Richemont sells Baume & Mercier brand to Damiani

Founded in 1830, Baume & Mercier is one of the oldest players in the Swiss watch industry. However, it has never occupied a dominant position in the Richemont portfolio, overshadowed by more profitable and prestigious houses such as Cartier, IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Vacheron Constantin.

For Richemont, this divestment is part of a portfolio rationalisation strategy, following the example of other major luxury groups that are trying to streamline their brand portfolios by retaining only the most powerful flagships.

The Swiss group has announced that it intends to focus its efforts on its high-margin and highly desirable brands. In its press releases, Richemont emphasises that Baume & Mercier, characterised by its accessible positioning and multi-brand distribution model, is less aligned with its goal of moving upmarket. The Swiss group is performing very well overall financially: for the nine months ended 31 December 2025, the group recorded sales of approximately €17 billion, representing a 10% increase compared to the previous year, driven mainly by fine jewellery.

On the Italian side, the transaction represents a significant diversification opportunity. Damiani Group, founded in 1924 in Valenza and run by the third generation of the family, announced double-digit growth for the 2024-2025 financial year, with turnover exceeding €380 million. Its strategy is to integrate heritage Swiss watch industry into its portfolio, which already includes the jewellery brands Damiani, Salvini, Bliss and Calderoni, as well as the artistic glassmaker Venini and the multi-brand distributor Rocca.

The challenge for Damiani is twofold: to strengthen its international presence and to take advantage of an extensive multi-brand distribution network, particularly in Italy, to relaunch Baume & Mercier. The opening of single-brand boutiques is one of the group's priority objectives in order to increase the brand's visibility beyond its historic European heartland.