YEMA is a French watchmaking brand established in 1948 by Henry-Louis Belmont. Historically recognised for producing technical and professional timepieces, the company built its reputation across diving, motorsport, sailing, aviation and space exploration. Today, YEMA is headquartered in Morteau in France’s Jura region and operates under the French watchmaking group Ambre France.

The brand is particularly noted for the Superman dive watch, the Rallye and Rallygraf motorsport chronographs, the Yachtingraf sailing chronographs, and the Spationaute watches developed for French space missions.

YEMA describes itself as an independent French watchmaker and manufacture, with design, prototyping, manufacturing and assembly centred on its workshops in Morteau.

YEMA was founded in 1948 by Henry-Louis Belmont, a trained French watchmaker who graduated from the National Watchmaking School of Besançon in 1931. Rather than focusing solely on conventional dress watches, Belmont aimed to develop practical, technically capable timepieces intended for demanding professional use rather than mere decoration. This philosophy became central to the brand’s identity.

During the 1950s, YEMA concentrated on water-resistant and automatic watches. The company adopted the LORSA 237 B automatic movement in 1951, later redesignating it as the YEMA 231 A. By 1953, YEMA was producing watches rated to depths of approximately 100 metres, a significant achievement for the period. Production reached roughly 130,000 watches annually by 1954.

The 1960s were a formative decade for YEMA, during which the brand positioned itself as a manufacturer of professional tool watches for sailing, diving and motor racing. It also became a major exporter; between 1965 and 1968, YEMA sold approximately 400,000 watches annually to more than 55 countries, establishing itself as a leading French watch exporter.

Yachtingraf

In 1966, YEMA introduced the Yachtingraf, a chronograph designed specifically for sailing and regatta timing. Its distinctive feature was a countdown system for yacht race starts. YEMA subsequently became an official supplier to the French sailing team, and the model became associated with the renowned French sailor Éric Tabarly.

Superman

The most significant model of this era was the YEMA Superman. In 1967, YEMA patented a bezel-locking mechanism that prevented the rotating diving bezel from moving accidentally during a dive, serving as a critical safety feature. The Superman became a professional dive watch with 300-metre water resistance and remains the brand’s best-known model today.

YEMA’s reputation as a tool-watch manufacturer was reinforced through military adoption. In 1970, the French Air Force selected the Superman for its helicopter rescue swimmers, known as Sauveteurs-Plongeurs Héliportés. Unlike brands that apply military aesthetics to luxury watches, YEMA’s historical identity stems from producing instruments for actual professional environments. This philosophy continues to influence modern collections such as the Superman, Navygraf and Flygraf.

Motor racing forms another pillar of YEMA’s identity. The Rallye and Rallygraf watches were developed with motorsport-oriented timing functions and dashboard-instrument aesthetics. The brand’s most famous motorsport association occurred in 1969 when racing driver Mario Andretti wore a YEMA Rallye during his victory at the Indianapolis 500. Andretti had purchased the watch himself in the 1960s and wore it throughout the month leading up to the race as well as during the event itself.

This established two distinct brand identities: the Superman for diving and the Rallye/Rallygraf for motorsport.

YEMA holds a unique place in French space exploration history. In 1982, French astronaut Jean-Loup Chrétien wore the YEMA Spationaute I during a Soviet-French space mission, making it the first French and Western European watch in space.

The relationship continued in 1985 when astronaut Patrick Baudry carried a YEMA Spationaute II aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery during mission STS-51G. In 1988, Jean-Loup Chrétien wore the Spationaute III, equipped with a Seiko 7A38 quartz chronograph movement, during the Franco-Russian Aragatz mission to the Mir space station. Consequently, YEMA developed a historical portfolio spanning underwater exploration, racing, sailing, military aviation and outer space.

During the early 1980s, YEMA became part of Matra Horlogerie. A notable figure during this period was Richard Mille, who was involved in YEMA’s international development before establishing himself as a prominent independent watchmaker. In 1986, the brand developed the YEMA North Pole, a specialised watch for extreme cold that accompanied French explorer Jean-Louis Étienne during his solo 800-kilometre expedition to the North Pole.

