In a world where luxury brands too often mistake exclusivity for inaccessibility, Maximilian Büsser has orchestrated something truly extraordinary. As MB&F marks its twentieth anniversary, the Geneva-based atelier has announced what can only be described as the most generous gesture in recent horological memory: twenty exceptional timepieces, ten LM101 Longhorn and ten M.A.D.1S Anniversary editions, to be raffled freely amongst their community. Not sold. Not auctioned. Simply gifted. “Fortune favours the bold,” reads the anniversary inscription, and indeed, boldness defines this unprecedented act of gratitude.
A Raffle Unlike Any Other
The October draws represent far more than marketing theatre, they embody MB&F‘s foundational philosophy of community over commerce. The first raffle automatically includes all registered Tribe members, those devoted collectors who have already invested their passion and resources in MB&F’s mechanical poetry. These are individuals who understood the brand’s vision when it was still crystallising, who supported independent watchmaking when it required genuine faith rather than fashion following.
Simultaneously, the broader M.A.D.Editions community, thousands of enthusiasts who have participated in previous raffles, often without success, receive their own opportunity through the second draw. This acknowledgement of the broader horological community speaks to Büsser’s understanding that luxury should inspire, not intimidate. Each raffle will be supervised by a bailiff, ensuring absolute transparency in an industry where fairness often becomes negotiable.
The ten LM101 Longhorn winners receive more than timepieces; they receive invitations to collect their Machines directly from the MB&F M.A.D.House in Geneva. This personal touch transforms what could have been mere product distribution into pilgrimage, allowing winners to witness firsthand the environment where mechanical dreams take tangible form.
The LM101 Longhorn 20th Anniversary: Distilled Excellence
The LM101, launched in 2014, represents MB&F‘s most accessible entry point whilst maintaining the brand’s uncompromising standards. At 40mm, it achieves that increasingly rare balance between presence and wearability, housing a three-dimensional movement that defies its compact proportions. The collaboration with Kari Voutilainen, that master of Finnish horological artistry, ensures every movement component receives attention typically reserved for unique pieces.
The “101” nomenclature hints at the watch’s educational purpose: here lie the fundamentals of mechanical timekeeping presented with MB&F’s characteristic flair. The suspended balance wheel floats above the dial like a mechanical heart, its rhythmic oscillations visible and hypnotic. This transparency isn’t mere exhibitionism, it’s philosophy made manifest, proving that complexity and clarity need not be mutually exclusive.
Technical Mastery in Miniature
Beneath the anniversary edition’s striking aesthetics lies serious horological substance. The manually wound movement features 229 components orchestrated into 45 hours of autonomy. The 14mm rhodium-plated balance wheel, equipped with traditional regulating screws and Straumann double hairspring, beats at a leisurely 18,000 vibrations per hour, a frequency that allows the mesmerising dance to be properly appreciated.
The finishing throughout respects nineteenth-century traditions whilst embracing contemporary precision. Hand-engraved surfaces, polished bevels, Geneva waves, and gold chatons with polished countersinks create a visual symphony worthy of the most discerning collectors. This isn’t machine perfection, it’s human artistry channelled through mechanical mastery.
The anniversary edition adopts the distinctive Longhorn aesthetic, those elongated lugs that transform the watch’s visual rhythm. Previously reserved for the most special occasions, the charity LM1 Pièce Unique and the anniversary LM Sequential Flyback and LM Perpetual, these horns create visual drama whilst ensuring secure attachment to the wrist.
A Palette of Sophisticated Restraint
The anniversary colourway deserves particular attention. The luminous sunburst rhodium-plated dial plate catches light with subtle sophistication, whilst contrasting black sub-dials provide visual anchors. Blue hands add chromatic punctuation, not the aggressive azure often favoured by contemporary brands, but a refined navy that suggests depth rather than shouting for attention.
This palette connects the anniversary pieces to their LM Sequential Flyback and LM Perpetual Longhorn siblings launched earlier in 2025. The visual consistency creates a family resemblance that speaks to MB&F‘s design maturity, when every element serves both functional and aesthetic purposes, arbitrary variation becomes unnecessary.
The stainless steel case, whilst perhaps surprising for an anniversary piece, demonstrates Büsser’s understanding that preciousness isn’t synonymous with precious metals. Here, the steel’s technical properties: durability, lightness, hypoallergenic qualities – serve the wearer better than gold’s traditional luxury signalling.
