Inside Rado’s Ceramic Lab: CEO Adrian Bosshard on Watchmaking & Innovation

Inside Rado’s Ceramic Lab: CEO Adrian Bosshard on Watchmaking & Innovation

Welcome to an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the Rado Ceramic Lab with WatchDNA! In this episode, we sit down with Mr Adrian Bosshard, CEO of Rado Watches, to explore over 100 years of watchmaking history, groundbreaking material innovations, and the passion that drives the brand.

Discover how Rado revolutionised the luxury watch industry with the world's first scratch-proof timepiece, the DiaStar, and why High-Tech Ceramic and Ceramos make up over 70% of their global collection. Plus, get an insider sneak peek at iconic upcoming models including the Integral Anniversary Edition, Captain Cook Ceramic Chrono, and the ladies' Centrix Moon Phase!

🔗 Learn more & discover authorized retailers: WatchDNA.com/RADO

Timestamps
00:00 – What Makes a Watch Special?
00:30 – Inside the Rado Ceramic Lab
01:10 – Interview with Rado CEO Adrian Bosshard
01:45 – Adrian Bosshard’s Background & Passion for Watches
02:58 – The History & Legacy of Rado (1917 to Present)
04:06 – Rado Milestones: DiaStar & High-Tech Ceramic
04:59 – Why High-Tech Ceramic and Ceramos Dominate Rado’s Collection
05:40 – Global Strategy & Local Ambassador Partnerships
09:20 – Sneak Peek: Integral Anniversary Edition
10:06 – Sneak Peek: Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Chrono
10:48 – Sneak Peek: Centrix Moon Phase for Ladies
11:35 – Why Choose Rado for Your Very First Luxury Watch?

#radom  #RadoWatches #WatchDNA #HighTechCeramic #LuxuryWatches #WatchCollector #SwissWatches #Horology #WatchMaking #AdrianBosshard #CaptainCook #CentrixMoonPhase #DiaStar #WatchReview #BehindTheScenes

Transcript

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SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey everyone, I am very honored and proud to be with Mr. Bochar C of uh Rado here. Thank you so much for having me.

SPEAKER_00 0:06

It's a pleasure to share St. Passion. We had already some discussions and it's a pleasure to have such passionated watch geek in front of me.

SPEAKER_01 0:14

Thank you so much, thank you so much. So I just wanted to have this conversation because today we had the pleasure to visit a little bit the behind the scene, and that's the whole idea of watch DNS to learn the behind the scene of the industry, meeting with the watchmaker, the people behind, the expertise. Because what I always say is that watch is not just an object, it's all about the passion, the story behind. Before we talk about Rado, I would love to learn a little bit more about yourself. Earlier in the conversation, you mentioned that you were in the industry for over 30 years. Okay, sorry, I apologize. I get a little bit younger. So I would just love to learn a little bit of your background and where this passion comes from.

SPEAKER_00 0:54

Okay, first of all, I grew up in the region of Beel. You know, Beal is really uh the heart of uh the watch industry. Swatch group has the headquarters in Beel, Rado is very close to Beel, Swatch is in Beal, Omega is in Beal, so I grew up in this region. Yeah, and I was always very close to these companies, and a lot of colleagues, the fathers have worked in the watch industry, and so personally, also my father was a great watch punching person, and so he passed probably also the passion about watches to me. And after I have quite an important part of my life, I was also a professional sporty person. I was a motorcycle driver. Wow. Professional motorcycle driver in the 80s and in the 90s, and the last uh three years of my career, this watch group was my partner and my sponsor, and with this kind of contact, basically I found a way also to work in the watch industry, and then in October it will be 30 years ago.

SPEAKER_01 1:53

Wow, okay, October, okay, beautiful. One question that I add there are some people that might not know a lot about watches, or maybe they want to start to learn about it. How can you quickly introduce Rado to people that might never heard of it or heard about it, but just a little bit?

