Omega

Founded in 1848 in Switzerland by Louis Brandt at the age of twenty-three. Louis Brandt died in 1879 and his two sons, Cesar and Louis-Paul, took over the company. They did not match the success of their father and Omega lost their reputation. After Louis-Paul and Cesar died in 1903, the company was left in the hands of four people and the oldest, Paul-Emile Brandt, was not even twenty-four years old yet. Omega was one of those watch companies that struggled economically during the late 1970s and early 1980s which was later on taken over by a group that would soon be called, Swatch Group. Omega was known as the first watch on the moon in 1969 and the watch to accomplish that goal was the Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph. Omega began manufacturing the Seamaster collection in 1947 and it was an impressive 300 meter water resistant. The Seamaster collection was used in the recent James Bond films, from 1995 to 2008. In 1999 George Daniels, an English watchmaker, invented the first mass-produced timepiece utilizing the co-axial escapement. Most considered this horological invention as one of the most significant functions in watchmaking history and that is why Omega has patented the invention.