Nivada Grenchen: a hundred years of instrument watchmaking

Ask any collector about a Swiss brand with genuine history and a laughably low price, and sooner or later they will say “Nivada Grenchen”. That is no accident. These watches went to Antarctica and descended to a thousand metres when almost no one else did. And today you can wear them for a fraction of what that kind of pedigree usually costs.

1926: watches made to work

Nivada Grenchen se funda en 1926 en Grenchen, el epicentro de la relojería suiza, de la mano de Otto Wüllimann, Hermann Schindler y Jakob Schneider. Desde el primer día su terreno es el reloj herramienta: estanco, fiable, preciso. Y en los años 50 y 60 deja tres piezas para la historia.

The Antarctic earned its name accompanying polar expeditions and withstanding the cold without flinching. The Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver, from 1961, was a Swiss army knife on the wrist: chronograph, tachymeter, regatta countdown and dual time zone. And the Depthmaster, from 1965, offered 1,000 metres of water resistance when that sounded like science fiction.

The silence and the comeback

The quartz crisis shut the brand down for decades, as it did so many others. The difference is that this one came back. In 2018, French entrepreneur Guillaume Laidet revived the name and relaunched it with reissues so faithful that they are hard to tell apart from the originals. Today's catalogue —Antarctic, Chronomaster, Depthmaster, the integrated-bracelet F77— is, essentially, a greatest hits collection.

Why it works so well

Because it gives you authentic vintage design, not invented, with modern Swiss mechanics and a price that, for what it offers, still looks like a mistake in your favour. If you want to start collecting watches with real history without ruining yourself, there are few better ways in.

Where to buy it in Spain

At World Watch Museum we are an official dealer: new watches, original, with official warranty, free shipping and a boutique in Madrid.

See all Nivada Grenchen watches

Three common questions

Is today's Nivada the original brand?

Yes: the historic name, dating from 1926, was revived in 2018 and today reissues its classic models.

What are its icons?

The Antarctic (diving), the Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver (chronograph) and the Depthmaster (high water resistance).

Are they Swiss watches?

Yes, Swiss watchmaking with modern mechanical movements on original vintage designs.