What is the history of the Universal Genève watch?

The history of the Universal Genève watch dates back to 1894, when Numa-Emile Descombes and Ulysse George founded the Universal Genève company in Le Locle, Switzerland. At that time, it was called Universal Watch. During its early years, Universal Watch crafted movements and components for other companies. Then, it unveiled its first chronograph watch in 1917. Over the years that followed, the company introduced a number of successful collections, including the Compur in 1934, the Uni-Compax in 1936 and the Simple Calendar in 1943. Universal Genève also created the first anti-magnetic watch, a timepiece capable of keeping time accurately even when worn during expeditions to the North Pole. During the quartz crisis of the 1970s and ’80s, Universal Genève's sales slumped. It attempted to relaunch in 1994, 2005 and 2019 with modest success. Private investment firms Partners Group and CVC Capital Partners purchased the company with the intention of returning it to its roots of producing luxury, complex chronograph watches. On 1stDibs, find a variety of Universal Genève watches.