FHH MAG 2018 - EN by Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie

FONDATION DE LA HAUTE HORLOGERIE 2018

AS TIME BY GOES

George Orwell wrote that who controls the past controls the future, and who controls the present controls the past.

In other words, if we understand the present, if we have a clear grasp of the directions the economy and culture are taking, we see the past in greater detail too. This in turn provides a fountain of knowledge, thanks to which we can face the future fully aware. If, however, we conform to current opinions in complete denial of the past, we may well lack the strength, the aptitude even, to stand up to a future dominated by unknown forces; forces we believe are within our control when in reality they have control of us. Yesterday, today, tomorrow: consciously live each today so as to better understand the yesterdays, and embark on tomorrow with the determination to achieve something greater than ourselves. Yesterday, today, tomorrow: these temporal adverbs are also cultural references that situate Fine Watchmaking in its proper context. A context, a perimeter which the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie constantly analyses, studies, defends and promotes so as to give meaning and awareness to those who have the good fortune, but also the strength and devotion, to be part of it. The themes chosen for this new issue of FHH MAG are not “here today, gone tomorrow”. They don’t change with the latest news; they don’t spark instant reactions. Instead they set out an eloquent and authentic scenario that confirms the choices made by the men and women of Fine Watchmaking. A scenario that is valid today, was already correct yesterday, and will certainly be all the more wise tomorrow. As was abundantly demonstrated at the last FHH Forum on the “Age of Meaning”, a seam of values carried over from the past must be the cornerstone of our actions today, if they are to have any meaning. How else can we awaken our consciousness against the nonsensical, against brutality. How else can we escape this anti-culture in which everything must be either quantified and measurable, or blindly irresponsible. Once upon a time we valued the intelligence of the hand, the poetry expressed in human gestures. Once upon a time we had notions of art and culture, enabling Fine Watchmaking to reveal itself today - as yesterday and certainly tomorrow - at its best. FRANCO COLOGNI

CONTENTS

YESTERDAY PAGE 4 MUSEUM QUALITY By Marie de Pimodan-Bugnon PAGE 8 THE BEAUTY OF TIME By Alain Stella PAGE 12 AND THEREBY HANGS A TALE By Luc Debraine

Portfolio PAGE 16

TODAY PAGE 42 ON HOME SOIL By Marie de Pimodan-Bugnon

PAGE 46 DID SOMEBODY SAY AMBASSADOR? By Michel Jeannot

FORUM PAGE 50

PORTFOLIO PAGE 55

TOMORROW PAGE 72 TIME ON OUR SIDE? By Pierre Maillard PAGE 76 ARE WATCHMAKERS READY TO ASK Y? By Fabrice Eschmann

PAGE 80 SHOULD WATCH BRANDS BE CONTENTED? By Isabelle Cerboneschi

YESTERDAY

MUSEUM SPECIALIST MUSEUMS AND ART INSTITUTIONS AROUND THE WORLD HAVE ASSEMBLED SOME OF THE FOREMOST COLLECTIONS OF CLOCKS AND WATCHES. SPANNING FIVE HUNDRED YEARS, THE OBJECTS IN THEIR CARE DOCUMENT ADVANCES IN MECHANISMS AND THE ORNAMENTAL REFINEMENT THAT ACCOMPANIES THIS TECHNICAL PROGRESS. TAKE A TICKET FOR A GUIDED TOUR OF TWENTY MUST-SEE COLLECTIONS. by

MARIE DE PIMODAN BUGNON

QUALITY F

or some, horology is an art. Others call it a craft. Whatever your point of view, it’s clear that watches and clocks have their rightful place in our museums, with nothing to envy the paintings or sculptures that stand alongside them. Is this because they bear such elegant witness to the meanders of history, and to the tastes and fashions that prevailed in European royal households? Do we admire them as objects of great technical value, and for their ability to capture innovative ideas in their cogs and gears? Or are we entranced by their intricate ornamentation – the enamelling, engraving, sculpture and miniature painting that make these clocks and watches monuments of artistry and design? No doubt the answer lies in a combination of all these possibilities. Around the globe, at institutions devoted to the horologist’s expertise or at prestigious museums such as the Louvre in Paris or the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, clocks and watches are a reminder of times past, an illustration of bygone splendour, and the memory of the beauty that springs from these age-old skills. Art or craft, what does it matter? The measurement of time is a joy to behold.

➝

SWITZERLAND

Musée International d’Horlogerie, La Chaux-de-Fonds The MIH originated with a collection initially intended for the instruction of students at the local watchmaking school. The museum’s extensive holdings now include clocks, mechanical and electronic watches, automata, marine chronometers and deck watches, and feature important works by Breguet, Janvier, Jaquet-Droz, Berthoud and Le Roy. Musée d’Horlogerie du Locle, Château des Monts Inside the magnificent Château des Monts, built in the late eighteenth century, watches and clocks from the Renaissance to the present are shown in all their splendour. As well as tracing the journey towards modernday precision watches, superb clocks and ingenious movements illustrate the art and science of mechanisms, elegantly staged in the different galleries. Patek Philippe Museum, Geneva Collections of enamels, musical automata, portrait miniatures, pocket- and wristwatches extend over the four floors of this museum, inside an early-twentieth-century building, where visitors can contemplate the brand’s most prestigious creations from 1839 right up to the present day.

Haus Zum Kirschgarten, Basel This museum is largely devoted to watches and clocks produced in western Europe between the fifteenth and the nineteenth centuries. Sundials, coach watches and gold fob watches are among the objects on display, not forgetting, of course, an interesting collection of Basel-made watches.

Musée Paul Dupuy, Toulouse The vast majority of the horology collection – 130 artefacts from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries – was donated to the museum by Édouard Gélis. Visitors can admire not only clocks and watches, but also scientific instruments including compasses, microscopes, graphometers and astrolabes.

Beyer Museum, Zurich Gnomons, sundials, oil clocks, hourglasses, clepsydras, clocks, pocket watches and wristwatches from every era… the Beyer Museum boasts one of Switzerland’s largest private collections of timekeeping instruments.

GERMANY

Deutsches Uhrenmuseum, Furtwangen Black Forest clocks and cuckoo clocks take pride of place among the more than 8,000 items in the museum’s collections, which range from everyday clocks to alarm clocks and regulators. Particular points of interest include one of the first ever quartz clocks, from 1928, and a clock driven by an electric motor, made in 1845.

FRANCE

Musée du Louvre, Paris Wander through the labyrinthine Louvre, and you may be surprised by the many pocket watches, longcase clocks and table clocks on display. These are chosen less for their mechanical value than for their artistic worth. Enamel, miniature painting, sculpture and engraving are amply represented.

ENGLAND

British Museum, London The measurement of time has its rightful place in a museum whose purpose is to document the history and culture of humankind. The British Museum holds an impressive collection of some 900 clocks and 4,500 watches from the sixteenth century to the present day, with particularly fine examples of engraving and goldwork.

Musée du Temps, Besançon This “museum of time” stands inside the majestic Palais Granvelle. The first two floors present the historical, scientific and technical evolution of time measurement. The third floor is set aside for temporary exhibitions.

