Kari Voutilainen: history, models and value

Founded

2002

Founder(s)

Kari Voutilainen

Headquarters

Môtiers

Owner / group

Independent

Kari Voutilainen: origins and founding

Kari Voutilainen founded his own workshop in 2002 in the Val-de-Travers, in the canton of Neuchâtel. From the start it was a small atelier making high-end watches by hand. The first piece was the Masterpiece 6, a decimal minute repeater with a power reserve indicator. Since 2009 the workshop has been based in Môtiers.

Founders and family

Voutilainen was born in Finland in 1962 and trained at the watchmaking school in Tapiola. He moved to Switzerland in 1989 and completed the WOSTEP course in complicated watchmaking. He then spent about ten years restoring antique watches and later taught at WOSTEP. In 1994 he made a tourbillon pocket watch by hand, which was shown at the International Museum of Horology in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1996. Today Angélique Singele is CEO of the company, alongside him.

Kari Voutilainen history and milestones

• 2002: own brand founded.
• 2007: the Observatoire wins a men's watch prize at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG).
• 2011: the Vingt-8 appears with the first fully in-house movement, Calibre 28.
• 2014: Voutilainen acquires the dial maker Dialtech and renames it Comblémine SA.
• 2007–2020: eight GPHG prizes in total, in the men's watch and artistic crafts categories, and another artistic crafts prize in 2025.
• 2021: a group of investors led by Voutilainen acquires Urban Jürgensen, which he relaunches in 2025 as a separate brand.

Famous Kari Voutilainen models

• Observatoire: time-only watch with a guilloché dial, inspired by observatory chronometers.
• Vingt-8 and its variants (28SC, 28ti, 28 GML and others): watches built on the in-house Calibre 28. Orders for the Vingt-8 family closed at the end of 2025.
• GMR and V-8R: earlier prize-winning models.
• Artistic pieces such as Hisui and Aki-No-Kure, which won GPHG artistic crafts prizes.

Movements and technique

Calibre 28 is made in-house and uses an unusual escapement design. Voutilainen is also known for his dials: thanks to Comblémine he produces his own guilloché and decorated dials, which is rare for a small workshop. Finishing is done by hand.

Kari Voutilainen today

The workshop remains independent and is run from Môtiers. It sits at the very top of the independent haute horlogerie segment. Many pieces are made to order or as unique pieces.

Kari Voutilainen prices on the pre-owned market

Because so few watches are made, Voutilainen pieces rarely come up for sale, and they often appear at major auction houses rather than with regular dealers. Demand from collectors is strong. Value depends on the model, the dial, whether it is a unique piece, and completeness: original box, certificate and any correspondence with the workshop add to value. Service by the workshop itself is preferred.

How to recognise a genuine Kari Voutilainen

Genuine pieces have hand-guilloché dials, very fine hand finishing on the movement, and are signed Voutilainen. Because each watch is documented by the workshop, the most reliable check is to ask Voutilainen to confirm the serial number. Be careful with any piece offered without papers or far below the market. Our guide on how to spot a fake watch explains the general checks.

What is your Kari Voutilainen worth?

A watch at this level should always be looked at carefully. Start with our free watch value estimate based on your photos. For insurance, an estate or a sale, you can also order a written watch appraisal.

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