Story A Journey Through Elegance and Simplicity, Oligo

Oligo is a Swiss watch brand known for producing mechanical watches assembled by hand in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 2021, by Oliver Gaud, His career path led him through several prestigious organizations, including Christie's, Apple, Cartier, and Vacheron Constantin, where he gained valuable experience in various roles, ranging from after-sales service to market management.

During his tenure at the british auction house Christie's, he had the opportunity to work alongside Philippe Quentin, a former collaborator of Svend Andersen and a professor at the Geneva Watchmaking School. Under Quentin's mentorship and guidance, he dedicated seven years to honing his craft and furthering his expertise in the world of horology.

As the global Covid situation stabilized, he made the bold decision to resign from his job and embark on a solo journey.

"Oligo" is actually Olivier Gaud's childhood nickname, a moniker he has carried since his early years. Now at the age of 38, he transformed it into a registered brand in October 2021, marking its public launch in February 2022. The inception of Oligo began a decade ago during a creative brainstorming session with a builder friend. At that time, Gaud envisioned a watch that would stand as a counterpoint to the prevailing 2012 trend, where timepieces were becoming increasingly complex. He boldly deviates from this trend, driven by a mission to reconnect with the fundamentals.

Influenced by the beauty of nature, he crafts timepieces distinguished by their minimalist aesthetics. These watches showcase recycled Swiss Steel cases and vegan straps, with uncomplicated dials and floating hands, the concept is clever as the hands are individually mounted on a thin mineral crystal, stacked on top of each other, creating a distinctive effect of floating hands. This vision comes to life in the Oligo Blue, Black, and Brown, each bearing its distinctive design and style.

With a slim 41mm Swiss-made cases, constructed from recycled Swiss steel, 100% Swiss-made sapphire crystals, Swiss-made Soprod M100 automatic movements, and even 100% recyclable paper packaging produced in Geneva, Olivier has got incredibly close to a fully Swiss-made watch. But admits that he fell in love with the vegan, PVC-free straps of ColaReb, a small producer of high-quality straps, based in Rome.

The first model from OLIGO was limited to 100 pieces, with 40 in blue, 40 in black, and 20 in brown, priced at CHF 2,600 which is equivalent to 11,800 AED.

For the second model, OLIGO has teamed up with Fleury Manufacture, a watchmaking workshop based in the heart of Geneva. This partnership aligns perfectly with OLIGO’s mission of celebrating local, independent, and eco-friendly horology. The result is a modern watch with a hypnotic dial, featuring OLIGO’s famous touch of magic thanks to its floating hands. Traditional decorations and finishing are meticulously done by hand.

Taking this new collection to the next level, OLIGO has deployed the manually wound Fleury Manufacture FM01 caliber. we can see it through the crystal sapphire and decorated with Côtes de Genève. This caliber was developed and produced entirely in-house by Fleury Manufacture in Geneva, combining innovation, modernity, and tradition. The polished bridges and main plate are crafted from a new recyclable zinc alloy. 

The price of this FM01 is 8,300 CHF, which is equivalent to 33,800 AED."

This year, Oligo collaborated with Label Noir, a prominent name in the realm of luxury watch customization within the industry. Priesting the “LABEL NOIR X OLIGO”, a limited edition timepiece that showcases testament to the boundless potential of black, every element, from the sleek black case to the dial, is steeped in the rich depths of this shade.

The watches are available on our Waqt store and you can add it to your collection. To learn more, visit the Waqt store.

For more information, please visit oligo official website.