AUSTRIA

Uhrenmuseum, Vienna Like Mozart, Beethoven and Strauss, watchmakers found inspiration in the Austrian capital. With close to 3,000 exhibits – watches, longcase clocks, table clocks, even paintings with clocks built into them – this remarkable collection is witness to the city’s rich imperial past.

SPAIN

Palacio Real, Madrid Many of Spain’s monarchs have shown a keen interest in clockmaking. Assembled in royal palaces and monasteries, the P atrimonio Nacional collection comprises more than 700 objects dating from 1583 for the oldest up to the early 1900s. Outstanding among them is the Shepherd’s Clock by Pierre Jaquet-Droz.

NETHERLANDS

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum is home to Vermeer, Rembrandt, Dürer… and clocks and watches. More than 500 artefacts tell the story of Dutch watchmaking in the eighteenth century. Look out for the travel watch made by Salomon Coster of The Hague, and a repeater watch whose ornate gold case is the work of Thauvet Beslay.

RUSSIA

Kremlin Museums, Moscow From royal watches produced in the sixteenth century to early twentieth-century timepieces, the Kremlin Museums are at the head of a fine collection of elaborately ornamented clocks and watches. Delicate enamelling, precious stones, intricate engravings and engine-turning can be admired in all their glory.

ITALY

JAPAN

Poldi Pezzoli, Milan In 1973, the Milanese collector Bruno Falck bequeathed his 129 clocks and watches from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to the museum. A second gallery shows the 200 sundials donated by Piero Portaluppi.

Seiko Museum, Tokyo Opened in 1981 for Seiko’s centenary and fully renovated in 2012, the museum traces the history of Japanese horology through precision timing instruments and traditional Japanese clocks. Naturally, special emphasis is given to the history of Seiko and its products.

CHINA

The Palace Museum, Beijing An unrivalled collection of mechanical watches of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries is shown in the Palace Museum of B eijing, with over a thousand artefacts from China and beyond. Among the many marvels is an automaton that writes a calligraphed text with a brush.

UNITED STATES

The Frick collection, New York Numerous table clocks, including some sixteenthcentury pieces, offer magnificent examples of gold sculpting and engraving. Pocket watches by Breguet, Mudge and Le Roy, cases by André-Charles Boulle and clocks by George Graham bring to life five centuries in the history of time measurement.

TURKEY

Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul Of the 300 clocks and watches in the collection, around two-thirds are on permanent display. Originating from T urkey, Switzerland, Austria, England, France or Russia, they offer a fabulous panorama of the measurement of time.

YESTERDAY3

Historical Museum, Krakow The museum’s clock gallery originated when in 1973 it inherited the private collection of Wladyslaw Miodonski. Today, it comprises 263 timepieces from Poland, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Great Britain, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Hungary.

CARLO STANGA

POLAND

THE BEAUTY OF

YESTERDAY

TIME IN PARTNERSHIP WITH FONDATION DE LA HAUTE HORLOGERIE, FLAMMARION IS PUBLISHING THE BEAUTY OF TIME, A RICHLY ILLUSTRATED BOOK ON THE AESTHETICS OF CLOCKS AND WATCHES. BY

ALAIN STELLA

hy, for at least seven centuries, have we accorded such importance to the ornamentation of clocks and watches when these are, after all, mechanical instruments? No doubt because the measurement of time is no ordinary measure; it follows the pattern of the seasons, the flow of our lives. It is larger than ourselves. From the Middle Ages and even today, whether we realise it or not, there is something sacred about the measuring of time. Building a watch is like building a temple. This architecture, whose heart beats to the rhythm of life itself, must reflect more than a skilled hand or an ingenious mind – it must be evidence of the most miraculous creation. Subconsciously, for the watchmaker a timepiece is often a sacred wonder of the world, a Notre-Dame de Paris, a Great Mosque of Córdoba, a Temple of Heaven in Beijing. FROM THE AGE OF CATHEDRALS TO BEYOND TIME. Yet as this long overdue book so masterfully demonstrates, beauty is not an absolute concept, disengaged from time and its historical contingencies. No previous publication has offered such a clear analysis of the cultural implications of beauty in the field of horology. Aesthetics are tied in with societies, mentalities and ideas, which are in constant flux. A beautiful watch by Renaissance standards is very different to what would have been deemed a beautiful watch in the Roaring Twenties. Each is ensconced in an artistic and intellectual context, a temporal meshing of forms and ideas which had to be put into words for us to grasp, at long last, the nature of beauty in horology. Relating this history is François Chaille, whose many books include authoritative works on Cartier, Audemars Piguet and Girard-Perregaux. In nine chapters from the

PIERRE PAUL RUBENS (1577-1640), Portrait of a Gentleman, 1597. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / image of the MMA

THE BEAUTY OF TIME Foreword by F R ANCO

COLOGNI

FR A N Ç O I S CH AI LL E D O M I N I QU E FL ÉCH ON

Flammarion

renowned, and further embellished with chased gilt bronze emblems including four sphinxes supporting the clock, a female mask (probably Minerva, the goddess of war), acanthus leaves and flaming urns. In his chapter devoted to the Grand Siècle, François Chaille tells how the clock’s impressive size, its harmony and symmetry, its elaborate decoration and references to classical antiquity are characteristic of the Louis XIV style, “which must reflect the power, munificence and majesty of the king.” This Classicism, as the author explains, is that of the nascent Palace of Versailles, and was already in evidence in the palace’s State Apartments, and in its North and South Wings, the work of architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart. This same Classicism is found in the paintings of

age of cathedrals to beyond time, he explains how the chosen clocks and watches are significant with respect to their aesthetic and era. In doing so, he makes reference to art history but also to evolutions in mentalities and ideas to express this aesthetic raison d’être. In 1690, for example, the Marquis de Louvois took delivery of a magnificent clock with pedestal, which he had ordered from the celebrated cabinetmaker André-Charles Boulle. For the purely mechanical aspect, Boulle called on Isaac Thuret, clockmaker to the King who for many years was a fellow to Christiaan Huygens at the Académie des Sciences in Paris. The clock with its tapering pedestal stands more than two metres high. It is sumptuously decorated with the fine marquetry for which Boulle was

➝

Lebrun – himself inspired by Nicolas Poussin –, and those of Hyacinthe Rigaud and Philippe de Champaigne. Its protagonists in literature are Racine, La Fontaine and Molière, all three respectful of the classical unities of drama and whose work is rich with references to classical antiquity. In music, we can look to Jean-Baptiste Lully. Thus we learn how the art and spirit of an era shaped by absolute monarchy are so perfectly embodied in this sumptuous clock. Continuing in this vein, François Chaille invites us to consider, among others, a Neoclassical extra-thin watch by Breguet, a “modern art” Santos by Cartier, and an “industrial design” Swatch from the collections of the British Museum.

