Ulysse Nardin Opens U.S. Flagship Boutique at The Villa Menlo Park – Bringing High-Tech, Silicon-Infused Swiss Watches to Silicon Valley

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MENLO PARK, CA (March 20, 2025) - Swiss watchmaker Ulysse Nardin rolled out the blue carpet in Silicon Valley on Tuesday, March 18, to celebrate the opening of its U.S. flagship boutique at The Villa Menlo Park, launched in partnership with local retail partner Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry. The new boutique, the Swiss watchmaker’s only stand-alone store in North America, establishes a highly anticipated West Coast outpost for the cult-favorite Swiss watchmaker, joining Ulysse Nardin’s portfolio of global brand boutiques in Geneva, Dubai, and Shanghai.

The Ulysse Nardin brand location joins a host of other high-end, watch-centric brand boutiques already open on the ground floor of The Villa Menlo Park property, including independent Swiss watchmakers MB&F and H. Moser & Cie., German safe maker Buben & Zörweg, and the Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry boutique and timepiece salon.

Patrick Pruniaux, Chairman and CEO of Ulysse Nardin: “Ulysse Nardin has been advancing watchmaking since 1846, and we’re excited to highlight our innovation—pioneering silicon technology into watchmaking—with a new flagship boutique in the heart of Silicon Valley. Our partnership with Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry allows collectors across the tech community and beyond to access the latest novelties from Ulysse Nardin.”

“The Ulysse Nardin boutique at The Villa Menlo Park is a manifestation of what “UN” is made of: the 179-year heritage of a Swiss Manufacture blended with futuristic, high horology as an art form. Here, watch afficionados and our cult-enthusiasts will find the very rare, the very new and the very best of Ulysse Nardin in a boutique designed as a ‘white lab’ for watch collectors.” stated François-Xavier Hotier of Ulysse Nardin Americas.  

"Silicon Valley collectors have a deep appreciation for independent watchmakers like Ulysse Nardin—brands driven by vision, creativity, and true independence. These values resonate strongly in our community, which has always celebrated innovation at its best," says Jared Silver, President of Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry and a key force behind the development of The Villa Menlo Park. "We are proud to expand our partnership with Ulysse Nardin and to welcome the boutique to The Villa Menlo Park."

Located at 500 El Camino Real in Menlo Park, The Villa Menlo Park is the realization of Jared and Stephen Silver’s vision to create a sophisticated cultural hub that celebrates craftsmanship and rare experiences through a variety of mediums, from fine jewelry and watchmaking to the culinary arts and cultural experiences. The Ulysse Nardin boutique joins the property’s world-class dining and retail destinations and reflects the growing importance of the American watch market and Silicon Valley’s emergence as a destination for leisure, culture, and entertainment.

Introducing the Ulysse Nardin flagship boutique at The Villa Menlo Park

From its brushed and polished walls to the mineral-inspired details, every aspect of the space creates an experience that is luxurious, unconventional, and deeply connected to Silicon Valley. A confluence of natural elements and cutting-edge micro-mechanic technology communicates the brands’ ethos and legacy – while the interior’s emphasis on silicon makes clever reference both to its location and the brand’s pioneering embrace of silicon. Ulysse Nardin was the first to introduce silicon to watchmaking with the launch of its iconic Freak timepiece in 2001.  

“In designing Ulysse Nardin’s boutique, I wanted to create a space where time becomes tangible,” said boutique designer Bertrand Fairerol. “From the reflective materials that mirror the passage of time to the mineral-inspired elements that evoke nature’s raw beauty, the boutique embodies the bold and unconventional spirit of the Freak watch. The ‘Silicon Inside’ light installation was an opportunity to connect the boutique to its Silicon Valley home while celebrating the transformative material that is at the heart of Ulysse Nardin’s innovation.”

A clever light installation inside the boutique spells out “Silicon Inside” in reverse. When reflected in the boutique’s mirrored surfaces, the phrase appears correctly, serving as a playful yet meaningful homage to both the Freak’s use of silicon and the innovative spirit of Silicon Valley. This unique design feature ties the boutique to its local roots while celebrating the material innovation central to Ulysse Nardin’s pioneering craftsmanship.  

The Ulysse Nardin boutique at The Villa Menlo Park is open Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. by walk-in or private appointment. Visit thevillamenlopark.com for more information.

About The Villa Menlo Park

The Villa Menlo Park is Silicon Valley's cultural hub, located in the heart of Menlo Park, California, at 500 El Camino Real. Designed to promote discovery and to celebrate the rare things in life, The Villa Menlo Park property spans three floors of elevated and inviting indoor-outdoor space offering countless opportunities to play, connect, and experience the art of living well.

