Movado

Timeless Precision: Reclaiming the Design Authority of an Iconic Brand

Movado Group, Inc. is one of the world’s most iconic luxury brands, its jewelry and sleek watches an example of superb Swiss craftsmanship since the company’s founding in 1881. But over time, a gap had opened between the brand’s heritage and its current expression. What was once a symbol of modernity began to feel static — seen in a dated logo, an underwhelming digital experience and limited awareness of the brand’s history of innovation, from pioneering timepieces to collaborations with artists such as Andy Warhol.

Movado, whose name means ‘always in motion,’ approached Aruliden, Material’s design studio, to close this gap, redefining what the brand stands for today by connecting its heritage to a more relevant, forward-looking expression.

WHAT WE DID

Brand Positioning
Brand Strategy
Brand Design
Content + Creative

Approach

The heritage wasn’t the problem. The expression was. Starting from that insight, the work encompassed brand positioning and strategy, visual identity and campaign development. We partnered with the Berlin-based type foundry Schick Toikka to create Movado Sans — a bespoke type face based on Movado’s heritage typography — to complement the brand’s new wordmark. We also created color palettes, photography and typography influenced by the Bauhaus movement.

Translating the new brand identity, we developed a scalable Design Language System to implement across Movado’s e-commerce platform.

And we launched an evergreen campaign, including video and print ads in major media, to reintroduce Movado as a universal and cultural timekeeper, connecting the dots between past and present.

Outcomes

The work repositioned Movado for a new era, transforming its heritage from a static asset into a dynamic source of relevance. By aligning its expression with its original design ethos, the brand regained clarity, coherence and cultural resonance in the market.

Movado watches are instantly recognizable by their dials, which feature a single dot at 12 o’clock that symbolizes the sun at high noon. We brought this idea to life through a campaign rooted in natural light and human expression, capturing warmth, movement and universality through a diverse array of watch-wearing hands.

The work commanded attention in major media outlets like The New York Times, Women’s Wear Daily, Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, Esquire, Harper’s Bazaar and others. More importantly, it helped reestablish Movado as a modern design icon, setting the foundation for long-term brand and business relevance.

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