Nivada Grenchen
- Founded
- 1926
- Based in
- Grenchen, Switzerland
- In our catalog
- 5 watches from $945 to $2,085
Nivada Grenchen spent most of the 20th century making sturdy, affordable tool watches in the watchmaking town of Grenchen. After decades out of sight, it came back in 2018 by reissuing the models collectors already knew, and it has been adding colours, sizes and odd little side projects ever since.
History
The company was founded in Grenchen in 1926. Its Antarctic, introduced in 1950, was the firm's first water-resistant model and went with American personnel on the US Navy's Operation Deep Freeze expedition to Antarctica in 1955 and 1956. The penguin that still appears on its casebacks comes from that story.
In 1963 Nivada launched the Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver, a chronograph with a dive bezel that it made in many versions until 1978. The 1964 Depthmaster was built for divers, and the F77, an integrated-bracelet sports watch, arrived in 1977. Like many Swiss brands Nivada faded in the quartz years. The relaunch in 2018 started with the Chronomaster and the Antarctic, the two models with the strongest following.
Signature models
- Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver: The 1963 design with a bezel, a busy chronograph dial and broad arrow hands. The 38 mm version takes snap-on bezels in different colours.
- Super Antarctic 3.6.9: A 38 mm explorer-style watch with big 3, 6 and 9 numerals and an aged "tropical" finish on the black dial.
- Depthmaster: A cushion-cased diver rated to 1,000 m, here with an orange dial.
- Antarctic Diver: A slim 38 mm diver with a rotating bezel and no date.
- F77 MK2: The 1970s integrated-bracelet watch, with a basketweave dial and an octagonal bezel held by eight screws.
What it's known for
Nivada stays close to its old designs and keeps the sizes small, mostly 35 to 39 mm. Most automatics use the Swiss Soprod P024, and some chronographs use hand-wound Swiss calibres. It also offers mecaquartz versions of its chronographs at lower prices, and it is not shy about fun projects, such as an Antarctic whose caseback penguins move when you wind it.
Price and positioning
Most models cost about $950 to $2,300, with mecaquartz chronographs from around $530. Against Baltic or Yema it costs a bit more, and against Doxa or Tudor it is clearly cheaper, which makes it a popular first Swiss mechanical watch for people who like vintage design.
Nivada Grenchen watches in our library
- Nivada Grenchen Super Antarctic 3.6.9 ($945)
- Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster ($1,050)
- Nivada Grenchen Antarctic Diver ($1,050 to $1,250)
- Nivada Grenchen F77 MK2 ($1,360)
- Nivada Grenchen Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver ($2,085)