SKELETON PENDULUM CLOCK in the Directoire style, showing the eight-day movement, c. 1795, Paris. Beyer Clock and Watch Museum, Zurich. © Dominique Cohas/Beyer Zurich Clock and Watch Museum

TIMES TWO HUNDRED. Alongside this contextualisation, the historian Dominique Fléchon, author of the already classic The Mastery of Time, published in 2011, has selected over two hundred remarkable timepieces, representative of every style from medieval Gothic to contemporary design. Accompanied by explanatory captions, they contribute to a painstakingly researched iconography that makes this one of the most richly illustrated publications ever in this field. Illustrations of the extraordinary mechanisms chosen by Dominique Fléchon are joined by reproductions of artistic masterpieces, for the most part paintings. They echo the style of the clocks and watches, as well as depicting similar timepieces. Portraits, still lifes, illustrations showing cabinets of curiosities and other variations, in images, on the theme of time prove that art, since the Renaissance, has found multiple reasons to embrace the watchmaker’s craft, whether to exalt its beauty, to remind us of its ornamental as well as scientific value, or to suggest the relentless march of time that every clock and watch symbolises. For each of the nine chapters, Dominique Fléchon has drawn on François Chaille’s narrative to write an accompanying text, with essential reminders of the major developments in the techniques of clock- and watchmaking, and in the decorative arts that have been their companion throughout seven centuries, producing the only measuring instruments to be conceived as works of art. The Beauty of Time could have been the work of a single author giving his or her subjective view. Instead, rather than a solo composition, the project’s initiator and author of the preface F ranco Cologni has preferred an approach

“TWO HUNDRED remarkable TIMEPIECES, representative of every STYLE from medieval Gothic to contemporary design.” 10

which, like the instruments in a symphony orchestra, amplifies and magnifies the intensity and nuances of these instruments of time. And so to accompany the authors, he has assembled a group of individuals with different, sometimes contradictory but always complementary, artistic and historical sympathies. Dominique Fléchon, a respected specialist in the history of time measurement, has added an historical voice to the narrative of writer François Chaille. Grégory Gardinetti brings his contemporary viewpoint as a historian of watchmaking. Lastly, editorial director Suzanne Tise-Isoré and her team have uncovered the most singular artworks to accompany each moment in the history of time.

In 2011, a joint project between Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie and Flammarion produced The Mastery of Time, a history of timekeeping from its origins to the present day by the historian Dominique Fléchon. Seven years later, foundation and publisher return with another equally important, extensively researched and richly illustrated book that will delight all those with an interest in the finest timepieces: The Beauty of Time. Despite the fact that since the Middle Ages, timepieces are the only measuring instruments that are often conceived as ornamental and decorative objects, bookshelves were lacking an encyclopaedia of the beauty of clocks and watches. A gap that has now been filled. Particular care went into the iconography of the book. First, Dominique Fléchon chose more than two hundred magnificent clocks, pocket watches and wristwatches. For each of these timepieces, François Chaille – the author of highly praised books on Cartier, Girard-Perregaux and Audemars Piguet – then sets the scene of its cultural and artistic context. Dominique Fléchon has written the historical counterpoint with a reminder of the major advances in clock- and watchmaking. Outstanding works of art and literature serve to illustrate the wider context. The Beauty of Time is a unique and important book on the changing face of our clocks and watches throughout the centuries.

LIP, MACH 2000, 1975. Designed by Roger Tallon, this watch does away with the concept of the jewel-watch by sweeping aside the shackles of classic watchmaking forms. © SMB

THE BEAUTY OF TIME François Chaille and Dominique Fléchon, published by Flammarion/Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, 2018.

YESTERDAY

Two MILESTONE publications

NICK DOLDING / GETTY IMAGES

YESTERDAY

And thereby

HANGS a TALE BUOYED BY COLLECTORS AND RE-RELEASES, INTEREST IN WATCHES FROM THE 50S, 60S AND 70S HAS NEVER BEEN GREATER, THANKS IN NO SMALL PART TO STORYTELLING, OR THE ART OF USING WORDS TO ELICIT EMOTIONS. BY

LUC DEBRAINE

“A STORY creates meaning for consumers who have LOST their WAY in an era fraught with algorithms, big data, opaque data and chaotic social trends.”

EMOTIONAL CAPITAL. It’s tempting to think that brands are cashing in on collectors’ appetite with reissues of certain iconic models that have tie-ins to motor racing, scuba diving or aviation. As Le Monde noted in May 2017, a pre-owned Heuer Autavia Jochen Rindt chronograph can sell for up to €40,000… which could have prompted TAG Heuer’s relaunch last year of this 1966 design, following a deftly orchestrated online vote. Sometimes it happens that the needle swings the other way, when reissues or anniversary editions provide impetus for the auction and pre-owned markets. After commemorating its 50th anniversary in 2013, the average value of a Rolex Daytona increased by 79%. The same dynamic applies to cars, motorbikes, design and photography. The revamped Fiat 500, Mini and Triumph Bonneville are not just fabulous commercial successes. They spark interest that sends buyers in search of the originals, be they roadworthy or in need of restoration.

hort time, long time: a quality mechanical watch embraces both these scales with rare ease. It is designed to give the exact time, the merest sliver of a shooting arrow. It is also intended as an heirloom whose emotional, generational, and henceforth monetary value will continue to grow over the decades. A precision instrument, its ability to span the ages is unique. Short, long, this dual time takes shape in the current craze for vintage watches, and in reissues of iconic styles from the 1950s to the 1970s, sometimes even earlier or later years. Much has been said, in particular in the columns of FHH Journal, about how well the 1960s and 70s watch market is performing at auction and online. Interest kicked in as the Eighties got underway, but the market has really taken off in the past fifteen years, further boosted by social media. The most sought-after names are Rolex and Patek Philippe, with Heuer and Omega equally strong contenders. A special nimbus surrounds the Rolex Daytona chronograph, particularly the Paul Newman model with two-tone dial. Launched in 1966, it was worn by the American actor-cum-racing driver, hence its nickname. A Daytona can change hands for several tens if not hundreds of thousands. Newman’s actual Daytona sold at auction in October 2017 for a staggering $17.8 million. But is the fad for vintage just another of fashion’s eternal cycles, here today, gone tomorrow? An expert such as Pedro Reiser, director of the Watches Department at Sotheby’s Geneva, thinks not. “There’s still upward potential, particularly for rare items of superior quality. Interest took time to build and now it’s here to stay and grow. This is a relatively new market of easily saleable, transportable objects that’s attractive to collectors and investors. We’re still a long way from the extraordinary figures achieved by vintage jewellery.”

Whether true to the original or reinterpretations, the Submariners, Autavias, Monacos, Speedmasters, Black Bays and Superoceans of this world provide the template for what makes a desirable vintage piece. These are good-looking, simple, low-key watches that are easy to read and reasonably sized with, dare we say, not-toocomplicated complications. Watches that mean something; watches that strike a chord. Feel-good watches. They are analog in a 3.0 world; hand-made in a production system dominated by CNC machines. More importantly, they have a story to tell. Brands broadcast terms such as “heritage” and “DNA” as bywords to lasting credibility. They weave narratives around their fifty-something and sixty-something products. They tell compelling stories, filled with affect, danger or excitement, whose heroes are the likes of Steve McQueen.

