Breitling Colt Auto

Léon Breitling opened his chronograph workshop in Saint-Imier in 1884. In 1915, Gaston Breitling introduced a wrist chronograph with a separate pusher. Willy Breitling brought the two-pusher layout into series production in 1934. The Navitimer of 1952 adapted a rotating slide rule to pilots’ calculations. In 1969, Breitling helped launch the jointly developed automatic Chrono-matic chronograph. Ernest Schneider took over the company in 1979 during the quartz crisis. The renewed Chronomat of 1984 marked a return to the mechanical chronograph. The manufacture Caliber 01 followed in 2009, extending Breitling’s own movement development. Partners Group announced in 2022 that it would become the largest shareholder alongside CVC and management. Watch production is based at the Swiss sites in Grenchen and La Chaux-de-Fonds.