François-Henri Bennahmias is stepping back into watchmaking with N3W5, a new brand created under The Honorable Merchant Group.
The move is notable because Bennahmias left Audemars Piguet after a high-profile tenure that saw the Le Brassus manufacture grow from CHF 500 million to CHF 2 billion in annual sales.
N3W5, pronounced “news” and standing for North East West South, is being positioned less as a conventional watch label and more as a collaborative platform for independent expertise.
At a glance
- François-Henri Bennahmias has announced N3W5, his first watchmaking project after Audemars Piguet.
- The brand will open with two collections, one round and one cushion-shaped, powered by two dedicated calibres.
- The first watches are planned for Dubai Watch Week 2027, with prices starting at CHF 20,000.
A collaborative watch brand built around specialist craft
N3W5 sits within The Honorable Merchant Group, Bennahmias’s wider venture focused on curated luxury projects, collaborations, craftsmanship, authenticity and sustainability.
For its first watchmaking chapter, the company is bringing a broad network of specialists into the foreground rather than treating them as background suppliers.
The announced roster covers case and bracelet work, design, dials, engineering, movement production, stone setting, packaging and métiers d’art.
Among the names attached to the project are Biwi, Multicuirs and Werthanor for bracelet and case components, alongside Xavier Casals, Dalibor Klas and Sebastien Perret on design.
Dial work involves LM Cadrans and Metalem, while engineering is linked to Astro.
The métiers d’art side is particularly serious, with engravers Pierre-Alain Lozeron and Kevin Vatteau, enameller Anita Porchet and guillocheur Yann von Kaenel named among the contributors.
Movement partners include Alpine Précision, Régence Production and TimeForge, with Niru Swiss SA on stone setting and Technew on packaging.
Two launch collections and dedicated calibres
The first N3W5 watches will be split across two collections.
One will use a round case, while the other will introduce a cushion-shaped design.
Both lines are being developed around new dedicated calibres, with one of those movements protected by patents.
That detail matters because it suggests N3W5 isn’t simply entering the market as a design-led label with outsourced mechanics hidden behind the curtain.
The technical proposition appears to be part of the brand’s identity from the beginning, even if full specifications are still being held back until the watches are shown.
Dubai Watch Week 2027 sets the stage
The first N3W5 model is scheduled to appear at Dubai Watch Week 2027.
That timing gives the project room to develop, and it also places the debut in front of one of the most engaged collector audiences in contemporary watchmaking.
Pricing will start at CHF 20,000, putting N3W5 firmly in the high-end independent and small-series luxury segment.
The company’s ambitions are not limited to a handful of experimental pieces, with plans to produce and sell several thousand watches annually over time.
Details & Specifications
| Brand | N3W5 |
|---|---|
| Parent venture | The Honorable Merchant Group |
| Founder | François-Henri Bennahmias |
| Planned collections | Round case collection and cushion-shaped collection |
| Movement | Two new dedicated calibres, including one patent-protected calibre |
| Debut | Dubai Watch Week 2027 |
| Starting price | CHF 20,000 |
| Production ambition | Several thousand watches annually |
Bennahmias’s return was never likely to be quiet, but N3W5 is interesting because it shifts attention from a single star executive to the network of hands and minds that make ambitious watchmaking possible.
If the finished watches can translate that collaborative promise into compelling design and credible mechanics, N3W5 could become one of the most closely watched launches of 2027.
