René Bannwart was born in Zurich in 1915. On the strength of watchmaking experience with the most prestigious firms, in 1955 he founded Corum with his uncle, Gaston Ries. This brand new manufacture set out to be creative, placing itself at the cutting edge of watchmaking, with just as much attention paid to design as to the movement itself.
It was not long before the Maison presented its first model. As early as 1956, it was clear that Corum's designers allowed creativity to guide technical aspects rather than the other way around. The firm made a considerable impression with the “Coin Watch” – the dial of which was an American coin – the peacock feather watch (1970) and the Rolls Royce model. The latter once again underscored the brand's pioneering nature, marking the signature of the first partnership of its kind with a prestige car brand – in 1976.
In 1960, the firm presented what was to become one of its iconic watches – the Admiral's Cup. The first interpretation had a square case engraved with a sailboat and the name of the legendary regatta on the back. In the 1980s changes were made to the collection, resulting in its current shape: a twelve-sided case with nautical pennants on the bezel serving as hour markers.
In 1980 the manufacture brought out a second emblematic timepiece, the “Golden Bridge”, featuring the now legendary linear-winding baguette movement.
In 2000, entrepreneur Severin Wunderman joined Corum as the new owner and CEO. In 2005, he asked Antonio Calce to join him; the latter was to become CEO himself two years later.
In 2010, René Bannwart, the historic founder, died at the age of 95.
In 2013 the Citychamp Watches and Jewellery group acquired Corum and continues development of the brand’s iconic models. The collection is based around four pillars: the Golden Bridge collection which still stands out in the watch industry with its in-line baguette movement with plate and bridges in 18-carat gold; the sport-chic Admiral collection, which continues a legend dating back over 50 years with its dodecagonal case and its nautical pennants; the Heritage line that reflects the rich history and creativity of the brand with pieces such as the famous Coin Watch, recently enahnced with the hand-engraved Hobo Coin watch, and finally the off-beat Bubble collection that breaks the rules in terms of watch dial design.
