Company Info
121TIME - Simply more innovative
121TIME would not be in existence today, were it not for the courage of the three founders, who, despite the confusion and disillusionment of the post dotcom phase and the difficult environment of the conservative watch industry, built up the first virtual Swiss watch company. The initial intention en route to this independent organisation was not to establish a watch brand. the young entrepreneurs were looking for a product that could be individualised and distributed via the Internet, despite the high number of items - similar to Dell's strategy with computers.
Rebel in the watch industry
The right product was found: Watches. Conservative? On the contrary: Frédéric Polli had the crazy idea of selling genuine 'Swiss made' quality watches via the Internet and in so doing to break with tradition. Up until this point, no other Swiss watch company had dared to bypass the process of reselling via dealers. As a result, the idea caused a sensation in the watch industry when it was converted into reality when the company was formed in June 2002. Today, this successful venture is still watched extremely carefully by competitors...
The founding trio of Polli (general manager), Daniel Morf (marketing and communication) and Jean-Loup Ribordy (finances and administration) is an outstanding example of how perfect synchronisation between those from different backgrounds in Switzerland can be achieved - even in the watch industry. Polli and Ribordy come from Valais and speak French, while Morf hails from Zurich. This mix of languages and cultures comes together perfectly at the head office in Martigny and at the manufacturing site in Naters, where Swiss German is spoken.
But when it comes to the philosophy of the company, everyone speaks the same language: customer benefits and service always have top priority. After all, one of the unique advantages of 121TIME is based on this: We ensure that our customers realise a saving of an average of one third of costs, because we bypass the conventional sales channels.
Award for best web site
Since its inception, this innovative company has developed across numerous language boundaries, with its bold aim to be the most important watch brand on the Internet. The developers are naturally delighted when this goal brings with it important awards as well, such as the 'Master of Swiss Web' for 2004. The Swiss Internet Oscar was awarded to 121TIME for the best web site in Switzerland.
The state agency for economic promotion, CTI (Commission for Technology and Innovation) - is also familiar with this company, and awarded 121TIME with the coveted CTI Start-up Label at the end of 2004.