With Chapter 4 GMT Tourbillon Limited Edition 2025, the watchmaking house BA111OD unveils a piece that concentrates all its know-how and its disruptive spirit. Limited to 30 numbered copies, this watch embodies the house's desire to offer a major complication, the tourbillon, associated with a useful functionality, the reading of two time zones, all at a price contained in the elitist world of fine watchmaking.
The case of 44 mm in grade 5 titanium benefits from treatment PVD 5N, giving it a warm and precious tint, while retaining the robustness and lightness characteristics of titanium. The choice of this highly technical material is explained by its resistance to corrosion and its excellent strength-to-weight ratio, making the piece comfortable to wear despite its assertive presence.
A movement designed to appeal to technicians and travelers
At the heart of this watch beats a hand-wound mechanical caliber, developed in La Chaux-de-Fonds by Olivier Mory, a watchmaker renowned for its ability to combine Swiss rigor and technical pragmatism.
- Tourbillon at 7 o'clock : a true horological feat, it compensates for the effects of gravity on the escapement, improving precision and offering a hypnotic visual spectacle. Its asymmetrical position, a signature of Chapter 4, energizes the dial.
- GMT complication : located at 1 o'clock, it takes the form of a 12-hour counter decorated with a engraved world map, allowing intuitive reading of time zones. Unlike conventional solutions, this architecture allows the management of atypical offsets of 30 minutes (India, Newfoundland, central Australia), a technical rarity hailed by knowledgeable travelers.
- 100 hour power reserve : obtained thanks to an optimized design of the barrel, it allows for above-average autonomy, avoiding daily winding.
The whole is distinguished by a open architecture which highlights the mechanics, a modern design but respectful of the tradition of clear and functional display.
The watch is distinguished by the off-center crown at 4 o'clock, a true trademark of BA111OD, which gives a unique silhouette while improving comfort on the wrist. Combined with a bracelet in nubuck leather, it combines discreet refinement with a contemporary touch. The texture of the nubuck accentuates the warm appearance of the 5N PVD case, reinforcing the contrast between technical innovation and understated elegance.
BA111OD, an independent and disruptive house
Located in the heart of the canton of Neuchâtel, BA111OD is an independent watchmaking company that has established itself in just a few years as a unique player in the Swiss landscape. Founded by Thomas Baillod, it claims a strong anchoring in the tradition of the Watchmaking Valley while assuming a profoundly modern and disruptive approach. Its model is based on a double axis: on the one hand, the design and assembly of Swiss movements developed in partnership with renowned watchmakers such asOlivier Mory, guaranteeing impeccable technical quality; on the other hand, an innovative distribution strategy, placing the community of enthusiasts at the heart of the process.
The choice of name BA111OD illustrates the unique spirit of the brand. Behind this alphanumeric writing is actually a phonetic reading: Baillod, the surname of its founder, Thomas Baillod. This deliberately atypical cryptonym reflects the desire to break with conventions while remaining faithful to its roots. The use of numbers in the name reflects this dual identity: a house deeply rooted in Swiss watchmaking tradition, but which allows itself to speak a contemporary, bold and universal language. BA111OD is therefore not only a signature, but a true statement of positioning: cultivating Swiss rigor and excellence, while instilling a disruptive approach, focused on community and accessibility.
Originally from the canton of Neuchâtel, Thomas Baillod is a recognized specialist in international watch distribution. Before founding his own company, he worked for over twenty years in the industry, holding key positions in sales strategy and network management abroad. A keen observer of market changes, he identified early on the limitations of the traditional model, which was overly dependent on intermediaries and disconnected from direct relationships with enthusiasts.
In 2019, he decided to take the plunge and founded BA111OD, an independent house designed as a laboratory of ideas. Its vision: make high-level Swiss complications accessible, while adopting a unique community model. An entrepreneur with a disruptive spirit, he doesn't just produce watches; he develops an ecosystem based on proximity, innovation and a transparency rare in this sector.
Baillod is distinguished by a double heritage: that of the Neuchâtel watchmaking tradition which he proudly claims, and that of a modern entrepreneurial approach, focused on digital technology, community and the democratization of fine watchmaking.
Other iconic chapters of BA111OD
Each collection is designed as a "Chapter", reinforcing the idea of a continuous watchmaking narrative where each stage explores new complications, new designs or new materials. This narrative structure, combined with a desire to democratize major complications such as the tourbillon or GMT, distinguishes BA111OD from its peers. Neither purely traditional nor solely avant-garde, the house cultivates a rare balance : that of a Swiss watchmaker authentic, local and technical, but rendered accessible to a new generation of discerning collectors.
While the Chapter 4 GMT Tourbillon Limited Edition 2025 illustrates the most technical dimension of the house, it is part of a coherent saga, where each “Chapter” tells a different facet of the BA111OD identity.
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Chapter 1 : The brand's first milestone, it laid the foundations of its DNA by offering a carefully crafted mechanical timepiece at a deliberately disruptive price. Accessible and elegant, it paved the way for a new way of looking at contemporary Swiss watchmaking.
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Chapter 2 : With this collection, BA111OD has asserted a more marked aesthetic, by integrating more assertive lines and refined finishes, while remaining faithful to its ambition to offer high-end watchmaking at the right price.
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Chapter 3 : A true rise to power, it introduced a major complication: the tourbillon. Designed in collaboration with watchmaker Olivier Mory, this model marked a turning point by making accessible a technical feat traditionally reserved for an elite of collectors.
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Chapter 4 : Available in several versions, it embodies the link between tradition and modernity. In addition to the GMT Tourbillon, this family brings together sophisticated models that combine useful complications, contemporary architecture and a strong identity with the off-center crown at 4 o'clock.
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Chapter 5 : BA111OD recently reached a new milestone with an innovative model incorporating an original display and even bolder materials. A true creative laboratory, this Chapter illustrates the brand's ability to reinvent itself without losing its focus.
Through these different stages, BA111OD builds a coherent collection where each Chapter adds a stone to the building: democratizing thewatches prestige while respecting Swiss tradition and cultivating a unique community approach.
By proposing the Chapter 4 GMT Tourbillon Limited Edition 2025, BA111OD demonstrates that exclusivity can be combined with reasonable accessibility. Produced in just 30 pieces, this rare watch is not aimed at a closed circle of privileged people, but at a wider community of enthusiasts who find in the house a player who is at once close, innovative and technically credible.
In a market where the tourbillon often remains as much a marketing tool as a mechanical feat, BA111OD chooses to restore its original meaning: that of a watchmaker's tool, put to the service of precision and passion.
The Chapter 4 GMT Tourbillon – Limited Edition 2025 is available for pre-order on the brand's official website for €10,530. Deliveries are scheduled for spring 2026, confirming the exclusive and anticipated nature of this exceptional piece.
Patrick Koune
