw Mozzarella material. We start a little bit with the cnc but then we do everything by hand.

[Sam]

So you take off material but take a layer of.

[Aurelie Picot]

Exactly. So there are some areas where, you know, it has to be so acc rate in terms of the dimension obviously that you cannot do everything by hand from the start because you have to make sure that you respect all the dimensions.

[Sam]

So mother of pearl is rather porous. Not so much porous, but it can chip.

[Rob]

Very brittle.

[Sam]

Yeah, very brittle. So what's the fill rate per d?

[Aurelie Picot]

What's the.

[Sam]

What's fail rate? So how much is. Is. Is discarded? Doesn't pass the quality control. Hello.

[Aurelie Picot]

It's very, you know, like it's very important for. For us to have really. Of course, like we are reliable watches. So yeah, like we are sure that everything is. Is made in the right way to pass all the tests also. And he's really actually happy that you asked the question because, you know, for example, the complication one that was launched a few years ago, he actually like spent three years in order to work on the reliability because it's so important and he's very purist. His approach of, you know, he wants to deliver the clients really something which is. Yeah, reliable and with the best accuracy and is the best materials.

[Rob]

I think one of the things that Alan was interested in when it comes to the construction of the dial is how often do they break when you're making them. Because this is like a very fine material and this is an extremely invasive process for something like mother of pearl cncing and hand finishing. You might run into a. You could be working on the dial for days and then suddenly run into a failure point. Is it common that they break in the production? I understand that when they're ready.

[Aurelie Picot]

So on flat mother of pearl, because it's so thin. Yes. Obviously even manipulating the dial you can actually break it. So here for example, we are relieved with the sickness, which is higher, like 2.5 milliliters. So actually we have less risk. So this is the first time that we do this type of dial actually since it's novelties, but we didn't have any issue with those dials.

[Rob]

Amazing. Yeah, absolutely gorgeous.

[Aurelie Picot]

And just maybe to add about this product, I forgot to mention there is also like a UEC on the dial, hours and minutes. There is also around like what, what I call like a rotated ring.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Aurelie Picot]

And this is actually not like a, you know, like a rotor that will go randomly from left to right depending on the. The movement of the wrist. It's actually only Going to clockwise for two reasons. So first, Emmanuel wanted to prove that thanks to the double rotor movement, you have enough energy to be able to move this ring in gold with diamonds, which is part heavy. And also to control the fact it's only going in one direction, clockwise. And the philosophical explanation we want really people to understand that you never go back in time. So do not bother that they passed all the time. Just focus on the right now and what's in front of you.

[Rob]

There's something on the case back that's jumped out to me here. It may not be visible on the video, but if you look at the rotor, surrounding the rotor, there is a line. Oh, there you can see it right there. Is that a second crystal or is it an engraved crystal? The rotor. The. The rotor is surrounded by this line here that's engraved on the crystal.

[Sam]

Is it hollow? Loud? Yeah. Is it hollow out? Maybe. Did the whole of the cave back the glasses?

[Aurelie Picot]

Sapphire? Yes, a sapphire crystal. Yeah.

[Rob]

But this line around the row, did.

[Sam]

They cut out material and make space?

[Aurelie Picot]

You know, it's very interesting question because actually the sapphire crystal has been like not curved, but. What's the word in English?

[Rob]

Engraved.

[Aurelie Picot]

Put in depth in order that you have the space, you got that space to move.

[Sam]

They send a cutout in the sound.

[Aurelie Picot]

Thank you. That's the word I was looking for. Yeah.

[Sam]

So my guess was good. That's a good.

[Rob]

Incredible. Absolutely incredible. I've never seen that before. Oh, this is a watch of many firsts. Tell me, how much do we have to pay to get one of these on our wrists?

[Aurelie Picot]

So for this watch, 112,000 Swiss prayers.

[Sam]

How much?

[Aurelie Picot]

112,000 Swiss francs.

[Rob]

Bargain, bargain. We'll take three, please. Each. They pay a village in evil.

[Sam]

No, but on a serious note, that is. It's a lot of money, but it's reasonable. How many pieces do you make per model and in total per year over the brand?

[Aurelie Picot]

So we work more like. It's not that we produce a number of watches at the same time, or because we want also to be able to build a relationship with the clients and we prefer to only having, for example, for this watch, adding the components already and then to be able to maybe have, you know, if the client prefers another color dial, we would make the dial. So it's cheap that everything is ready in terms of the movement, component and case. But then we can set the case depending on the request, we can have another dial, another strap. So it's actually not that we have all the PCs produced in months and we Want the. I always say give, you know, fresh from the oven, the watch to the client and involve the client as well. It's actually what we love doing.

[Sam]

So I think you've worked for the big groups. You gave me a very political answer.

[Aurelie Picot]

Donkey are limited.

[Sam]

No. But on a serious note, Oli, are these models limited or don't you work with unlimited editions?

[Aurelie Picot]

So they are limited by production itself. Then we do also sometimes limited edition. For example, we have like a limited edition of the complication one watch with a full sapphire case. And like it's so delicate to do. That's a five pieces limited edition. So yes, sometimes we do limited edition. Otherwise it's not limited by the production itself.

[Sam]

And how can consumers buy them besides going direct to you guys?

[Aurelie Picot]

So that's also a very good question. So we like working here, directing this client. But also we are starting really now to talk to some partners. So what's important for us is to have even that's only a few partners. To have the right partners again to build this relationship with them and have, you know, partners who are actually able also to understand. Take the time to understand the watches and be able to tell also the story that those watches tell. So yeah, that's.

[Sam]

And you have retailers currently selling the brand?

[Aurelie Picot]

Yeah, we have like. So when Emmanuel started the brands we had already a few retailers, for example in the US and now we start also, you know, rebranding a little bit as well the distribution. So for example, we will start in Geneva with Salon des Anglo. Really this type of retailers who are very specializing to this type.

[Sam]

Please mention the names. Feel free if you know them by heart. Who do you have in the US.

[Aurelie Picot]

So we had in the US like a provident jewelry but because again we are starting this new chapter. Yeah, we will. We have reading now to explore how we look.

[Sam]

We have a lot of retailers listening. How should they reach you?

[Aurelie Picot]

Oh please contact. Contact us directly. There is direct site. There is a email address infomanelbuchet.com or directly to me, my first name.so aurelie.picomanielbusche.com and then we are always very happy to talk to anyone and also to make people discover the manufacturer. So our doors are open.

[Rob]

Aurelie Emmanuel, thank you so much for spending time with us.

[Aurelie Picot]

Thank you. It's a real pleasure for spending this time with us.

[Sam]

And thank you for our gifts. Yeah, we very generous this goody bag. We are not influencers, we're journalists and we're objective. But this time we'll make things will we take a gift?

[Rob]

Yeah, as soon as I press the theme, just start running too early. Join us very soon for the last live interview of Geneva Watch Days 2025. Sam.