Not many ‘new’ brands get the attention Bell & Ross does, and for good reason. To me it has always felt like it was an older company, probably founded at the turn of the 20th century, which I guess that’s really a credit to their branding efforts and their affinity for aviation history. Nonetheless, they claim an important position in the pyramid of watch brands and may soon see themselves occupying a similar position in the vintage watch market.
Bell & Ross was born in Paris in 1992, out of a project by friends Bruno Belamich and Carlos Rosillio while they were still students in university, Bruno at Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Création Industrielle and Carlos at HEC Paris. The company was founded with a strong conviction to focus on functional design with the phrase, “function shapes from” still at the center of its design philosophy. Since the beginning they made rugged watches, capable of enduring in extreme conditions, while also experimenting with unique styling that takes its inspiration from aviation. In 1994, Bell & Ross released a homage to the Space 1 chronometer, worn by astronaut Reinhart Furrer for the 1983 Spacelab mission to great success. Then, in 1997 they broke the Guiness World Record for water resistance with the Bell & Ross Hydro Challenger. They even ventured into women’s watches in the early 2000s with the release of the Mystery Diamond, another design marvel that used a floating diamond above the dial for its hour hand.
Today Bell & Ross continues its exploration of watch design from its facility in La-Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, currently offering a ‘Vintage’ and ‘Marine’ collection in addition to its Aviation one. Both friends continue in their roles at the company, with Rosillo as CEO and Belamich as Creative Director, and continue to oversee its establishment as an incumbent watch brand, with a history nearing 30 years.
By: Andres Ibarguen