Mouawad

ABOUT THE FOUNDER

David (Daoud) Mouawad was born in modern-day Lebanon in 1865. Around the age of 25,^[1] he left his hometown and sailed to the United States. For the next two decades, David lived in New York and Mexico, where he undertook a succession of apprenticeships in watchmaking, goldsmithing, and jewelry making. In 1908, he returned to Beirut and married. His first child, Fayez, was born in 1917. ^[2]

FOUNDING STORY

During David’s time abroad, a railway network had emerged linking Beirut to major Ottoman cities including Damascus, which helped spur an era of relative economic prosperity.^[3] David established his first workshop in Beirut soon after his return in 1908, where he offered watch and jewelry repair services. Over time, he started to craft his own clocks and jewelry pieces. His handmade work attracted the attention of upper-class Lebanese clients, who commissioned bespoke creations. David’s son, Fayez, who was involved in his father’s business since childhood, developed a fascination for the world of jewelry and watches that would lead him to follow his career path. ^[4]

GROWTH PHASE

In 1950, 33-year-old Fayez spotted an opportunity to expand his father’s business. Almost two decades after the foundation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the oil industry was starting to yield its significant first results. For Fayez, this meant the emergence of a potential Saudi client base, especially as there were few if any fine jewelers in the kingdom.^[5] Fayez moved to Jeddah, marking the first geographical expansion of the Mouawad business beyond its home city.^[6] One year later, David passed away at the age of 86. ^[7]

Fayez established a jewelry salon in Jeddah, which was undergoing major infrastructure and urban development, most importantly in its harbor and airport, which proved very beneficial for imports and commercial exchange.^[8] Fayez Mouawad brought many prestigious Western watches to Saudi Arabia for the first time, such as Piaget, Baume & Mercier, Longines, Patek Philippe, and Rolex. Fayez also specialized in personalizing and embellishing client’s watches with precious stones. Standing out for the craft and exclusivity of his offerings, he formed an “elite” Saudi clientele and network, including members of the royal family. ^[9]

Fayez Mouawad’s son Robert was born around 1945. Upon graduating school, Robert headed to Paris to become a doctor, but Fayez convinced him to return to Saudi Arabia and join the family business, initially as a salesman. ^[10]Although he was not the eldest of Fayez’s sons, Robert was still not married, so he was more available to focus on the business.^[11]

By the early 1970s, Robert had taken over the business as sole president. Much like his father in his early years of leadership, Robert was ambitious to expand the operation’s geographic reach, now beyond the regional to the global. In 1972, he moved the Mouawad headquarters to Geneva amid a period of major technical advancements in the Swiss watchmaking industry.^[12] Robert was a risk taker who did not shy away from pursuing the innovative transformations necessary to internationalize the business. Now tapping into a vastly different market than the Saudi one, Robert strengthened the company’s R&D to elevate its production standards, and the Mouawad name started to gain recognition in Europe, Asia, and North America. ^[13]

Robert Mouawad had three sons: Fred, Alain, and Pascal. They were involved in the business in various official and unofficial capacities until Robert officially handed the business over to the fourth generation in 2010. Pascal — who had a deep interest in Hollywood culture, referring to celebrities as “modern-day royalty” — relocated the business’s US office from New York to Los Angeles and established multiple A-list collaborations. The company’s broader shift toward the North American market was a business move that proved very successful, in terms of both higher sales and brand awareness. ^[14]

Meanwhile, the fourth generation also began to offer some collections at more accessible price points to widen Mouawad’s client base beyond the super-wealthy, especially in the Gulf region.^[15] By 2020, Mouawad were no longer multi-brand retailers, with their outlets entirely devoted to their own brand. This was an important marker in the company’s history, as they were able to replace European luxury brands with their own products, which had reached world-class standards and global recognition.

TODAY

Today, members of the fifth generation have joined the business,^[16] which operates in over 16 countries with key offices in Dubai, Geneva, and Los Angeles.^{[17] [18]} The family holds a number of Guinness World Records for creating some of the rarest and most valuable jewelry pieces in the world.^[19] Alongside the main company, family members also run multiple other businesses and philanthropic initiatives and foundations.