Founded in 1929, Louis Erard is a watchmaker filled with heritage and history. Selling watches under their own banner since 1931, the brand was eventually acquired in the 1990s before it was later relaunched in 2003, during the independent watchmaking boom of the early 2000s. Since then, Louis Erard has become well-established with a strong design language that punches far heavier than its price tag might indicate. As such, Louis Erard’s timepieces are incredibly well-received and sought-after, much like their 2022 release, the Massena LAB Le Regulateur. Launched in collaboration with Massena LAB, a collaborative creative studio founded in 2018 by watch industry veteran William Massena, the Le Regulateur takes its inspiration from 19th-century marine chronometers with its ornate metallic dial boasting an compartmentalized display and a deep grainy texture alongside blued steel hands and satin finished chapter rings. Silver in color and raised against their grainy golden backdrop, the Le Regulateur’s symmetrical subdials create a 3-dimensional experience as they take turns reflecting light as per their individual nuances. Co-branded in a rather appealing manner, the Le Regulateur features both watchmakers' raised branding at 3 and 9 o’clock as the voids left by the regulateur display are filled. Powered by the Sellita cal. SW266-1, the Le Regulateur boasts a semi-skeletonized Louis Erard branded winding rotor that can be viewed through its sapphire crystal caseback. As William Massena explains: “A successful collaboration is one that makes sense. Louis Erard allowed me to mix codes, to cite the classicism of a master watchmaker like Antide Janvier, and to democratise a style that’s usually reserved for wealthy collectors”.