The return of the PANTHÈRE

ALL ABOUT YOU. Storytelling is at the heart of the vintage strategy. In his 2007 essay, the French writer and academic Christian Salmon takes apart the workings of a machine whose purpose is to “bewitch the modern mind”. An American import and a favourite weapon of political spin doctors, storytelling uses the art of the narrative and the power of words to elicit the emotions, and has found its way into the marketeer’s toolbox. A story creates meaning for consumers who have lost their way in an era fraught with algorithms, big data, opaque data and chaotic social trends. As a sales technique, it is most effective in a western society whose dominant traits are individualism, self-staging and dispersed identity. Just think about it: a story that makes me the hero, by buying a vintage watch. That simple. “Made in Detroit” is a good example of how storytelling works. As watches go, there’s not much to make a Shinola stand out. A 1950s design, an inexpensive quartz mechanism, and finishes that are a million miles from Swiss standards… yet they’re flying off retailers’ shelves. And not just in the US. Shinola stores are opening left, right and centre, coming soon to a European city near you. Boosted by its watches’ success, the firm has branched out into leather bags and accessories, jewellery, bicycles and turntables, ready for vinyl’s big comeback. After all, didn’t guitarist Jack White recently set up a factory producing vinyl records in his hometown? Detroit… America’s ruined motor city that is now rising from its ashes thanks to artists, craftspeople and creative hipsters, and a new analog economy for which Shinola is the highest-profile ambassador. The brand’s storytelling revolves around Detroit’s hard-working, manufacturing identity. It has given jobs to unemployed locals, then made them the face of its proud, all-American communication. “The workers don’t make the products, they are the products,” is the word at the Shinola factory, which is based inside the Argonaut building, designed by Albert Kahn in 1928. They may be quartz, and they may be American, they still symbolise watchmaking’s impressive pendulum swing. And thereby hangs a tale.

The Panthère is typical of the synergy that exists between the vintage watch market and re-releases. The original was commanding a consistently higher price even before the 2017 version was announced. When the new Panthère went on show at SIHH, its predecessor leapt in value on the collector’s market. Undoubtedly Cartier was aware of growing interest in the Panthère at auction, but has never said this influenced its decision to reinstate this women’s watch. The Panthère was one of the Parisian firm’s bestselling timepieces, shifting more than 600,000 units in two decades. In the midst of an Eighties revival, a re-release makes perfect sense.

YESTERDAY

Enthusiasm for vintage is such that it now encompasses the Golden Eighties. Tempus fugit: the decade is far enough in the past to start sifting through its icons. The likes of the Panthère de Cartier, launched in 1983 and which enjoyed a successful twenty-year career. You don’t mess with a legend. At most, a gentle tweak. Revealed at SIHH in January 2017 followed by a star-studded launch in Los Angeles in May, the subject of a Sofia Coppola video, the new Panthère is virtually identical to its muse. The square case with rounded corners, the screw-down bezel, the Roman numerals, the “brick-lay” bracelet are all there. A whiter dial, reinforced bracelet, improved water-resistance…. changes are almost imperceptible.

ISTOCK

This is all the more true considering the story around the Panthère and how tightly it fits with the jeweller’s image and expertise. It is a bijou that gives the time, and one that shares the name of Cartier’s feline companion since 1914. Jewel, panther: the message slides into place, rooted in a century-old narrative. A brand can always choose to disregard such a majestic heritage, but what would be the sense in that?

Watchmaking is an expertise for today and each day to come. It is ingrained in the daily life of the FHHâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s partner-brands. Their timepieces become our essential companions, magnificently showcased by photographer Laziz Hamani in all their beauty and splendour.

Tourbograph Perpetual “Pour le Mérite”

Royal Oak Tourbillon Extra-Thin Openworked

Virtuoso VIII 10-Day Flying Tourbillon Big Date

Octo Finissimo Automatic

Tank CintrĂŠe Skeleton

Première Camélia Skeleton Watch

L.U.C Quattro

Dream Watch 5

Répétition Souveraine

Tourbillon with Three Gold Bridges

QP à Équation

Slim d’Hermès L’heure impatiente

Portofino Hand-Wound Moon Phase

Rendez-Vous Moon Medium

Tambour Moon GMT

TimeWalker Chronograph Rally Timer Counter Limited Edition

Luminor Due 3 Days Automatic

Kalpa XL Hebdomadaire

Altiplano 60th Anniversary Collection

RM 63-01 Dizzy Hands

Excalibur Spider Carbon Skeleton Automatic

Monaco Calibre 11

Freak Cruiser

Traditionnelle complete calendar Collection Excellence Platine

Lady Arpels Ronde des Papillons

TODAY

HomE SOIL

DOZENS OF HAUTE HORLOGERIE MANUFACTURES, HUNDREDS OF WATCH BRANDS AND AS MANY SPECIALIST COMPANIES ARE ROOTED IN SWITZERLAND, FORMING A HUB OF SKILLS - AN ECOSYSTEM WITH NO EQUIVALENT ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. JOIN US ON A JOURNEY THROUGH A REGION WHERE THE EXCEPTIONAL IS THE RULE. MARIE DE PIMODAN BUGNON

CARLO STANGA

he landscape speaks for itself. Lush green valleys, hills hemmed by forest, rolling meadows dotted with stone farmhouses, herds of grazing cows and, completing this portrait of country life, a succession of industrial buildings. From the most functional to the most futuristic, from the sheet-metal box to gleaming glass structures, they read like a who’s who of the most prestigious names in watchmaking. Luxury and refinement imprint themselves in letters of gold along a line that stretches from Geneva to Schaffhausen via Vallée de Joux to form a geography that has no equivalent anywhere in the world. Once dominated by a rural farming community, these valleys are now home to almost every single Haute Horlogerie firm as well as a host of brands, while an abundance of top-notch artisan workshops and industrial companies gravitate around them.

IN SERRIED RANKS. Since then, much of fine watchmaking has become vertically integrated and a growing number of firms have complete command of their production chain. Even then, this remains a tightly woven fabric, in good times as well as during the worst periods in its history. Expertise is still passed from generation to generation, with the same emphasis on perfection. Component manufacturers are neighbour to product engineers, while further down the road craftsmen perpetuate rare and precious skills… An elaborate web of techniques and expertise has formed, with watch firms at its centre.

“LUXURY and refinement imprint themselves in letters of gold along a line that stretches from Geneva to Schaffhausen via Vallée de JOUX to form a geography that has no equivalent anywhere in the WORLD.”

The situation is perhaps nowhere better illustrated than in the canton of Neuchâtel. It employs the largest watchmaking workforce of any Swiss canton – around 13,000 people – and represents a unique concentration of skills and trades that covers the entire production process, from handcrafting to state-of-theart technology. Raw materials, complex components, machinery, tools, product design, testing equipment, mechanical microengineering, packaging and communication are the often little-known but no less essential links in the production chain. Alongside training centres and world-renowned research institutes, independent craftsmen and women join innovative, up-and-coming brands in writing watchmaking’s contemporary history. Against such a dense tapestry of artisanship, industrial expertise and culture, even the least geographically-inclined can see how Switzerland stands out on the horological world map thanks to this unique energy and expertise. One thing is for sure: excellence breeds excellence.

Rome wasn’t built in a day and nor was the fabric of the Swiss watch industry. As is often the case, time has played its part. In Geneva, where almost a third of Haute Horlogerie companies are located, the story begins halfway through the sixteenth century with the very first artisan-watchmakers. Most were goldsmiths who had turned to manufacturing watch cases after Calvin forbade the wearing of ornamentation. A century later, watchmaking began to develop across the Arc Jurassien. At that time, the sector revolved around the practice of établissage, whereby suppliers and subcontractors delivered movement and external parts to établisseurs who then assembled and sold the finished watches.

