In 1860 Louis-Ulysse Chopard set up a small factory in Sonvillier in the Swiss Jura to make Pocket Watches- which were particularly favored by railroad employees for their reliability.  Later his son branched out into jewelry watches, and his success brought about a move in 1920 to the then urban center of the horological world- Geneva.

One hundred years after it began, the company was in the aging hands of Paul Andre-Chopard, grandson of the founder, whose two sons showed no desire to enter the declining business.  Rescue came out of the blue from Germany.

At the turn of the century, a family named Scheufele had established a factory in the jewelry center of Pforzheim.  They built up a flourishing business making jewelry and watches, bracelets, and cases.  In WWII, Pforzheim was almost totally destroyed, and the Scheufele family had to build up their business once again.  By 1963, the firm was again prosperous and looking for work to put in a newly built factory at Birkenfeld.  They had always used Swiss movements in their watches, and when they decided to try to acquire a Swiss watchmaking house, they chanced upon Chopard.

Upon Karl Scheufele- the third generation of Karl's- production was rationalized, using Pforzheim for making jewelry and cases, and Geneva for building and assembling the watches.  Output rose to more than 30,000 watches/year, with 15,000 pieces of jewelry from the Birkenfeld factory, which specialized in diamond setting.  Soon the distinctive blend of high fashion and fine watchmaking which had become the hallmark of Chopard was being recognized in over 50 countries.

Chopard has remained a family business.  At its head, Karl controls the Swiss operation; his wife Karin looks after Birkenfeld and the other jewelry; and son Karl-Fredrich oversees mechanical production, while daughter Caroline's creative flair is responsible for their imaginative jewelry and jeweled watches.

There are a number of clearly defined collections in the product range.  The more masculine designs are in the Mille Miglia line of quartz watches in steel or 18 karat gold.  A recent innovation is a chronograph with water-resistance to 330 feet.  The St Moritz models have a more sporting aspect, with their unusual bezels held down by screws; the men's models  have automatic movements, the ladies are quartz with bezels inset with diamonds.

The Casmir collection is Caroline's special creation.  Based on the centuries old paisley motif, the piece is woven into an extravaganza of gold and precious stones.  In the classical collection the men's perpetual calendar chronograph (which employs the exclusive Jaeger-LeCoultre 889 movement-a rare privilege), was released in a limited edition of 150 pieces in gold.

But the flagship of Chopard's horological jewelry is their "Happy Diamonds" concept, in which seven diamonds edged with gold float freely around the dial between two plates of scratch-proof sapphire crystal.   A subsequent development is the "Happy Sport" collection, designed to be worn all day as a sporty alternative to the more precious jewelry watches.

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