ON A MILD JANUARY NIGHT, the streets of Geneva are crowded with visitors to the city's annual watch fairs. At a table inside the hallowed Brasserie Lipp, François-Paul Journe is swirling a glass of red wine. As he moves his wrist, one of the watches the 56-year-old Frenchman makes in his nearby atelier appears from beneath his white shirt cuff.

Mr. Journe is dining with a dozen guests: colleagues, friends and watch collectors. Avoiding the razzmatazz of the fairs, he introduces his new watches to select audiences at...