There are many places where the values of mechanical watchmaking come to life. Inside a one-room workshop, tucked down a street in a village in Switzerland’s Vallée de Joux. In the halls of a Manufacture in Geneva, surrounded by the very latest industrial technology. Coaxed by a handful of artisan-watchmakers in Finland, Belgium or Holland. On an island in the Irish Sea, or in a German town. With a population of some 6,500, Glashütte is barely more than a speck on the globe. But in the world of time measurement, it is one of the bastions of precision watchmaking. A pioneer among men, Ferdinand Adolf Lange began producing watches there in 1845. Since then, an ecosystem similar, though on a lesser scale, to the Swiss model has grown up around a core of A. Lange & Söhne, Glashütte Original, Union Glashütte, Mühle Glashütte and Nomos, to name the most prominent. A centre of excellence, admired for its quality and distinctive aesthetic, watchmaking in the Dresden and Glashütte region employs some 1,800 people.

TODAY

Meanwhile, in GLASHÜTTE…

MICHEL JEANNOT

SYMPHONIE / GETTY IMAGES

AMBASSADOR?

SOMEBODY say Did

TODAY

IN A DIGITAL AGE, A BRAND CAN HAVE MORE “FRIENDS” THAN JUST CELEBRITY AMBASSADORS, AND THE PUBLIC CAN GET ADVICE ELSEWHERE THAN ON THE SHOP FLOOR. ROLES ARE CHANGING ALONGSIDE DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS. NEXT STOP, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE?

XXX

nlist a good ambassador for your communication and you will be rewarded a hundredfold! What haven’t we heard about ambassadors’ magic powers and their beneficial impact on watch sales. Doubtless their intrinsic qualities exert a positive influence on the potential buyer, if only we were able to fully measure their effect with appropriate statistics and hard numbers. And appropriate statistics and hard numbers are precisely what we are lacking. Reading through these introductory lines, the faces drifting through your mind were probably those of Cindy Crawford, Roger Federer, Hugh Jackman, Usain Bolt, John Travolta, Jackie Chan, Eddie Peng or Li Bingbing, but they for once are not the centre of attention. Nothing could be further from our mind than the power these celebrities wield in the media spotlight, occupied as they are promoting a razor or a detergent and, should their busy schedule allow, occasionally consenting to an offthe-cuff role as a champion of quality watchmaking. Or not-so-quality, but that doesn’t concern us here. No, what we are referring to are the true ambassadors. The ones who are in daily contact with the customer; the ones who can clinch a sale with a single word, who have (ideally) perfect knowledge of the products they sell, and who are, by nature, important opinion-shapers. These ambassadors are the sales staff whose mission most closely corresponds to the role we expect of an ambassador, diplomacy included!

“Where did this LEAVE us? Confronted with ever HIGHER expectations from customers on the one hand and a glaring lack of sales STAFF on the other.”

THE EVIDENT NEED FOR TRAINING. We should remember that after an era of underinformed customers, happy to put themselves in the sales associate’s hands, came the era of enlightened buyers - a transition that coincided with the boom in the watch sector at the turn of the millennium. Where did this leave us? Confronted with ever higher expectations from customers on the one hand and a glaring lack of sales staff on the other. With two trends pulling in opposite directions, the gap widened between savvy customers and sales associates still wet behind the ears. A solution had to be found, and fast, to a serious problem, by giving more and better training that would leave sales staff fully armed to keep up a conversation, and not lose face when dealing with this new breed of client - often proud of their knowledge and only too willing to show it off. Retailers didn’t always see the need to offer more extensive training, hence brands had no choice than to step in and lead the way. In doing so, they understandably took the opportunity to develop and

see it and try it prior to making up your mind? No-one knows exactly, but the tendency is clear. Already we can hear the finance directors bemoaning all that money spent on training what we still referred to as “sales staff”, the ambassadors who had that very particular role of being the last point of contact between the brand and the customer. But that, well, that was before!

deliver a curriculum that focused on their own products and collections, leaving it to others to instil a minimum of horological culture to the battalions whose job it is to defend Fine Watchmaking on the retail floor. The implications of sales training go beyond the purely commercial aspect. Selling a Fine Watch means selling expertise and passion with a dash of the superfluous thrown in. Hence why Cartesian reasoning isn’t usually enough, and why the irrational plays a non-negligible part. A situation such as this requires a significantly more rounded baggage than for selling washing powder, even if the competition isn’t as dense. E-TAILER TAKES ALL? In reality, it took several years for training budgets to make the transition from “cost” to “investment”, and for everyone to understand that today’s training spend is tomorrow’s profit. Also, high turnover rates in certain parts of the world can make it more difficult for points of sale to retain the benefit of investments made. But the battle is almost won, and noone would dream of putting an untrained sales associate behind the counter. One might still come across gaping knowledge gaps, blatant incompetence or well-intentioned amateurism, but this is no longer the rule, and at least now everyone is aware of the problem. Which is always an improvement on the past. The roles and responsibilities of each could have stayed the same ad infinitum, if the internet hadn’t reset the parameters. In watchmaking (as elsewhere), nothing or very little resembles the situation fifteen years ago, leaving each and every one scrambling to find the ways and means to negotiate a system in a constant state of flux. Because however essential these sales associates/ambassadors may be, alternative channels are gaining ground and cannot be ignored. Will it be a case of e-tailer takes all? Will online sales be the rule and in-store sales the exception? It’s impossible to say for sure, but the tendency is clear. And watch brands must take care not to make the same mistakes that dogged early attempts at luxury e-commerce. Responding to this new way of doing business, the same brands were almost unanimous in proclaiming that a timepiece is no ordinary object, and must be seen and held in order to be appreciated. The buyer needs guidance and advice, they declared. Clearly the internet was not where the future lay for watchmaking. It took less than ten years for these certainties to crumble, for sales manuals to be thrown on the bonfire and e-commerce sites to spring up. Does this mean that in another decade’s time, there will be no more living, breathing sales staff in the few remaining bricks-and-mortar stores? That a robot will answer all your questions through your smartphone and, if you insist, will even offer to send you the watch in question so you can

For decades, the local ambassador (the sales associate) rubbed along happily with the global ambassador; the athletes, artists, media celebrities, et al. whose horological hour of glory started ticking in the early 1990s. The two coexisted for decades, and may die together. While an interrogation mark hangs over the very future of sales staff, yesterday’s stars are getting the shirt ripped from their back by some new kids, the (so we are told) influencers. Whereas certain old-world celebrities have succeeded in jumping ship (a success now measured by number of followers), others have seen their profiles plummet and their power of persuasion become swallowed up in the depths of the internet and digital communication. Meanwhile, unknown faces have taken their place – some for unfathomable reasons, some by dint of navel-grazing necklines, and a few thanks to their genius, their art and a sometimes intuitive grasp of the shifts taking place. The fact remains that today’s global ambassador is obligatorily well-connected, in every sense. These kings and queens of social media, the sandwich men and women of the digital age, can turn a click, snap or (kind) word into hard cash. Brands count more and more on them, but how much influence do they really have? How many watches are sold for a hundred million contacts? Digital’s entrails have yet to deliver a firm verdict.

