{Published on July 5, 2010} An invitation to join L’Heure Asch is always welcome. The boutique is to retail watchmaking what Carlo Crisci’s Cerf is to Swiss gastronomy: inventive, consistent, beyond the mainstream, and above all enjoyable.

What was the invitation? To meet Nicholas J. Hofmann of the Schaffhausen watch brand H. Moser & Cie, just after a temporary exhibition. For, right from the start of the relaunch of the H. Moser & Cie name, watchmaker Denis Asch was already there, as a strong believer and volunteer discoverer of treasures. This brand, which has started with two people in 2002, has achieved a flawless record that matches its expectations spread out over the long term: forty people in Schaffhausen, a six-caliber eponymous family, manufacture of spirals for its in-house needs and for other brands whose names will remain unmentioned, and above all, a focus on a tasteful classicism, even before the crisis turned against extravagance and brought consumers back to timeless models and timeless designs.