Tissot SA is a Swiss luxury watchmaker.The company was founded in Le Locle, Switzerland by Charles-Félicien Tissot and his son, Charles-Émile Tissot, in 1853. After several mergers and name changes, the group which Tissot SA belonged to was renamed the Swatch Group in 1998.
History
Independent company
Tissot was founded in 1853 by Charles-Félicien Tissot and his son Charles-Émile Tissot in the Swiss city of Le Locle, in the Neuchâtel area of the Jura Mountains. Charles-Emile Tissot left for Russia in 1858 and succeeded in selling their savonnette pocket watches across the Russian Empire.
In 2021, the company is marketing Le Locle Powermatic 80, which has a watch face designed to mimic the clock tower in its founding city of Le Locle.
Omega, SSIH, ASUAG, SMH
Tissot merged with watch company Omega SA in 1930, forming SSIH (Société Suisse pour l’Industrie Horlogère), and Tissot-Omega watches from this era are sought after by collectors.
Tissot’s first engagement as an official timekeeper was in 1938 where they timed a series of ski races in Villars-sur-Ollon, near the company’s home town in the Jura mountains. Tissot was used for timing downhill skiing in Switzerland in 1938, and for the Davis Cup in 1957.
SSIH-ASUAG was formed in 1983 (Allgemeine Schweizerische Uhrenindustrie Aktiengesellschaft, ASUAG, was a holding company supplying the watch industry), then SMH (Société Suisse de Microélectronique et d’horlogerie; 1983–1985).
Swatch subsidiary
SMH took the name of the Swatch Group in 1998. Tissot SA remained in Le Locle, Switzerland, and marketed in 160 countries. Tissot watches are classified by the Swatch Group as “mid-range market” products.
Tissot is an official timekeeper for the world championships in cycling, motorcycling, fencing and ice hockey, etc. Tissot was a sponsor for the Formula One car-racing teams Lotus, Renault, and Sauber. In the past handheld stopwatches were sufficient to provide official timings; in more recent times manufacturers and sporting bodies together develop more accurate systems for specific events. In competitive cycling, for instance, sensors are placed on the bikes and track, and linked by computers to provide track timings and performance data.
