Laco

History

In 1925 Frieda Lacher and Ludwig Hummel founded Lacher & Co in Pforzheim; over the years the partners went separate ways and Hummel stayed at the head of Laco. In 1933 Hummel created Durowe (Deutsche Uhren Roh Werke) to make his own movements rather than depend on Swiss calibres. During the Second World War, Laco was one of the five houses — with IWC, A. Lange & Söhne, Stowa and Wempe — producing B-Uhr observation watches for German aviation to the standards of the Reichsluftfahrtministerium. In 1959 Hummel sold the company to the American group Timex, which in 1965 passed Laco-Durowe to the Swiss Ebauches S.A. In 1988 the executive Horst Günther reacquired the rights to the Laco name and logo, reviving the brand. After an insolvency in 2009, the company restructured around 2010 and refocused as a maker of pilot's watches. In 2025 the brand marks its centenary, established as the accessible reference for the German Flieger.

Iconic models

• Original Flieger B-Uhr (Beobachtungsuhr)

  The Luftwaffe observation watch of the forties, with its huge 55 mm case and Baumuster A and B dials: the piece that defines Laco's historic identity.

• Aachen

  The most recognisable entry-level Flieger in the modern catalogue; it turned the classic pilot's look into an affordable, best-selling watch.

• Augsburg

  A classical Flieger offered with both historic dials, Type A (numerals) and Type B (outer minute track), a direct heir of the B-Uhr.

• Paderborn

  A larger, more imposing version within the Flieger line, faithful to the legibility of the air navigation watch.

• Squad

  A line of contemporary tool and sports watches developed with emergency services and present-day military use in mind.