The M.A.D.1S 20th Anniversary: Democratic Excellence
The M.A.D.1S represents the evolution of an experiment that became a phenomenon. What began in 2021 as a small-scale thank-you to Friends and Tribe members has blossomed into M.A.D.Editions, a parallel brand proving that exceptional design transcends traditional luxury boundaries.
This anniversary iteration builds upon the M.A.D.1S platform, the slimmest interpretation of the M.A.D.1 concept. The refined case and lugs create a more elegant silhouette, whilst the single cylinder mechanism maintains the original’s mechanical intrigue. The Swiss-made LaJoux-Perret G101 base movement provides robust reliability: a practical choice that acknowledges these watches will be worn, not only collected.
Roman Numerals and Refined Details
For the first time in M.A.D.Editions history, Roman numerals dress the hours and minutes cylinder. This classical touch might seem incongruous with the collection’s contemporary spirit, yet it achieves perfect harmony. The numerals connect the anniversary piece to horological tradition whilst the rotating display mechanism firmly anchors it in the present.
The colour coordination with the LM101 Longhorn creates visual unity across the anniversary collection. The same silver, black, and blue palette appears here, with a distinctive blue ring beneath the bezel complementing the blued hands of its more expensive sibling. This chromatic conversation between the pieces reinforces their shared celebratory purpose.
The light brown leather strap adds understated elegance, a choice that avoids the aggressive sportiness often associated with contemporary watch design. This is horological sophistication that doesn’t need to announce itself, confident in its own excellence.
Philosophy Made Manifest
“Our dozens of different Machines born over the last two decades allowed us all together to partake in what we love most: to create,” reflects Büsser. These anniversary pieces embody this collaborative spirit, representing not simple watches but relationships, between maker and wearer, between vision and reality, between individual ambition and collective achievement.
Büsser’s acknowledgement of past constraints adds poignancy to the gesture: “Amongst the few regrets I have from the last twenty years, one is that it was incredibly difficult to be generous when we were in survival mode“. This raffle represents liberation: from survival thinking, from conventional luxury models, from the assumption that exceptional things must always command exceptional prices.M
Technical Excellence in Service of Beauty
The M.A.D.1S specifications reveal careful attention to user experience. The 42mm stainless steel case maintains presence without overwhelming smaller wrists. Automatic winding via unidirectional rotor eliminates daily ritual whilst the 68 hours of power reserve ensures weekend reliability. The 4Hz frequency provides smooth seconds hand progression, a detail that matters during daily use.
The mineral glass and sapphire crystal combination, treated with anti-reflective coating, prioritises legibility over material prestige. This practical approach characterises the entire M.A.D.Editions philosophy: exceptional design need not require exceptional maintenance or precious material anxiety.
The Broader Context
These anniversary pieces exist within MB&F’s larger ecosystem of creativity and collaboration. The brand has consistently championed transparency in crediting collaborators, treating watchmaking as collective artistry rather than individual genius. This raffle extends that philosophy, treating their community not as customers but as participants in an ongoing creative journey.
The timing feels particularly significant. As the luxury industry increasingly retreats into exclusivity and artificial scarcity, MB&F demonstrates an alternative approach. Excellence need not be rationed; beauty can be shared; mechanical poetry deserves wide readership.
Legacy in the Making
When future horological historians examine MB&F’s twenty-year journey, these anniversary pieces may prove particularly significant. They represent the brand’s maturation from scrappy independent to industry influencer, from survival mode to sustainable generosity. More importantly, they demonstrate that commercial success can coexist with philosophical integrity.
The inscription “Fortune Favours the Bold” carries multiple meanings. It celebrates those early retailers who supported an unknown brand, the collectors who embraced mechanical experimentation, the artisans who transformed sketches into sculptures. Most profoundly, it acknowledges that in horology, as in life, the greatest rewards come not from playing it safe, but from daring to dream impossible dreams.
These twenty pieces will find their way to new homes through serendipity rather than selection, through fortune rather than finance. In an industry obsessed with control and curation, this represents ultimate boldness: trusting that exceptional creations will find their way to those who truly appreciate them, regardless of conventional acquisition channels.
Fortune, indeed, favours the bold. And in October, twenty fortunate souls will discover just how bold Maximilian Büsser and his friends have chosen to be.
