Watch Design Studio
From Concept to
Production Ready Collection
ACTE.5 is an independent watch design studio built for brands that need more than a render, they need a watch that can actually be produced, priced, and sold. Founded and led by watch designer Rodolphe Melot, the studio has shaped 230+ references over 12+ years for premium and niche brands worldwide.
We deliver in English and French.
What is a
watch design studio?
A watch design studio is a specialized creative and technical partner focused on timepieces.
Unlike a generic product design agency, a dedicated watch design studio understands movement calibers, dial-making constraints, case tolerances, crystal seating, water resistance architecture, and the realities of quoting a project with Swiss, Japanese, or Chinese suppliers.
Most independent brands, startups, and mid-sized houses cannot justify a full in-house watch design team — but still need design work delivered at a professional, production-ready standard. ACTE.5 operates as your external watch design department: creative direction, product design, CAD, and technical documentation under one roof.
One point of contact, one coherent vision, from first sketch to supplier handover.
Watch design services
Creative direction and collection strategy
Every project starts with a clear creative direction. We define the collection's design language, positioning, competitive landscape, and SKU architecture before a single case profile is drawn. This phase shapes the identity of the line, mood, proportions, materials, and narrative, so that every subsequent design decision serves both the brand and the market.
Case, dial, bezel and Bracelet design
From sketch to refined 2D technical drawings, we design every visible component of the watch: case silhouettes, lug geometry, bezel inserts, dial composition, hand sets, index systems, crown profiles, and caseback treatments. Each element is developed with manufacturing constraints in mind, we design what factories can actually produce, not just what looks good on screen.
Movement
integration
We work with the calibers that independent brands actually use: Miyota 9015, Seiko NH35 and NH38, Sellita SW200 and SW300, Ronda quartz, and ETA movements. Module integration, complication layouts, and movement-to-case architecture are handled with real supplier constraints and pricing logic in mind.
CAD development in SolidWorks and RhinO
Full 3D development of every component: case, bezel, caseback, crown, dial, hands, bracelet links, and clasp. Assembly files, surface modeling for complex case geometries, and export in STEP, Parasolid, and IGES formats, delivered in a structure your factory can open, quote, and tool without rework.
Techpack
production
The techpack is where most projects fail or succeed. We produce modular, production-ready documentation: 2D technical drawings, 3D reference files, bill of materials, material and finish specifications, tolerance sheets, and supplier briefing documents. One master file per reference, clean PDF and ZIP deliverables. Our techpacks are built so factories can quote accurately on first pass — no back-and-forth, no guesswork.
3D
prototyping
Resin-printed prototypes for physical review: proportions, wrist presence, lug ergonomics, crown access, and dial legibility. Fast iteration, low cost, and risk-free validation before committing to steel tooling.
Renderings and product visualization
Photorealistic 3D renders for pitch decks, crowdfunding campaigns, e-commerce, trade shows, and investor materials. We create visuals that sell, not just visuals that impress designers.
Packaging and brand strategy
For brands that need it, we extend into packaging design, box architecture, naming, positioning, and launch storytelling. A coherent product universe, from the watch on the wrist to the box in the customer's hands.
Beyond watches:
extended product design
Timepieces sit at the heart of our studio.
But we regularly extend into adjacent product categories when a brand's universe requires it, eyewear, accessories, small leather goods, writing instruments, and furniture. The same discipline that makes a watch producible at scale applies to any designed object: clean CAD, honest techpacks, and real-world supplier fluency.
Who we design for
Premium and
mid-market brands
Premium and mid-market brands looking for an external design partner to refresh an existing collection, launch a new product family, or restructure their catalogue. We operate as an integrated extension of your team — not a one-off freelancer.
Emerging
niche brands
Emerging niche brands building ambitious first collections with Swiss or Japanese movements. We bring the production expertise and supplier network that first-time founders typically lack, so your debut collection launches with professional-grade files and realistic timelines.
Independent watchmakers and founders
Independent watchmakers and founders launching a first or second reference with limited internal resources. Whether you have a napkin sketch or a fully formed brief, we take the project from wherever it is to wherever it needs to go.
How we work: the ACTE.5 process
1. Brief and creative direction
We define the collection's identity, positioning, price tier, and technical ambition.
This is where we align on what the project is — and what it is not.
2. Concept design
Sketches, mood boards, silhouette studies, dial composition directions.
Multiple concepts explored, one direction selected and refined.
3. Technical design and CAD
SolidWorks and Rhino development, feasibility review, movement fitting, tolerance strategy. The design becomes an engineered product.
4. Techpack delivery
Production-ready documentation for your supplier.
Every dimension, every material, every finish — documented and exportable.
5. Prototype review
Physical sample analysis, corrections, sign-off.
We review with the same eye we designed with.
6. Production support
Supplier coordination, pre-production
verification, and launch handover. We stay involved until the first production units are confirmed.
Why brands
choose ACTE.5
Hands-on watch expertise
12+ years, 230+ shipped references across 10+ brands. Not a generalist portfolio with one watch project buried on page three.
Production-grade files
Techpacks that factories can quote and tool on first pass. No rework cycles, no wasted tooling budgets.
Full-service under one roof
Creative direction, product design, CAD, techpack, prototyping, rendering, packaging, and supplier coordination. One partner replaces five freelancers.
One point of contact
Rodolphe Melot leads every project personally.
No account managers, no handoffs, no diluted creative vision.
Worldwide
reach
Client work delivered in English and French.
Across Europe, the Middle East, and beyond.
About the founder
Rodolphe Melot is a French watch designer with 12+ years of experience and 230+ watch references launched for premium brands. Trained in industrial design, he began his career in Switzerland and has since worked with renowned international brands and agencies across France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Germany — including contributions to projects for Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Maurice Lacroix, Victorinox, and the Fossil Group.
His experience spans watches, eyewear, lifestyle objects, tableware, and furniture. He founded ACTE.5 to bring together everything he believes in: thoughtful design, commercial clarity, and products that resonate emotionally with the people who wear them.
Ready to design your next watch collection?
Every project starts with a conversation.
Contact us to discuss your brief.
No commitment required.