In December 1986, the Japanese company Hattori-Seiko acquired a majority stake in YEMA. This ownership lasted until 2004 and influenced certain designs and movements, including the use of Seiko calibres such as the 7A38 in the Spationaute III. Despite Japanese ownership, YEMA retained its French identity and connection to professional watchmaking.

A significant turning point occurred in 2009 when the French family-owned watchmaking group Ambre France, based in Morteau, acquired YEMA. This acquisition initiated the brand’s modern revival, with a key objective being greater independence from external movement suppliers. After approximately four years of development and an investment of around €3 million, YEMA released its first proprietary movement, the MBP1000. More than 250,000 MBP1000 movements were subsequently produced.

In 2021, YEMA introduced second-generation proprietary movements:

• YEMA2000: An automatic three-hand movement.
• YEMA3000: An automatic GMT movement.

Working with watchmakers including Olivier Mory and Patrick Augereau, the brand improved upon earlier architectures, enhancing the regulating system and automatic winding components. This marked YEMA’s transition from a brand reliant on externally sourced movements towards a vertically integrated French manufacturer.

From approximately 2022, YEMA has invested substantially in its Morteau facilities to expand and modernise production equipment and internalise manufacturing processes. The company also collaborates with specialised suppliers in the French-Swiss Jura region, generally located within 72 km of Morteau. YEMA’s current manufacturing approach combines French design and manufacturing with regional specialist suppliers and in-house assembly and movement production, handling significant portions of the process internally rather than simply assembling imported movements.

YEMA’s most ambitious modern development is the CMM (Calibre Manufacture Morteau) family. Introduced in 2023, the CMM.20 is described as the first French micro-rotor movement. Subsequent releases include:

• CMM.30: A tourbillon movement with a tide complication.
• CMM.10: A three-hand movement focused on chronometric performance.

These Manufacture movements utilise Swiss regulating components, while mainplates and bridges are produced in-house using components sourced within the Morteau/Jura ecosystem. This represents a substantial shift from YEMA’s historical reliance on suppliers such as ETA, LORSA and Seiko.

YEMA organises its current catalogue around several major families:

• Superman: The flagship collection originating from the 1960s, recognisable by its bezel-lock system and professional dive-watch construction.
• Navygraf: A naval and military-oriented collection emphasising the brand’s relationship with the French Navy.
• Flygraf: The aviation collection featuring multi-scale bezels, originally appearing in the 1970s.
• Rallygraf: The motorsport collection influenced by racing dashboards and vintage chronographs.
• Yachtingraf: Continues the sailing heritage established by the 1966 regatta-timing chronograph.
• Wristmaster: A contemporary sport and urban collection broadening the brand’s appeal beyond traditional tool watches.
• Granvelle: A sophisticated line showcasing Manufacture movements and contemporary French mechanical watchmaking.

YEMA maintains active ties with the military. In 2020, the company became an official partner of the French Air Force and Space Force and the French Navy for the development of military-oriented watches. This partnership reinforces the brand’s positioning around the professional tool watch concept, summarised in its modern branding by the phrase #TimeOfHeroes, reflecting its association with explorers, astronauts, military personnel, sailors, divers and racing drivers.

YEMA occupies a distinctive position in horology. While geographically close to the Swiss watchmaking ecosystem, it remains distinctly French. Unlike brands that utilise military or diving aesthetics primarily for marketing, YEMA possesses genuine tool-watch heritage. Furthermore, it is transitioning towards vertical integration through the development and production of proprietary mechanical movements in Morteau.

Compared to other manufacturers, YEMA’s identity is defined by its specific historical connections to French diving, sailing, motorsport, military aviation and space exploration. Its strongest historical asset remains the Superman, while its contemporary significance lies in its evolution into a French manufacture capable of producing components internally and assembling proprietary calibres in Morteau.