SPEAKER_00 2:08

Rado is one of the traditional brands who has roots until 1917. That will mean over 100 years ago, Rado have already started to produce watches. And what is important, Rado had never stopped to produce. That will mean the company has always during also the world wars always keep the production on. Important point is that first of all, we were always located in Lengnau, close to Beel, and already in the 50s, the philosophy of the brand was to push the boundaries, and therefore the management have created a vision, a sentence. If we can imagine it, we can make it, and if we can make it, we will. And with this vision in mind, they push always the boundaries and they have created amazing milestones not only for Rado, for the whole watch industry. For instance, in 1962, Rado has launched the first ever produced full strategy timepiece with the Diastar. And in 1986, exactly 40 years ago, Rado has launched the first ever industrially produced high-tech ceramic typepiece and watch industry. That you mean it's two amazing milestones. And of course, this is representing also the DNA of the brand. Unique design, unique material, push the boundaries, not mainstream. RADO is the contrary of mainstream and let's say round steel watches, with shape watches, with particular designs, with our own design, iconic design, and mainly in high-tech ceramic or ceramos, which have the same features like the high-tech ceramic, very light, scratch resistant, and extremely wear-friendly.

SPEAKER_01 3:55

Yeah, earlier you mentioned in conversation that we had before that around 70% of your collection is ceramic watches. This is very impressive.

SPEAKER_00 4:02

Today, a couple of brands around the globe they have remarked that high-tech ceramic is really one of the most noble material to produce watches or even the noblest material because you have all the positive features in this material, and therefore a couple of brands that have started to produce high-tech ceramic time pieces. Pedrado is the brand who has by far the biggest part of the collection. 70% of our whole production is either in high-tech ceramic or in Ceramos, which is a high-tech material also with the same features, a little bit with a different color, but these high-tech materials are representing over two-thirds of our global production.

SPEAKER_01 4:44

Wow, amazing. Talking about global, Rado is a global brand. You are in every country or almost every country in the world. Each market has a true DNS. So I would be very interesting to know a little bit is there a different approach for some continent or is there a little bit of similarity everywhere?

SPEAKER_00 5:00

The base approach is exactly the same to say. That will mean we want to satisfy, to impress, and to make pleasure to our customers. And we are a global brand, and we have customers in China, in Australia, in Canada, in Switzerland, in Johannesburg, everywhere in the world. And in the end, the reason why a customer buys a watch is basically always the same. It's not just an instrument to look at the time on the rest, it's much more. It's to buy something which is giving you a pleasure on every moment when you're looking at a watch. It's something on which you have an emotional link, it's a gifting element, and our aim is globally really to enjoy the customer with this kind of strengths and this kind of emotions. Of course, the approach to come there, we need all over the world one single same vehicle, is a qualitative, strong distribution because it's clear a brand like Rado has uh the biggest part of the sales and brick and mortar part of sales. Yeah, that we mean the best opportunity to buy a Rado watch is in a store where you have also the full environment where you have the stuff can also explain the advantage different to other brands and wear, comfort, and all these things. And this is always around the globe the same. Of course, we have often now several local behaviors that, for instance, in India you need local superstars to transport also the values of the brand. Like we have the two most famous Bollywood stars, uh Ritik Roshan and Katrina Kaif. Also in China we have local testimonials in uh not locals, they are global, but really with hard to link with this country. And in Europe and or America, US, Canada, Mexico, we have local friends of the brand, or we are communicating, for instance, with tennis, a global sport, or with cricket, sport in the Commonwealth countries. That would mean the strategy is everywhere the same, the reason behind, but the way how we are executed is adapted based on the local behavior and especially also the local demands of the customers.

SPEAKER_01 7:19

Yeah, yeah, I understand that Rado is very strong in India and in Asia as well. And something that I appreciate as well is that you have different friends of the brands as well in different environments.