TODAY

Local AMBASSADOR, global ambassador, and the digital sandwich man

TODAY

GI OU VIN G TH R L M E TH E 9T IVES AN BU EME H F , TO ING W T A S FR HH MO TO VA ITH LSO OM FOR NEY OUR W LUE A SI A P A P UM , TO DE N H FO HICH S IN GL ILO OLI CON UN MO T C E R RE HER CO SOP ICA SID CER RA B RU M IT BY C E L T CH AI ED MM HIC , AN RED AIN IES T A RI LIT N T FR ON AL ST TH TYâ&#x20AC;¦ , E C O OP P H Y. E M M DE ERS ON ESE HE RO OS THE NO PEC OM UL T E PA MIN TIV IC ET FF S EC T, A ATO E. R: TIV N EC D UR E

TH OF E A G ME E AN IN G

ince its inception, the FHH Forum - whose ninth edition took place early November 2017 in Lausanne - has made a point of addressing the wider issues, the global challenges of today. Nothing very “watch-related” one might say, for an event whose organiser is the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie. But after all, watch brands are in the front line of globalisation, and have a duty to constantly reconsider the very concept of luxury in an environment where artificial intelligence, robotics, digitisation and the gig economy are the new normal. In the words of Arturo Bris, expert in global competitiveness and professor at the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) which hosted the event, “If we consider global development over the past two millennia, we observe a phenomenal acceleration in growth over the space of fifty years that is essentially the result of progress in technology, and it is clear that technology will continue to drive development. With the caveat that as many people as possible should benefit from it.”

DEMOCRACY, PHILANTHROPY AND ROMANCE. Indeed, we cannot ignore the uncomfortable truth of a widening inequality gap, and what this implies for the very principles on which our political systems are built. “What if all those who feel cheated by the inequality at the very core of our societies were to rebel?”, asked Bill Emmott, author and former editor-in-chief of The Economist. “I remember how, forty years ago, in the midst of the oil crisis and the Vietnam War, West Germany’s chancellor Willy Brandt predicted the end of democracies. He was wrong, but it’s a question worth asking again. Because there’s work to be done. But ever the optimist, I still believe we have the best democracies money can buy!”. On the subject of money, and picking up on the question of wealth-sharing, philanthropy adviser Karin Jestin described the personal benefits to be gained from philanthropy. “I’ve got some good news,” she declared by way of introduction. “Money can buy happiness, in

MESSAGES OF HOPE. This return to humanist values is close to the heart of philosopher André ComteSponville, who is less concerned with change - which as Heraclitus already observed is inevitable - and more concerned with the speed of change. He reminded the audience that “change is a means, not an end. If we do change, it should be in order to progress, to continue. Change is therefore a part of continuation. We must also remember that any form of evolution will spontaneously tend towards maximum disorder. This is where we must call upon the values that were passed on to us, and that we must pass on in turn with the aim, as Pindar wrote, of becoming such as we are. Then we can ask ourselves not where to go, but where do we want to go. And the only way

➝ 53

TODAY

ha an “Giv pp d in ier the g m yo m ak u ore es be y y wi co ou ou ns m g HA ov e. A ive PP er LT , t Y, eg RU he ois ISM m. ”

certain conditions and when we give it away! Every survey says the same. People derive immense satisfaction from charitable giving or from volunteering their time. And if they had to put a figure on this satisfaction, it would correspond to twice their income. In other words, giving makes you happy, and the more you give, the happier you become. Altruism wins over egoism.” To what extent can this mindset thrive in the world of work, where philanthropy is often a means of burnishing an image? And what of work itself? Employment is one of the ways we are accepted into society, hence being without employment leads to disenchantment, as can having a job when we feel alienated by business-as-usual. This second aspect inspired selfprofessed “business romantic” Tim Leberecht for his presentation. Why rage against machines when humans are notoriously difficult to manage professionally, and when soon half of jobs will be performed more efficiently, and for less, by robots. “It’s not about better,” Leberecht declared, “it’s about beauty. Our role is to create beauty.” Of course, beauty implies humanity. By stepping outside the pure rationality of the business world, we can oppose a system that demands everything be quantified and measured. Business Romanticism means doing the unnecessary, creating intimacy, letting ugliness express itself, and never being afraid of uncomfortable situations. This is how we create the beauty which, to quote Dostoyevsky, will save the world.

TODAY

to know where we want to go is to know where we are from. Being true to our values is the only antidote we have to the Alzheimer of today’s civilisations, namely brutality. The twenty-first century will be true or will not be at all!”. And while looking to the future, why not follow in the footsteps of Claude Barras, director of the double César- winning animated film My Life as a Courgette, and let children have their say. His film tells the story of a nine-year-old boy who is sent to an orphanage, where he learns the hard but also heartwarming lessons of life. “Even though it’s a made-up story, not a documentary, and even though I’ve been criticised for not sufficiently conveying the harsh reality of life in a children’s home, I wanted to show how incredibly resilient children are, and that life and friendship can triumph over the darkness of the world. You could say it’s a message of hope.” Editorial cartoonist Patrick Chappatte, whose drawings are published in Le Temps, NZZ am Sonntag and the New York Times, delivered a similar message. Not so much for the truth uttered by children, but for the meaning he draws, quite literally, from the great upheavals in our societies. “If there were to be only one meaning, one sense in the world, then it would have to be the sense of humour!”. Not forgetting that, as Pierre Desproges so rightly said, you can laugh about everything but not with everyone. Globalisation has its limits, too…

The TIME Machine Considered by many as the enemy of traditional craftsmanship, digital also has its supporters. Frédéric Kaplan is one. Holder of the Digital Humanities Chair at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) in Lausanne, where he runs the Digital Humanities Lab, Professor Kaplan’s projects are a combination of digitization of archives, computer modelling and data visualisation. He and his team are currently working alongside researchers from Ca’Foscari University on an ambitious project to capture, in digital form, the history and evolution of Venice over 1,000 years – aptly titled the Venice Time Machine. Speaking at the FHH Forum, Frédéric Kaplan described this fabulous adventure which began five years ago, has assembled a fifty-strong team, and has already caught the interest of other cities, including Jerusalem, Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris. “For the Venice project, we’re talking about 80 kilometres of archives that go back through ten centuries. They cover every type of record imaginable: maps, architectural plans, ambassadors’ correspondence, cadastral registers, notary records, and so on. Our challenge is to transform this vast collection of material into a searchable information system”. Working in successive stages, the documents are digitized – in some cases using specially developed scanners – and indexed to then develop algorithms that read the documents and identify connections between them to form a vast network from which the city will emerge – not frozen in history but as a living narrative extending across time and space. It’s a daunting task that will transform our relationship with the past, and which proves the limitless applications these technologies can have.

A watch frozen in time is a dual contradiction. A watch must live with its times, embrace the imagination and breathe innovation. These partners to the FHH make it their duty to give form to this energy, to this inspiration which Atelier Cana has brilliantly captured.

Mirrored Force Resonance Water

Marguerite 37 mm

Academia Mathematical

ChronomĂ¨tre FB 1.3

1941 Remontoire

Vortex Gamma

Pioneer Centre Seconds Automatic

H0 Black

Galet Classic Tourbillon Double Hairspring

Legacy Machine No.2

Type 3

Insight Micro-Rotor

Steampunk Tourbillon Titanic

One & Two, Openworked dial

UR-105 CT Iron

28R12

TOMORROW

TIME ON OUR

SIDE â&#x20AC;&#x2030;?

