Brand Directory: Yema watch company

Yema was founded in 1948 by Henry Louis Belmont after he came top of his class at the National Watchmaking School of Besancon in 1931. The legend goes that the name Yema was created by a teenager's imagination who entered a competition run by Henry. 1963 saw the introduction of the Yema Superman, essentially made for dive professionals. It had a 300-meter water resistance. Its bezel lock system made it unique and was soon adopted by the French Air force for its pilots. In the 1960s, Yema became the leading watch exporter in France, selling more than 500,000 watches a year in over 50 countries. In 1982 Yema went to space with Yema Spationaute 1.