Alongside established names of the watchmaking world, like Bovet 1822, Bulgari, Piaget, Tudor, and Ulysse Nardin, a young French Maison made jurors take notice at last year’s Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. Referred to as the Oscars of watchmaking, the Grand Prix is an international competition that honors excellence and innovation in the field of horology. The winner of the Audacity Prize in the mechanical timepiece category, Persée Azure, is one of a series of three by Maison Alcée.
Alcée & Benoit Montfort accepting the Audacity Prize at GPHG 2023.
We spoke to Alcée Montfort, the founder of Maison Alcée, and found out what makes the Persée timepieces so special.
For the love of craftsmanship
Maison Alcée, named after the founder Alcée Montfort, is providing a new generation of enthusiasts with an elaborate watchmaking experience through its assemblable, make-your-own, timepieces. Their innovative approach to luxury challenges the notion of mass production, instead championing the value of artisanal craftsmanship and the beauty of individuality. After spending three years in design and development, Maison Alcée released the first 50 pieces for sale last year.
“The goal of Maison Alcée is to share the beauty of watchmaking,” shares Ms. Montfort. An engineer who blended her scientific aptitude with her love for luxury craftsmanship, Ms. Montfort’s career took her through prestigious institutions such as Hermès, Cartier, and Richemont. During her time at Tag Heuer, she discovered her passion for watchmaking. Collaborating with a master watchmaker, a horology educator, a designer, and a team of skilled artisans, Ms. Montfort and Benoit Montfort, her husband and co-founder, established Maison Alcée with a vision to share the beauty of watchmaking and timekeeping.
The Persée – something you’d find on a time-traveller’s wrist
Standing at 160 mm in height and weighing 900g, the Persée timepiece’s fully exposed mechanism is precisely cut from materials like watchmaking brass, stainless steel, aluminum, and nickel silver. When vertical, Persée resembles an hourglass. When horizontal, it is reminiscent of something a time-traveller would wear on the wrist.
The clean deliberate edges and a luxuriant polished metal finish sets the Persée as a joy to behold. The table clock is available in three variants: Persée Azur, Maison Alcée’s emblematic model inspired by the blue color of the Mediterranean; Persée Nuit, a black sentinel adorned with Maison’s signature yellow; Persée Douce, which brings a sense of delicacy to a sometimes austere world with its pink hue.
The Persée goes beyond just ownership
What truly sets Persée apart is the intent with which it was designed. It is not just to be owned but understood and assembled. And then marveled at. The assembly kit offers a journey of creativity and exploration. It invites individuals to rediscover the joy of creation and the wonder of childhood curiosity as they embark on the adventure of assembling their timepiece. Users embark on a 10-hour journey to assemble their timepiece, making the experience both engaging and fulfilling.
“It’s a personal challenge. It’s not easy, but everybody can succeed with one condition: you have to put in the concentration,” shares Ms. Montfort. A Persée kit includes 233 meticulously crafted components, 169 of which can be assembled by the user. The rest are part of a pre-assembled mechanism which requires the hands of a seasoned watchmaker.
The components are accompanied by 17 specialized watchmaking tools, each designed with the novice in mind to ensure precision and ease of use. From screwdrivers to tweezers, magnifying glasses to lubrication tools, every item in the kit has been carefully selected to facilitate the assembly process and guarantee a rewarding experience.
Maison Alcée also provides a detailed compendium that serves as a comprehensive guide through the assembly process. This educational booklet provides watchmaking expertise in an accessible language, offering users insights into the mysterious inner workings of timepieces. The guidebook is currently available in English and French.
Persée is unique in its concept. So much so, that its mechanical hand-wound movement had to be manufactured. The movement uses a spring-loaded cylinder, similar to that of a wristwatch, so assembling it will enable enthusiasts to properly understand the underlying mechanisms of a watch. It uses a spiral balance oscillator with a balance frequency of 18,000 vibrations per hour and indicates hours, minutes, and seconds. One single winding will keep it running for 14 days.
The design was conceived as a collaborative effort between the founders and Thierry Ducret – a third-generation watchmaker and a Meilleur Ouvrier de France awardee (one of France’s highest craftsmanship awards), Swiss designer Antoine Tschumi, and Jean-Marie Desgrange – a professor of watchmaking from the prestigious Morteau school.
“It was quite difficult to create a movement and find a partner for fabrication as we wanted to have the fabrication near to us. It was difficult to create this as even the screwdrivers were developed just for us,” explains Ms. Montfort. Maison Alcée works with about 30 local manufacturing partners, most of them in the French-Swiss Jura region – a UNESCO heritage site where a watchmaking industry was developed in the 19th century. Every component is made with undisputed Swiss and French expertise and the highest emphasis on quality at each stage of production.
Elevating the Maison Alcée experience
Even before you sit down to assemble a Persée timepiece, you will realize that Maison Alcée is an ardent believer in first impressions. The watch case is fully veneered by a skilled cabinet maker from Reims, France, to elevate the experience to one of luxury and sophistication. Cases are crafted from woods such as satinwood, olive ash, French walnut, burr walnut and burr maple – buyers can choose from any of these.
In addition to receiving a unique, numbered timepiece, patrons also have the opportunity to receive engraved plaques proudly bearing their initials. These plaques symbolize the commitment and individuality of each passionate enthusiast. Engraved with care and precision, these initials become a legacy to pass on, marking the ownership of a timepiece that embodies the values cherished by Maison Alcée.
The Persée has an optional hourly chime, available at additional cost, which can be installed onto the timepiece. If one wishes to take their assembly experience to the next level, Maison Alcée offers a watchmaker’s bench made from solid oak or beech wood. The workbench is complete with armrests and receptacles for a professional feel.
Where can you buy one
“The first 50 Persée pieces were released and sold out in 2023,” shares Ms. Montfort. In 2024, they “plan to double their units of production.” The price of a Persée timepiece kit starts from €5,500, for a Persée Douce. The Azur and Nuit variants are available for €5,900 and €6,900, respectively. An optional hour chime can be purchased for €1,400 and the workbench starts from €980.
Maison Alcée also provides interactive sessions where participants are given a theoretical introduction to watchmaking skills and techniques and can complete the partial assembly of a timepiece. These start from €1,600 per workshop. They also provide day-long sessions at their workshop starting from €5,500 per person. All articles are available for purchase from their website.
Maison Alcée ensures that each timepiece is meticulously crafted to achieve absolute precision. From the intricate lantern setting performed by expert watchmakers to the rigorous quality control measures, every aspect of the creation process is carefully curated to guarantee optimal performance and longevity. At the end, you are not only receiving a timepiece of exceptional quality, but also a chance to kindle your passion for watches.