SPEAKER_00 7:29

So of course, such kind of person, it's not you're just a partnership to pay somebody, it's really a partnership on which are really sharing the same value and the same passion.

SPEAKER_01 7:40

That's something that I really appreciate and love about our industry, is it's a very passionate industry, and also it's a very emotional industry. Even for the customers, when they purchase a product, it's an emotional decision. And it's not about budget, it's about how this timepiece make you feel this object, remember a memory. So that's little moments of things. So it's very important, and having a brand that supports and presents the distribution that you have and the retail partners that you have is very important, as you know, and obviously, this is something that I really appreciate about Rado is because you do have an online platform, but you really try to support the retailer that's trusted the brand, but also you trust it's really a partnership, I would call it. Is there any little tips that you can give us for a few products that might come that we don't know yet?

SPEAKER_00 8:27

Basically, we have a couple of surprises in the different segments in the sports segment, okay, the lifetime segment, and in the classical segment. And of course, one piece which will arrive within the next couple of days in the market is without a doubt a very very important timepiece. It's the Integral Anniversary Edition, special edition, which is fully inspired from the design from the Integral 1986, the first ever produced title ceramic timepiece. But of course, with absolute newest materials of the watchmaking industry, and of course with the highest competence of Rado, this is definitely a tip. Check this uh amazing timepiece, the Integral Anniversary Edition. Another product, of course, which is very exciting, is the new Captain Cook Hyde Ceramic, Plasma Hyde Ceramic Chrono, okay, sporty product, yeah, Chrono which has uh screwdown pusher, screwdown crown, 300m waterproof, very sporty product, also with this very special automatic movement produced here in Boncourt in an oven which is heated up on 20,000 degrees four times the sunset product. So it's not only a beauty in terms of design, not only very sporty, also an artwork in terms in terms of technology. So the Captain Cook chrono is also very exciting, and last but not least, for ladies, you saw eccentric moon face. Okay, moon face is a very emotional complication, and the moon face is also you know highlighted with a bridge with diamonds, 28 diamonds on the dial, the beautiful Mother of the Pearl dial. Yeah, that would mean really a typical edge-to-edge suffer class without any bezel, really a piece which is makes melling the hearts of uh many ladies around the globe. So these are a couple of tips besides some masses which you will discover in the different points of sales all over the world.

SPEAKER_01 10:29

Okay, beautiful. So I have one last question for you. What will you tell these people that are looking maybe for their first watch ever? What will you tell them to say, okay, Rado is the brand for you?

SPEAKER_00 10:40

First of all, when you are searching a timepiece which is timeless in terms of design, very sustainable in terms of quality, very special in terms of wear feeling, you are perfectly served with Rado. Because we have a very particle unique design which is inspired from our proper DNA. We are the master of material, that will mean we have in the biggest part of our collection these features of the hyper ceramic, and this is a huge advantage. And on the other side, we have of course with this a wearer comfort which is unbeatable. That will mean go in a store and feed around your difference. You will fall in love and you will be in love not only for the first couple of months or years, you will fall in love with this amazing brand for your whole life. This is promise.

SPEAKER_01 11:29

Alright, I love it. Love at first sight, like I did with my wife. Perfect. For you guys, if you want to know more about the brand, go to watchna.com slash rado and more than 450 brands. We have they have their home page with information about the brand, the main date, but also very important. Some of the retailers that carry the brand, so you you can go and experience the product yourself. And hopefully, at one point, we can have maybe the product on our bios, guys, so you can even compare. But yeah, thank you so much for taking the time. I really really appreciate it. It's very humble to meet you today in person and to have you here in this beautiful manufacturer because I was honestly below away. So thank you again for so much.

SPEAKER_00 12:04

Thank you, Tom.

SPEAKER_01 12:05

It was a pleasure.

SPEAKER_00 12:06

See you soon! Share the emotions of the watch industry with a guy like you.

SPEAKER_01 12:12

See you later, guys.