pos, Latin derived from Ancient Greek, is a long narrative poem that recounts a hero’s deeds – an apposite name for a brand that has made its own epic journey, having originated in the midst of the most devastating crisis the Swiss watch industry has ever known.

At a time when countless brands were turning to new quartz technology simply to survive, watch industry veteran Peter Hofer had other ideas and chose an entirely different path: to preserve traditional mechanical watchmaking.

“Peter Hofer had years of experience in the industry. He joined forces with Jean Fillon, heir to the James Aubert brand. The two of them launched Epos in 1983 and created some of its defining calibres, such as the jumping hours, power reserve, regulator and big date. They wrote the blueprint for the Epos brand: affordably priced, high added-value mechanical watches. Base movements came from stocks of ETA, Peseux and Landeron calibres which they were able to acquire,” says current chief executive, Tamdi Chonge-Forster.

The brand grew steadily for almost two decades, particularly in Asia where interest in Swiss mechanical watches was strong.

A family affair for more than 20 years

In the early 2000s, Peter Hofer, who had no descendants, was looking to hand over the reins. Enter Tamdi Chonge-Forster: “I’d been working in the Swiss watch industry since 1971. I started out at Fortis then moved to Certina in 1975, where I spent many years in an executive role. I’d experienced the quartz crisis first-hand, the massive layoffs. It had always been my ambition to head up my own mechanical watch brand, so when I heard that Peter Hofer wanted to sell his company, I got in touch. In 2002 my wife Ursula Forster and I became the new owners.”

Objective number-one was to grow the brand internationally and focus on the Epos brand itself, as Tamdi Chonge-Forster explains: “Epos was doing a lot of private label work in Europe. For example, we had ten separate clients in Germany who were using Epos watches under ten different names. My wife and I decided to phase out all private label production and focus on reaffirming the Epos name.”

Accordingly, the 8,000 to 12,000 watches produced each year have Epos on the dial. Movements are based on Sellita blanks or calibres, modified by the three watchmakers at the brand’s ateliers in Lengnau. All watches are designed in-house and assembled in collaboration with a long-standing partner. A lot of the work is done by the Chonge-Forsters themselves, which helps maintain affordable pricing.

“The market has changed significantly since 2002, when mid-range mechanical watches were few and far between. Now competition is tough. We never take our eye off the ball,” Chonge-Forster affirms.

In the founder’s footsteps

So how does the brand stand out in this crowed segment? Tamdi Chonge-Forster’s answer echoes Peter Hofer’s original intent: “We focus on our added-value models with our own movement modules, which we try to keep in an affordable price range of CHF 1,500 to CHF 3,500. We also propose a prestige model, a minute repeater, for under CHF 15,000.”

Among Epos’s bestsellers are its moon phase and vertical big date models: popular complications at very affordable prices. Chonge-Forster also cites the Verso, whose movement is based on an inverted Unitas pocket watch calibre, as another customer favourite.

As the market contracts, Tamdi Chonge-Forster is upfront about the current state of affairs: “It is a difficult market right now, with considerable geopolitical instability in China as well as Russia. The US appears to be stable but this isn’t one of Epos’s markets. We’re fortunate that, as a small family-run business, we can weather storms and adapt. We’re working on more complex modules and will develop new markets. The US will be one, as well as India.”

Will this mean increased prices? “Absolutely not,” Chonge-Forster insists. “We aim to stay within our price range. Over my long experience in the industry, I’ve seen many brands try to break into higher price segments and fail. Our objective is to make our watches more desirable, for example by introducing colourful designs that will attract new customers. At the end of the day, Epos is about the added value we build into our watches and we’ll continue to push this.”