fter nearly 18 months of construction, Bucherer and Tourneau are thrilled to showcase a highly unique American flagship store in the heart of New York City’s most vibrant area. Located at 12 East 57th Street, home of the legendary Tourneau TimeMachine, the breathtaking new Bucherer 1888 flagship store is a three-story tall, almost 1,700-square-metre expanse.

The new emporium has been in the works since Bucherer acquired the leading US luxury watch retailer Tourneau in early 2018. With over a century of expertise and 28 locations across 10 states, Tourneau provided an exciting opportunity for the Lucerne-based Bucherer Group to establish a footprint and extend their portfolio of fine watches and jewellery to the United States.

Jörg G. Bucherer, owner and Chairman of the Board, comments: “I am incredibly excited to bring the Bucherer 1888 brand to the United States. As a Swiss family business, already in our third generation, we stand for the rich tradition of the Swiss quest for perfection and warm hospitality. The new flagship store is our commitment to constantly inspire our American customers with fascinating, curated brands and an impeccable Swiss service culture providing the very best personalised shopping experience.”

While the new store’s exterior will no longer carry the Tourneau name, the famous brand will not disappear overnight. Bucherer put a lot of effort into setting up a sustainable rebranding plan that will be executed over the course of one year. In the upcoming hybrid phase, the Tourneau brand will continue to appear prominently together with Bucherer 1888 in-store, on shopping bags and stationery, as well as in out- of-home and media campaigns.

“With this flagship store, we’ll introduce the Bucherer 1888 brand to millions of potential customers in one of the most important global watch and jewellery markets. This is also a great opportunity to raise awareness for the Carl F. Bucherer brand in the US and introduce Bucherer Fine Jewellery and Bucherer BLUE to the North American market,” explains Guido Zumbühl, CEO of Bucherer Group. “Tourneau’s management is a wonderful partner in this process. They will ensure continuity and help us drive the future success of Bucherer 1888 within the US.”

The Bucherer store also boasts some important firsts. On the top floor, a dedicated lounge and display area are devoted to the Bucherer Fine Jewellery collections. This marks the first time the magnificent jewellery will be available in America. For the New York opening, Bucherer is releasing several exceptional pieces made in their Lucerne ateliers that are New York exclusives, including a series of eight one-of-a-kind Fleur des Alpes cocktail rings each set with a different 7- or 8-carat centre stone and a Ladybird Stars of America trio of rings set with what the brand calls Big City Lights diamonds, Big Apple Red rubies and Hudson Blue sapphires.

Also making its entry into the American market is the Bucherer BLUE collection of exclusive collaboration timepieces made with partner brands – all with blue details, giving the creations a daring and innovative twist. For the launch of the store, nine new BLUE collaborations will make their debut, with two of these being exclusive to the US market.