Introducing: The Lebois & Co Heritage Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” — A Souscription Watch With A Grand Feu Enamel Dial
The Lebois & Co Heritage Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” honors the Métiers d’Art of Swiss watchmaking with its Grand Feu enamel dial — and what a dial it is! As 2025 marks the brand’s 90th anniversary, this is undoubtedly a celebratory watch. If you want it, you pay a little up front, the brand starts creating the watch, and once it’s done and delivered, you pay the rest. Abraham-Louis Breguet introduced the souscription (or “subscription”) principle for watches, and now Lebois utilizes it for the most exclusive timepiece in the brand’s history. As you can see, this 39mm chronograph is all about that gorgeous Grand Feu enamel dial.
Initially founded in 1934 and revived in 2014, Lebois & Co is an independent brand dedicated to creating modern Swiss-made watches with distinctly heritage-inspired designs. Last week saw the launch of the Heritage Small Seconds in three designs. Now, in the final months of the brand’s 90th anniversary, we look at the Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf.” Finding a vintage Lebois & Co chronograph was the reason Dutchman Tom van Wijlick resurrected the brand, so presenting a special chronograph in an anniversary year makes sense.
The Lebois & Co Heritage Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” souscription watch
The Heritage Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” is the first in a new generation of Heritage Chronograph models. Each one will honor the Métiers d’Art of Swiss watchmaking differently. The Atelier line within the Heritage Chronograph collection is all about traditional dial-making arts, such as guilloché and Grand Feu enamel. These disciplines require skill, patience, and a strong commitment to excellence. The name Coquille d’œuf — French for “eggshell” — tells you this chronograph doesn’t have a polar-white dial. Instead, it is white with a soft, warm tone. This is both very natural and historical since it’s created using an age-old technique.
The Coquille d’œuf costs €9,800 / US$10,950 and is only available by subscription. It’s a historic approach, but it also helps keep the financial risk down. That’s a clever move for a small brand that usually doesn’t offer watches in this price category. A positive side effect is that the folks at Lebois, knowing there’s money in the bank, can focus entirely on creating a quality dial. And they won’t make many of them. There will be a maximum of 25 Coquille d’œuf chronographs produced per year, with each watch made to order for its future owner.
A three-part dial construction
Since this watch is all about the dial, let’s take a closer look at it. This dial has three distinct components — a main plate and two recessed sub-dials, each individually produced and soldered into place. First, every surface is meticulously coated by hand with enamel powder. Then, it is fired at temperatures exceeding 800°C to fuse the finely ground glass to the copper base. Applying multiple layers creates depth and helps maintain perfect tension balance.
The graphics — including the logo, scales, and numerals — are pad-printed using enamel-based inks. Each color is applied separately and aligned with sub-millimeter precision. This happens before a final firing permanently bonds the markings to the surface. The result is a dial that appears almost alive thanks to its creation process. It shows subtle natural variations and looks very pure. Plus, no two dials are ever the same.
Take my pulse, doctor!
Lebois & Co’s choice of a pulsation dial enhances this chronograph’s classy vintage looks. A tachymeter wouldn’t look tacky, but a scale that helps you measure a heartbeat is more classy. It also suits a watch with a price that might initially scare the Lebois audience. It might have the heart skip a beat or start to race. But rest assured that once the watch is on the wrist, the pulse measured with the Coquille d’œuf‘s handwinding La Joux-Perret movement will be slightly high due to the excitement it brings.
You can find all the specs for the Lebois & Co Heritage Chronograph Atelier “Coquille d’œuf” in the chart below. If you want to play doctor with this artisanal creation, you can subscribe right here.
