In this case study, you can learn about how we helped the luxury watch brand Carl F. Bucherer digitalize its assets into a sophisticated website available in 7 languages using React and Drupal as the CMS.

About The Client: Carl F. Bucherer

Carl F. Bucherer (CFB) is one of Switzerland’s oldest and most esteemed luxury watchmakers. Founded in 1888, the brand is recognized for its authenticity, sophistication, and timeless craftsmanship.

Today, CFB continues to produce exceptional watch models in-house, combining over 100 components in each masterpiece, and is expanding rapidly into new markets, including Asia.

Objectives

As part of its global expansion, Carl F. Bucherer initiated the development of a sophisticated website to support its presence in Europe and China.

The primary challenge was to build a robust store locator. Over time, the project scope expanded to include the global website, increasing the level of responsibility and collaboration.

Key objectives included:

• Brand Elevation: Reflect the premium image of Carl F. Bucherer online
• Drive-to-Store Incentivization: Develop a seamless store locator to help users find the nearest physical store
• Serving Global Clients: Deliver a responsive website for worldwide visitors, available in seven languages

Solutions for Carl F. Bucherer

New Web Design

The website was redesigned using a refined palette of black and brown-yellow, chosen to evoke the sense of luxury associated with the brand.

The homepage and user interface were carefully crafted and are continuously improved to ensure a premium digital experience.

Multilingual Capability

Drawing on extensive experience in localization, the development team enabled support for seven languages — English, German, French, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, and Chinese.

All languages are managed from a single backend, ensuring consistency in brand image and user experience across regions.

Store Locator

An advanced, user-friendly store locator was implemented, available in all supported languages.

Integrated with geolocation and Leaflet map technology, this feature helps customers find the nearest CFB stores in nearly 50 countries. The locator operates across two servers and utilizes custom services for route generation, multi-language importing, and domain switching.

Technologies

The website was built with React for the frontend and Drupal for the backend.

To ensure optimal performance globally — including within China — the Varnish accelerator was used for content-heavy dynamic pages.

Image optimization was achieved with Tinypng, resulting in fast loading speeds.

An automated deployment process from pre-production to production reduces human error and streamlines content management.

The Chinese version of the website is accessible via two URLs:

• .com.cn for anonymous users (redirecting to the Chinese server)
• .com/zh-hans for admins (managed via the French server)

Inbound and outbound processors rewrite HTML links to keep users on the correct domain, simplifying content management and enhancing the user experience.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Comprehensive SEO enhancements were made for both Google and Bing, including the use of custom events, meta tags, and HTML output optimization.

ITC’s development team continues to refine the site, ensuring compatibility with new Drupal releases and maintaining strong search performance.

Results

The revamped website fully embodies Carl F. Bucherer’s values of luxury, craftsmanship, and reliability. Key outcomes include:

• A visually stunning website that elevates the brand’s digital presence
• Exceptional user experience, high loading speeds, and enhanced SEO
• A user-friendly, multilingual store locator

Ongoing improvements ensure the website remains at the forefront of digital innovation, supporting Carl F. Bucherer’s continued growth and global reach.