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Leonardo DiCaprio — actor, watch collector and environmentalist — has invested in ID Genève, a Switzerland-based, B Corp-certified watch brand whose products are made entirely from recycled materials. It’s a bid to shift the watch industry towards more sustainable business practices, including a circular business model. Will other brands pay attention?
Founded in 2020 and initially backed by about $300,000 crowdfunded on the Swiss platform Wemakeit, ID Genève’s mission is to “position the luxury industry at the heart of the ecological transition”, says Nicolas Freudiger, the company’s CEO and co-founder. “We want to forge a new identity — a new ID — for the luxury industry.”
In a statement, DiCaprio said, “I am thrilled to be an investor in ID Genève, a brand that’s driving change in the luxury industry and beyond by consistently innovating and focusing on circular economy principles.” The amount of his investment was undisclosed.
All ID Genève watch dials are made out of 100 per cent recycled steel in the Jura region of Switzerland by re-melting steel waste collected within a 200-kilometre radius. The manufacture of steel, a derivative product of iron ore, was responsible for between 7 per cent and 9 per cent of all global CO2 emissions in 2020, per estimates from the World Steel Association. Many industries, from automotive to infrastructure, already use recycled steel, at least partially. Concerns around the aesthetic value of recycled alloys have held the watch industry back. The newly launched Circular S model, reminiscent of Patek Philippe’s Nautilus, is made of so-called “solar steel”, derived from a furnace operated by the sun’s rays and a system of mirrors. While recycled steel tends to be around 10 per cent more expensive than virgin steel, “solar steel”, which is equivalent in quality, costs as much as gold, as it is produced artisanally.
The straps are provided by Vegea, an Italian company that makes vegan fabrics from grape residue left over after vinification. ID Genève replaces typically bulky, plush packaging with utilitarian beige boxes impressed with the word “compost” as the company says they can be left in the garden and disappear within 45 days. They are supplied by Magical Mushroom Company, which mixes mycelium, the mass of mushrooms’ filaments, with agricultural waste to create compostable packaging. A durable travel pouch made of wine waste is included in the box.
ID Genève partnered with these companies after enquiries among the usual suppliers of the industry about recycling materials were met with wide-eyed shock. Suppliers in the watch industry follow a classic linear model of buying mined metals, brand new leather parts and made components rather than recycling them, and a change of operations for a single client representing a fraction of the market would have been cumbersome and costly.
The movements — the core components that power the watch — are taken from unsold stock returned from brands and retailers, disassembled, washed and restored by co-founder and watchmaker Cédric Mulhauser, with finishing that can vary from one watch to another. The process is 30 per cent more expensive than fitting the watches with brand-new movements. Freudiger acknowledges that this practice is self-limiting, and can reliably produce up to 2,000 pieces per year — ID Genève is on target to produce 600 watches this year — but his company has begun working on its own movements made of recycled materials to reduce the cost and increase production capacity.
With prices ranging between CHF 3,500 (£3,190) and CHF 4,380 (£3,990), ID Genève earned CHF 430,000 (£392,000) in sales during the launch period (the company declined to further comment on its turnover), and, in addition to its e-commerce, it is now distributed at Watches of Switzerland in the UK and the US. David Hurley, deputy CEO of Watches of Switzerland, believes there will soon be a “DiCaprio effect” on brand sales.
Deloitte research from 2021 shows that there’s consumer interest in ethically sourced watches, with materials and their environmental impact topping the list of sustainability criteria considered by clients. Another boost to the cause for the environment has come from the legislation requiring larger groups in Switzerland to comply with the disclosures demanded by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and the Responsible Business Initiative. For example, jewellers and watchmakers need to clearly communicate to consumers where their products have been manufactured and have to be able to produce documentation about where the components are sourced.
Heritage brands have been investing more in environment-friendly practices. Oris, established in 1904, has been working with environmental consultancy ClimatePartner to offset its emissions since 2021, and since last year, it has published a sustainability report monitoring its efforts to reduce its emissions by 10 per cent every year. During the Watches & Wonders trade fair earlier this year, Chopard launched its trademarked Lucent Steel, a new steel alloy made of up to 80 per cent recycled material. Panerai uses eSteel, made from a recycled steel alloy, for some of its watches, while Ulysse Nardin uses steel from the car industry for its Ocean Race Diver line.
However, Damian Oettli, head of markets at non-profit WWF Switzerland, believes the industry still has more to do. “It is critical that the watch and jewellery industry becomes more transparent and is able to trace its raw materials to the origin,” Oettli says. He highlights how “environmental and social problems are very much interlinked” and offers the example of the ethical and environmental issues connected to gold mining, which was analysed in a WWF report published in 2021 and is the focus of other ongoing campaigns. In the Amazonas region (in Brazil or in the Madre de Dios Province of Peru) for example, illegal gold mining goes hand in hand with the spilling of toxic mercury into the environment. In those regions, the report also highlights the presence of child labour and forced prostitution.
“Brands need to take responsibility for their supply chain and work towards traceability and transparency. Both are crucial to accurately assess related environmental and social issues, create solutions and subsequently work towards more responsible value chains,” he adds.
ID Genève’s Freudiger voices a similar opinion, adding that he considers the brand’s work a laboratory of alternative, more sustainable practices for the whole luxury industry. “A watch uses 80 grams of recycled steel only; we are not going to change the world with that,” Freudiger says. “But, the watch is very symbolic, and we want it to have an impact beyond our company.”
After bringing DiCaprio on board, next on ID Genève’s wish list is a collaboration with a heritage brand.
“I like to manifest my intentions,” says Freudiger. “The partnership with Leonardo DiCaprio materialised two years after a press article quoted me saying that we would love to work with him, so I say it here that we would love to collaborate with a heritage brand.”
Comments, questions or feedback? Email us at feedback@voguebusiness.com.
Correction: This article was updated to say that Oris is independently owned. An earlier version of this article stated that it was owned by Swatch (19/10/23).
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