Zodiac

 

Figure 1

The company was founded in Le Locle, Switzerland, in 1882 by Ariste Calame, Figure 1. We know little about him, except that his Swiss family roots went back to the sixteenth century and he came from a long line of “mechanically minded” ancestors. He was born in 1839, and so started his company at a relatively later age (45) than did many of his contemporaries in the watch manufacturing world. He died in 1917 at age 78. For the first 24 years, the company was known simply as Ariste Calame. He used the name Zodiac on several of his models, but it was not until 1908 that Calame patented the brand name.

Ariste retired from the company in 1890, but “unofficially” continued to run it until his son, Louis-Ariste Calame (1875-1955) took over in 1895. During the early years, Calame/Zodiac subsisted on manufacturing movements and movement parts for other companies, notably Favre-Perret and Seiko of Japan. Between 1908 and 1914 Zodiac manufactured its own calibers and movements and, at its height, employed around 50 people. The watches were obviously pocket watches; no evidence of wristwatch production can be found. World War I and the years that followed, up until the 1930s, were clearly lean times for Zodiac. I can find no evidence that a wristwatch ever left the factory during the 1920s, even though wristwatches were becoming an accepted fashion item, certainly in Europe and, to a lesser degree, in the United States.

In November 1923, one of Louis’s sons, Rene A. Calame, joined the firm and is generally credited with saving the company from extinction. It is not known when the first wristwatch left the factory in its completed form. It seems reasonable to assume that small pocket watch movements were being fitted into contract cases at jewelers’ stores, as was the custom during this time (1910s through 1920s). Probably the first factory-cased wristwatches did not come out of Zodiac until 1930 (Figure 2)

 

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Figure 2

 

In the mid-1930s, the company patented a unique shockproofing system that utilized a Z-shaped spring clip over the balance (Figure 3)

Figure 3

 

In 1937, Zodiac created another innovation— an 8-day wristwatch movement, shown in Figure 4. It was 10.5 lignes in size, featured a damaskeened finish, and was inscribed with the number 1551. The company also made a 16-ligne of the eight-day movement for pocket watches. All of these movements were supposedly made completely in house. Yet none are acknowledged in any of the “standard” movement guides (Bestfit, Marshall).

Figure 4

Owing to the failure of Zodiac to make significant inroads into the American market (which was essential to a watch manufacturer’s financial success), the company in the 1940s switched to ebauches from such suppliers as ETA, A. Schild, and others. This, of course, allowed Zodiac to significantly reduce costs and remain a “player” in the watch world. Their ads featured watches that, while quality pieces, were unremarkable in design and features. One exception was the rather quirky “Pharaon” model (Figure 5) showing signs of the zodiac in place of the numerals. It was offered in pocket watch and keychain versions.

 

Figure 5

This would change in 1949. At the Basel Fair that year, Zodiac (still under the management of Rene Calame) exhibited two innovative watches. One was the Autographic, a self-winding watch with a power reserve gauge that showed hours of power (zero to 36) remaining on the mainspring (Figure 6).

 Figure 6

The Autographic was quite innovative in that there was only one other wristwatch at the time—made by LeCoultre—that had a power reserve indicator (though other manufacturers would follow).

In 1953, Zodiac unveiled the Sea Wolf which was one of the first “serious” diver’s watches manufactured and marketed to the masses, that is, to folks who were not necessarily professional or amateur divers, but nevertheless wanted a rugged sports watch that would stand up to the elements. The paperwork that accompanied the Sea Wolf proclaimed that it was “… the world’s finest underwater watch. Designed for skin diving and other water sports, the Sea Wolf is so impressively handsome, it is pridefully worn by the adventurous male day-in and day-out … in or out of the water!” The first models featured a base metal bezel ring which, fortunately, was later upgraded to an enamel-covered bezel ring (Figure 7). A date feature was soon added, and eventually day date. Its ruggedness, combined with the fact that it was an automatic watch (the user didn’t have to wind it) made it a tremendous success.

Figure 7

The watch was so successful that the U.S. military took notice and issued them to their SEAL teams. The success of the Sea Wolf eventually led to the development of the Super Sea Wolf. A patented stem/crown system and an improved case back design increased its water pressure rating to 75 ATMs, or 2,442 feet. Chronographs (two- and three-register models) also began to appear with relative frequency during the early 1950s. It was also during this time (late 1940s, early ‘50s) that Zodiac introduced two- and three-register chronographs bearing the “Clebar” name. It is not known why they didn’t stay with the name Zodiac for these chronographs, but it probably was to increase market penetration with their products. In any event, most of the Clebar chronographs I have seen are of good quality and used venerable movements made by Venus and Valjoux. Today, they are highly sought by collectors.

