The Story of a Nivada Grechen Diver
Nivada Depthmaster / Credit: Fellows
2020 is the year of changes. One of such changes was the rebirth of Nivada Grenchen, an old Swiss watch brand known for producing high-quality watches almost 100 years ago. Nivada was known for its US distribution name, ‘Croton’, and a few models like the Antarctic, released in 1950 and used by the U.S. Navy for Operation Deep Freeze in the South Pole, and the Chronomaster; the brand’s first waterproof chronograph released in 1963. Those are probably their two most popular models, however, another one of their 1960s releases was the Depthmaster, also known as the ‘Baby Panerai’.
The Nivada Depthmaster has its origins in the Nivada Depthomatic, the first watch fitted with a depth gauge – released in 1964. The Depthmaster was released shortly after (presumably in 1965 but it is unclear) and advertised as potentially the most water-resistant watch produced to date: “Probably the world’s most waterproof watch…”. It wasn’t, however, as several other watch brands used the exact same case to produce their own versions of the ‘Baby Panerai’. Notably, Sandoz released their own watch a couple years earlier, in 1963, beating Nivada to having the first watch with a depth rating of 1,000 meters!
1960s ‘Le Marc’ CASD Chronomaster. LeMarc was a retailer who sold the Nivada Grenchen Chronomaster under their own brand in the mid-20th century.
The Depthmaster used the workhorse ETA 2472, an automatic movement with the date, a 42-hour power reserve, 18,000 bph, and either 17, 21, or 25 jewels. The ETA 2472 was a fairly high-grade movement for the 1960s and was even available in chronometer grade. Nivada also used this movement for several other models and Valjoux 92 for the Chronomaster.
With all the successful watch releases, Nivada increased its exports more than 3-fold throughout the late 1960s. However, they were decimated by the Quartz Attack. The brand was sold to a Mexican holding company where it remained until it was acquired by its current owners and relaunched this year! Ultimately, Nivada lives on, particularly in the vintage market where these watches that only cost less than $100 now go for thousands!
By: Andres Ibarguen