A showcase of craftsmanship, quiet sophistication, and enriching, curated experiences, The Villa Menlo Park houses world class retail destinations, including the Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry flagship store, private high jewelry salon, and corporate offices. New Cal-Indian dining concept Eylan by Michelin-acclaimed Chef Srijith Gopinathan and restaurateur Ayesha Thapar anchors the ground floor.

The Villa Menlo Park has already established Silicon Valley as a premier destination for leading upscale brands to launch their flagship U.S. retail footprints, including H. Moser & Cie., Ulysse, Buben & Zörweg, and Greubel Forsey—each marking the brand's first stand-alone retail store in the United States. The MB&F LAB Silicon Valley retail gallery—the Swiss watchmaker's first Northern California boutique—is also located on the ground floor.

The Villa Menlo Park was developed by Stephen and Jared Silver, together with late real estate mogul John Arrillaga, Sr., and features interiors by James Mansour of Mansour Design. Find out more.

About Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry

Stephen Silver is one of the United States’ premier jewelry houses and timepiece salons. For over 44 years, the independent, family-owned company has helped clients in Silicon Valley and abroad to build and steward their collections over the course of generations, offering access to the world’s rarest jewelry, diamonds, and colored gemstones as well as highly collectible timepieces from leading brands and independent watchmakers.

The Silvers’ unsurpassed expertise in gemology and ultra-rare jewelry has led them to acquire numerous historically significant items, among them the famed Cullinan Blue Diamond necklace, which Stephen Silver donated to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History permanent collection, and the record-breaking 14.93 carat Pink Promise Diamond, daringly recut by the Silvers and sold for a record price per carat. Today, the company remains rooted in the SF Bay Area under the leadership of Jared and Stephen Silver, now a vertically integrated wholesale and retail operation of international reach lauded for its curatorial approach, inspired designs, and innovative, tech-forward approach to independent luxury retail. Visit shsilver.com for more information.

About Ulysse Nardin

ULYSSE NARDIN - NO BOUNDARIES. SINCE 1846

Ulysse Nardin is an independent, Swiss Maison disrupting Haute Horlogerie to advance watchmaking through pioneering technology and unmatched craftsmanship. Founded in 1846 in Le Locle, Switzerland, the Manufacture has focused on high complications and achieving ever-greater precision in timing instruments—once critical, life-saving tools used in ocean exploration. Across five generations of watchmakers, the Nardin family cemented its legacy in producing the most precise and reliable marine chronometers. As a result, Ulysse Nardin timing instruments were trusted by the leading 50 navies worldwide. Its chronographs, renowned for their accuracy, have also been used by scientists across geodesy, astronomy, and earth sciences, as well as deployed by the Olympic Games prior to the introduction of digital timekeeping.

Ulysse Nardin has maintained its leadership through innovations in chronometry, in-house movements, material R&D, and high horology advancements. With over 4,300 technical and design-related awards to date, the Manufacture has introduced groundbreaking innovations to horology, including the world’s first chiming pieces with Jacquemarts automatons, the Astrolabium Galileo Galilei—the most complicated astronomical watch ever made at the time—and the first perpetual calendar that could be set both forwards and backwards via the crown. Ulysse Nardin also pioneered the use of silicon in horology and invented DiamonSil® - a revolutionary surface treatment developed through its in-house micromechanical silicon lab, Sigatec.

Ulysse Nardin’s promise of unbound horological progress is matched only by its dedication to preserving metiers d’art. Ulysse Nardin’s ongoing investments sustain centuries-old craft such as micro-painting, enameling, gem-setting, engraving and guilloché. Across its collections, Ulysse Nardin timepieces showcase a mastery of traditional techniques and a “no shortcuts taken” approach to creating the most exquisite collector’s pieces.

The epitome of Ulysse Nardin’s singular approach to combining high technology and craftsmanship came in 2001 when Ulysse Nardin’s Freak was launched as the first superwatch and the most complicated time-only watch ever created. With its entire movement rotating to tell time, the Freak was an alien, kinetic sculpture in a land of classic watches reshaping the art of horology in its image. It was a revolution that inspired a new era of watchmakers and contemporary watch design. More than 20 years later, the Freak [ONE] was named the “Most Iconic Watch” at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, affirming its disruptive force in horological history.

Today, Ulysse Nardin continues to push the boundaries of horology, challenging what is technically possible and redefining expectations for a storied heritage Manufacture. Ulysse Nardin’s boutiques and select retail partners span the globe, with flagship locations in Geneva, Dubai, Shanghai, and now, Silicon Valley. Find out more at ulysse-nardin.com