HIDEKAZU TABUCHI / GETTY IMAGES

“

FINE WATCHMAKING LIKES TO THINK OF ITSELF AS AN ART FOR THE LONG TERM, TO BE PASSED ON FOR GENERATIONS. WHY ELSE WOULD A CALENDAR BE “PERPETUAL”? BUT TO BE TRULY LASTING, COMPANIES MUST PROVE THEY HAVE THE COURAGE AND LUCIDITY TO FACE UP TO THE SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

The atmosphere is this ridiculously thin band. All life exists within it. There’s nothing else for billions of light-years around. I saw forest stripped bare in South America, pollution flowing in rivers, mud, ships degassing, atmospheric pollution – it was impossible to get a photo of Beijing. Earth is nothing more than a big spaceship with limited resources and a crew of seven billion. If we keep on the way we are, it’ll all be over in a few hundred years. I wish the world’s decision-makers could see what Earth looks like from space.” These are the words of French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, returning from six months on the International Space Station. “When you’re not simply intellectualising, but actually seeing with your own eyes, it really changes things.” Closer to home (although Earth is, of course, our home), the same could be said about the watch on our wrist. Would we be so indifferent if we could see for ourselves how we obtain the materials it is made from? How was the gold mined for the case? From what bottomless hole were the diamonds extracted, and at what cost to people and the environment? How many endangered rays were massacred for the shagreen strap? Let’s face it: the watch industry prefers to take a distant view of the often disturbing truth behind the rare and luxurious raw materials it uses. We see the sensuality of gold, diamonds’ eternal sparkle, the luscious reds, blues and greens of precious stones, and the fabulous patterns on exotic skins. What we don’t see are the broken lives, communities torn apart, rivers thick with pollution, devastated landscapes, animals driven to extinction. Blood, sweat and tears.

PIERRE MAILLARD

From these disasters we get our few grams of gold, fractions of carats, the square centimetres that make up our watch. It may seem like nothing, yet multiplied by the Earth’s seven billion inhabitants it’s a terrifying amount – and the damage caused is visible even from space. Think about it: twenty tons of rock on average are blasted to produce one ounce of gold, the equivalent of a wedding ring. Extracting a single carat of diamond from the ground means sorting through 250 tons of ore. In 2014, Switzerland officially imported 1,545,036 crocodile hides, 908,416 lizard skins and 436,381 snake skins (python, cobra, anaconda). Switzerland is at the forefront of this trade, and as such has special responsibility. It’s estimated that 70% of the world’s gold comes through the country’s five refineries, where it is refined to the highest degree of purity (.9999 and even .99999) before being exported back to jewellery manufacturers, investors and central banks around the world (for CHF 118 billion in 2013, a long way from the CHF 20 billion in watch shipments). And unlike other branches, there is no real traceability. Gold that has been looted or stolen, illegally mined gold, often with links to drug trafficking, and gold that claims to be “clean” but has been mined with scant regard for human welfare or environmental protection is melted in with gold that complies with more rigorous standards. Some are

➝

The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), an alliance of over a thousand organisations, aims to impose responsible practices across the entire gold, platinum and diamond supply chains, from the mine to the retailer via traders, refiners, stone-cutters and other intermediaries. Cartier, which alone accounts for 0.3% of the total amount of gold used for jewellery in the world and 1% of diamonds, is one of the main players within the RJC scheme. Other names to have committed themselves to greater responsibility include Tiffany, Baume & Mercier, Chanel, Jaeger-LeCoultre, LVMH, Montblanc, Van Cleef & Arpels and Harry Winston. Sustainability is a big issue with a lot to play for. Economic forces are competing against increasingly urgent social and environmental concerns. It’s a battle on a planetary scale. And the planet can only take so much.

“The INDUSTRY needs to wake up and become more RESPONSIBLE.” beginning to voice their concern: will gold be the next scandal to tarnish Switzerland’s reputation? The country also dominates trade in reptile skins. Figures drawn up by CITES (see box) show that Switzerland, alongside Singapore, is the main international hub for trade in skins from protected species. CALL THE CAVALRY. “Buying a gold watch is an experience to enjoy. When you make such an important purchase, you must be able to do so with complete confidence in the origins of the materials that went into its manufacture,” says Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, co-president of Chopard, one of the few watch firms to have joined the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM), an organisation which advocates “equity and wellbeing of artisanal and small-scale mining communities” throughout the world. What exactly do these cooperatives and communities represent? “A very small amount. Five hundred kilograms a year,” says Alan Frampton, managing director of CRED, a British jeweller that helped set up the Alliance for Responsible Mining. Though hardly your typical activist - he spent 23 years at the head of the UK’s biggest wholesale florist – he knows a thing or two about traceability. “We’re a small minority but we’re growing. I believe that governments, banks and the big players in the industry have been in some kind of cartel that wants to shut us up. [What we do] has no impact on them but it does have an impact on the millions of people who are living in poverty because of a precious metal that in fact belongs to them, that comes from their land. We cannot continue to exploit these people. We must give them a fair share of their own resources. The industry needs to wake up and become more responsible.” Something tells us there is still a long way to go. A very long way. And that it could well be consumers who open the floodgates, disgusted to learn that their cherished wedding ring or watch is made from “dirty” gold. Proof of this mounting concern for our planet’s future, and for the “sustainability” of the human race (a diamond may be forever, humanity isn’t), watchmakers and jewellers are becoming involved in a growing number of initiatives.

CITES, Kimberley, ARM. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) was agreed in 1973 to safeguard species of wild flora and fauna through regulated trade.

An initiative dating from 2004, the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) is an independent NGO that advocates enhanced equity and well being of artisanal and small-scale mining communities throughout the world. These communities make up 80% of the mining workforce and produce 20% of the world’s gold. The Alliance works closely with organisations, businesses and communities in the gold supply chain to positively transform the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector through standard setting, production support and communication.

NICOLAS OBERY

Established in 2003, the Kimberley Process is an international certification scheme for rough diamonds. Uniting governments and industry, its purpose is to remove conflict diamonds, i.e. diamonds sold by rebel movements to finance military activity, from worldwide trade.