To backtrack a bit, and bring us current with corporate history, Rene Calame’s father, Louis-Ariste, died in 1955 at the age of 80 and is said to have remained on Zodiac’s board of directors up until his death. Rene’s son, Pierre, born in 1934, also joined the firm somewhere around this time. This is also the time that Zodiac adopted the trademark logo that many of us are familiar with—the cross inside the circle.

The 1960s were boom times for Zodiac. They continued to exploit their niche in rugged sport watches by coming out with new models. The Sea Wolf was further refined with an extra 24-hour GMT hand, and called the Aerospace. A further refinement led to the Aerospace Jet, which featured true 24-hour hands (the hands traversed the dial once in 24 hours). Chronographs also continued strong. In 1969, the company introduced what would become another signature watch, the Astrographic, Figure 8.

Figure 8

It combined the water-resistant features of a sport watch with “mystery” hands that appeared to float on the dial of the watch (actually, they were painted or decaled onto a clear plastic disc which, in turn, were mounted on the watch’s center post). It sold, back in its day, for around $150 in stainless steel.

The 1970s and beyond

The 1970s ushered in what would be the final hour for Zodiac as a family-run business. But the decade began with a few “highs,” notably the introduction of another “trademark” watch of Zodiac’s, the Olympos. Figure 9.

Figure 9

It took the idea of the Astrographic (mystery dial) and slimmed it down to a more dressy watch. It is unmistakable with any other watch due to its asymmetrical shape, mystery hands, and crown at the 2:00 position. It is also automatic. Another watch, the “Corsair,” figure 10, featured a hexagon-shaped case and automatic movement with date.

Figure 10

Beginning in the mid-1970s, the company produced watches that were dropped almost as quickly as they were introduced — obscure electric and quartz models that were clunky and badly designed. These were attempts to compete against the onslaught of Timex and cheap Swiss imports. In 1978, Pierre Calame, presiding over his final annual meeting, gave a somber speech about the “natural selection” process that was taking place within the Swiss watch industry.

That year, the Dixi Group of Le Locle, bought a controlling interest in Zodiac. Rene Calame, the man who had turned Zodiac from a relatively unknown company into a brand leader, passed away that same year at age 76.

The Dixi group took Zodiac over completely in 1979. Dixi Group, then headed by Paul Castella, is a large consortium of Swiss companies specializing in machine parts, micro-mechanisms, and medical equipment, among other things. The company, with roots going back to the late 1800s, was no stranger to watches. In fact, they had been founded by the watch manufacturer Le Phare for the production of machine tools. So while Dixi saved the brand name, it was the end of Zodiac as a family-run business. The history of Zodiac for the next 11 years remains somewhat of a mystery. It seems clear that what began in 1979 was an experiment in “managing” the brand by marketing specialists rather than watchmakers. Dixi just didn’t know how to position the brand. Finally in 1990, Willy Gad Monnier Figure 11, a former Tag Heuer principal, bought the Zodiac brand.

Figure 11

Zodiac watches took on the look of Tag Heuer watches during the Monnier years. But he, too, failed to find a niche, and the company went bankrupt in 1997. The brand was next bought in 1998 by Genender International (a U.S. company based in Wheeling, IL). Genender discontinued the Sea Wolf model and most automatic watches, as well as all automatic chronographs. Then, in October 2000, Genender introduced the Sea Wolf II, an aggressive evolution of the long-standing Sea Wolf diver’s watch. But it was only available in a quartz model. They also introduced the Astrographic 2000, a sleek updated version of one of the most known and favorite models ever in the Zodiac line. This watch, like its predecessor, was a mystery dial model. The Astrographic was well received by the watch industry and was written up in several publications. It appeared Genender had a good thing going. But in August of 2001, they sold the name to Fossil Inc., along with remaining inventory and parts, for $4.7 million.

A visit to the Fossil website shows no Zodiac models are offered. The last model I can find offered by Fossil was the Zodiac “V-Wolf” model utilizing a quartz movement (Figure 12).

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Figure 12

What follows is a collection of vintage Zodiac watches and company catalogs I have collected over the years. Enjoy!