Over more than a decade, Watch Collecting Lifestyle has been granted access to some of haute horlogerie's most significant manufactures and museums. These aren't promotional factory tours repackaged as content; they're detailed examinations of where serious watchmaking happens, documented with the same editorial rigor we apply to the rest of our coverage.
For watch collectors who joined us recently or for longtime readers seeking to revisit these foundational editorials, we’ve assembled our complete archive of manufacture visits and museum explorations. Each represents days of overseas travel, hours of access, years of relationship-building, and the kind of behind-the-scenes perspective the manufactures reserve for publications they take seriously, not content creators seeking a backdrop for social media posts.
The Manufactures
Visiting the Audemars Piguet Manufacture in Le Brassus
A longtime dream realized. Our comprehensive look inside AP's historic workshops in Le Brassus, before the recent expansion toward volume production. This captures the manufacture when it still prioritized horological substance over market penetration.
Visiting the Vacheron Constantin Manufacture in Geneva
The world's oldest continuously operating manufacture. Our morning at Plan-les-Ouates revealed the technical infrastructure behind 270 years of uninterrupted production, from movement architecture to the Métiers d'Art atelier.
Visiting the Jaeger-LeCoultre Manufacture in Le Sentier, Switzerland
La Grande Maison of the Vallée de Joux, where 180 different métiers operate under one roof. Our visit documented everything from hairspring production to the Hybris Mechanica complications that define technical ambition in contemporary Swiss watchmaking.
Visiting the Breguet Manufacture in L'Orient
Home to the world's largest guillochage department. Our visit documented the traditional engine-turning techniques and grand complication assembly that connect contemporary Breguet to Abraham-Louis Breguet's original vision.
Come Inside the MB&F M.A.D. House
Max Büsser's headquarters and atelier in Carouge. Unlike traditional manufactures, the M.A.D. House operates within a renovated 1800s residence where eight watchmakers conduct every operation—from initial sketches and CAD design through final assembly, timing, and post-sales service for their kinetic sculptures.
Visiting the Armin Strom Manufacture in Biel/Bienne
A small but mighty, fully integrated independent manufacture. This visit demonstrated what genuine independence means—complete in-house capabilities from movement design through case production, operating without conglomerate resources or compromise.
The Museums
Experience the Patek Philippe Museum
The most comprehensive horological collection accessible to the public. Our detailed walkthrough covers both the Antique Collection (1500-1850) and the complete Patek Philippe archive, including pieces from Henry Graves Jr., the Calibre 89, and nearly every significant reference in the manufacture's history.
The Breguet Museum in Paris
Located on Place Vendôme, this intimate collection preserves examples of Abraham-Louis Breguet's innovations—the tourbillon, pare-chute anti-shock system, and gong springs for repeaters—alongside personal correspondence and historic workshop tools.
Why These Matter
These archives document haute horlogerie's infrastructure before consolidation accelerated, before volume strategies dominated, when technical excellence remained the primary competitive advantage. They capture manufactures as they were, not as marketing materials present them.
For collectors evaluating current releases, these visits provide essential context. Understanding what a manufacture is capable of—what expertise exists in-house, what traditions inform current production—determines whether new releases represent genuine achievement or merely product line extension.
