Bulgari

Bulgari

Bulgari was an exclusive jewelry brand founded in 1884, and has produced branded watches since the 1950s. In 1982, Bulgari Time was founded as a watch maison within the larger Bulgari house, focused on producing the Bulgari Roma (1975) and Bulgari Bulgari watch penned by Gerald Genta (1977). These watches were a major hit, driving the growth of the overall Bulgari brand in the 1980s.

In 2000, Bulgari Time acquired the brands, Gerald Genta and Daniel Roth from The Hour Glass of Singapore. Although no longer associated with their namesake watchmakers, these brands included complication technology and a manufacturing facility in Le Sentier that would fuel the growth of the brand. The company purchased a majority interest in dial maker Cadrans Designs and bracelet maker Prestige d'Or in 2005, component maker Leschot in 2007, and case maker Finger in 2008.

Bulgari was now a true manufacture, with in-house design and production expertise for most components of their signature pieces, including their first in-house tourbillon in 2004. They soon discontinued the Gerald Genta and Daniel Roth brands, incorporating their pieces into the Bulgari brand as "collections" rather than standalone nameplates in 2010. That same year, Bulgari consolidated manufacturing of movements, dials, and cases, allowing the company to be a true manufacture.

On March 7, 2011, Bulgari announced that LVMH had offered to purchase all shares in the company. Under the arrangement, finalized in November, the Bulgari family became the second-largest shareholder in LVMH.