CHAPTER 01
Why Hans Wilsdorf started a second brand
The Tudor trademark was registered in 1926 for Hans Wilsdorf, who later established Montres Tudor S.A. in 1946. His objective, recorded in Tudor's own history, was not to duplicate Rolex at every price point but to apply lessons about reliability and service to more accessible watches. Early Tudor examples shared important technical and distribution associations with Rolex while gradually developing a recognizable identity of their own.
That distinction matters for a serious museum. Rolex and Tudor have a shared founder and intertwined origins, but they are not simply one brand with two logos. The histories of their products, movements and engineering decisions diverged over decades. Earlier Tudor examples and modern Tudor manufacture calibers must also be understood in the context of their particular production periods.
CHAPTER 02
The diver's watch becomes a tool
Tudor introduced its first Oyster Prince Submariner in 1954. Readable luminous markings, a rotating bezel and a suitably protected case answered practical underwater needs rather than purely decorative trends. Military and professional use formed part of the brand's subsequent identity, including its documented relationship with the French Navy.
It is useful to distinguish the historical Tudor Submariner from the modern Rolex Submariner and from later Tudor Black Bay and Pelagos families. Those names and design characteristics connect across eras, but reference numbers, movements, materials and tested specifications differ. A museum can explain their lineage without suggesting a historic model is currently available for sale.
CHAPTER 03
Inside the Le Locle manufacture
Tudor describes a 5,500-square-metre, four-level facility in Le Locle, completed in 2021 after three years of construction, and physically linked to the neighboring Kenissi manufacture. Tudor assembled and tested watches there while Kenissi supports movement production. The relationship illustrates the difference between manufacturing component families and bringing a complete watch through final assembly and inspection.
Documentary footage shows an industrial process far removed from romantic scenes of one watchmaker handling every single part. Automated storage, tracked movements and repeated testing coexist with the skilled people responsible for operations that still demand experience and judgment. Industrial automation is not evidence that a watch lacks craftsmanship; it is one way a manufacture pursues consistency.
CHAPTER 04
What the factory footage really reveals
The best documentary sequence follows components from suppliers to hairspring and case production, then to final movement assembly, dial work and watch testing. It helps viewers separate true movement manufacturing from the work of receiving, finishing, assembling and regulating parts. It also makes modern watchmaking a story of logistics and quality control.
Tudor does not publish a single fixed production method for every reference and year. The linked documentaries are independent editorial reporting, not advertisements produced by Harbor2Arbor. Their views of a particular factory and period should be read as evidence of that process, not as a guarantee about any individual watch.
CHAPTER 05
Why the story matters today
Tudor provides a useful case study of a long-established brand investing in a dedicated industrial facility and the capabilities needed for high-volume precision manufacturing. Watching automated testing beside traditional bench operations creates a more realistic appreciation of what technical watchmaking involves.
At Harbor2Arbor, this history belongs in the museum even when particular Tudor models are not listed in the shop. Learning the difference between a manufacture movement, an outside supplier, a regulator and a watch assembly facility helps collectors ask better questions of every brand.
DOCUMENTARY FILMS / INDEPENDENT PUBLISHERS
See the manufacture for yourself
These are videos made by their credited publishers, not by Harbor2Arbor. Choose to load a privacy-enhanced YouTube player, or open the original video on YouTube. We do not preload outside video tracking.
Visiting Tudor's Manufacture in Switzerland
Teddy Baldassarre · 2024
Le Locle assembly, Master Chronometer testing and factory robotics.
View original on YouTube ↗How Tudor Watches Are Actually Made | Full Supply Chain
Time+Tide Watches · 2026
From movement components and hairsprings to case finishing, assembly and automated testing.
View original on YouTube ↗RESEARCH LIBRARY
Sources and further reading
Dates and mechanisms are grounded in manufacturer history or public institutional records. Manufacturer histories can reflect a brand's own perspective. External material remains the responsibility of its publisher.