TOMORROW

Are

ready to ask BORN CONNECTED, 15-35 YEAR-OLDS – THE LARGEST CONSUMER DEMOGRAPHIC IN HISTORY – DON’T THINK, BUY OR COMMUNICATE LIKE THEIR PARENTS OR GRANDPARENTS, LEAVING BRANDS THE JOB OF GETTING INSIDE THE MILLENNIAL MIND. BY

FABRICE ESCHMANN

ISTOCK

TOMORROW

WATCHMAKERS

“The majority of BRANDS are communicating via unfamiliar channels in a LANGUAGE they don’t fully grasp.”

t 2.3 billion, they already account for 32% of the world’s population. Consulting firm Bain & Company even predicts that by 2025, when the oldest among them are at the peak of their purchasing power, they will make up 45% of the luxury market – without doubt the biggest consumer demographic in history. The question being, how to engage a group that thinks and behaves in a completely uncharted way. Brands – any brand – must learn to speak their language so as to adapt not just their marketing but their entire communication. It’s a paradigm shift that has left the watch industry lagging behind – to put it mildly. “The majority of brands are communicating via unfamiliar channels in a language they don’t fully grasp,” proffers Pascal Ravessoud, who is secretary-general of the FHH Cultural Council. “The watch industry has had it too easy too long.” It’s no wonder managers break out in a sweat at the mere mention of these “self-absorbed humanists” or, as they’re better known, millennials.

starting their adult life on financially shaky foundations, they aren’t afraid to put their ideas to the test: Uber, Airbnb, Drivy and BlaBlaCar are just some of the multiple startups launched by and for them. COMMUNITY SPIRIT. Though essentially profit-driven, this sharing economy also reflects d eeper concerns. Ultra- and omniconnected, hence wellinformed despite not using traditional media, 15-35 yearolds are conscious of the ticking timebomb we are sitting on, and the problems their parents have failed to tackle: global warming, ending nuclear power, an ageing population, depletion of natural resources, to name but some. The old ways hardly seem like a recipe for success, and so millennials are less inclined to take what their elders say as gospel and more likely to make up their own rules, whether in the workplace or in society at large. “It’s the way a hacker thinks,” says Éric Briones. Humour is a crucial part of the millennial mindset. Ironic and irreverent, humour is directed at every aspect of life and takes a shot at the establishment: a sense of derision they will just as easily turn on themselves as on political discourse. Or brands. Bombarded with advertising before they even take their first steps, millennials have learned to take a critical view of advertising messages. Information is fact-checked and brands caught lying are named and shamed on social media - the millennial’s natural habitat where he or she posts photos of their latest purchases for others to comment on. It’s a means of interacting with their peers, as well as a way of individualising consumption into something more authentic. Indeed, despite their reputation for valuing experience over ownership, millennials love brands. What’s changed is how they consume them. They live for the present, and prefer to spend their cash now rather than save years for

WEANED ON TECHNOLOGY. Every generation has something that distinguishes it from its predecessors, be it a historical watershed or a marker of social evolution. Millennials are the first demographic to be defined by a revolution in technology. Born on the cusp of the third millennium (between 1980 and 2000 thereabouts), these digital natives have grown up in a mobile, connected world. This may not seem like much, it has nonetheless profoundly modified their relationship to space, time and also consumption. Author of Génération Y et le Luxe (Dunod, 2014), Éric Briones says they are “the first globalised generation”. Millennials are a moving target, and so while it is, by definition, difficult to pin down every aspect of this Web generation, marketing research and sociological studies have filled in a number of blanks. Firstly, millennials are more educated than previous generations, but unlike their baby-boomer grandparents they have no guarantee of finding employment commensurate with their qualifications, or any job at all for that matter. Yet despite

SOCIAL COMMERCE. In this light, it seems luxury brands have no alternative than to reboot their communication and adapt their products too, why not. Whereas baby boomers believed in work, social standing and material goods, millennials want immediacy, experience and sharing – values that are embedded in the digital world they grew up in. For watchmakers, it’s no longer about whether or not they should be selling their products online or in physical stores, publishing on Instagram or in magazines, pitting mechanical movements against smartwatches. It’s about resonating, engaging and b uilding a relationship. Getting there implies more than simply transferring old messages to new channels. A web presence is still important but more as a prerequisite; a platform for communicating ideas, values and a philosophy. “Brands need to become media and publish intelligent content,” insists David S adigh, founder and CEO of Digital Luxury Group. “We’re in the thick of it now with social commerce. Brands are using social media to drive sales.” Nielsen, the world’s biggest market research company, put together a handy guide to attracting the millennial’s interest in the form of a Maslow pyramid that reads (bottom to top) “Be a ccessible”, “Hold their attention”, “Be like them”, “Be credible”, “Involve them”, “Enrich their social life” and “Make the world a better place with them”. Watch brands have got off to a timid start. There are still too many bosses who think they can create interest in their products just by posting photos of their latest red-carpet event. The reality is far more complex, and exposes brands to comments, criticism, derision… and spectacular fails. The question being, are they ready to adjust?

MILLENNIALS in five words GENERATION There are currently 2.3 billion millennials, i.e. Generation Y plus Generation Z. That’s 32% of the world population. By 2025 millennials could well account for half the people on Earth.

CONNECTED Millennials are ultra- and omniconnected, practically from birth. Never before has a demographic been defined by a technology.

EDUCATED Their level of qualification is historically high compared with previous generations. Internet gives them a window on the world that inspires them to choose immediacy, experience and sharing over other values.

CONCERNED They’ve inherited a stricken planet: global warming, a greying population and dwindling natural resources are just some of the challenges that await them – and why they increasingly reject the old models. IRONIC Millennials thrive on humour, which they use to counter the dominant opinion or to mock established order. When shared on social networks, humour can become a powerful weapon of mass derision.

TOMORROW

a future purchase. They are more lucid too, and refuse to pay over the odds for the sake of prestige. As far as watches are concerned, a lot of millennials are turning to vintage timepieces. “In a throwaway world, new generations have developed a taste for craftsmanship, romanticism and mystery,” suggests auctioneer Aurel Bacs, star of the saleroom at Phillips. “They’re looking for adventure and the unknown, but they also expect content and a message. It’s something of a counter-culture that rejects the cold, anonymous perfection of the contemporary pieces that are available in abundance.”

WATCH

ISTOCK

TOMORROW

Should

brands

CONTENTED ? LOTS OF PRESTIGIOUS BRANDS PUBLISH EDITORIAL CONTENT ON THEIR WEBSITE TO MAKE POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS WANT TO BUY THEIR PRODUCTS. IS THIS TYPE OF MARKETING COMPATIBLE WITH FINE WATCHMAKING? BY

ISABELLE CERBONESCHI

onventional advertising and starchitect-designed retail spaces doubling up as temples to craftsmanship are no longer enough for luxury’s leading names to expand their clientele. New generations want to learn how the object of their desire came about. They want to understand what makes it special and acquaint themselves with the history of the company that imagined it. The purchase of a luxury item can no longer be reduced to a cash transaction. A timepiece or an item of jewellery comes with a story attached: that of the company which produced it, and that of the future proud possessor. They are more than merely an investment: they will be worn, enjoyed, and in many cases passed down. We cannot put a figure on this emotional value. Such an acquisition is an experience, and customers appreciate that this should be a unique experience. They want to hear the stories associated with the coveted item, provided they are true and preferably magical.

➝

“BRANDS should be using entertaining, educational content such as documentaries and historybased narratives to ATTRACT people who know less about the TECHNICAL side of WATCHMAKING to their e-commerce site.” and The Journal for men – , as well as two print magazines (Porter and Mr Porter) which are sold at newsstands worldwide. “It’s pretty much the only fully shoppable magazine,” comments Laurent François, founder of London agency Re-Up. An endeavour such as this requires large-scale internal alignment, a critical mass of “reader-consumers” and a lot of hard work in order to influence the so-called influencers. Telling a story, explaining, showing off the product, making it desirable… this used to be the role of window displays, which often enlisted the talent of artists. Website narratives, adverts that resemble short films or animated features, the value of words and images produced by and for the brand… these are the window displays of the twenty-first century, browsed not by highstreet shoppers but a global clientele.

Some brands have realised that in order to win over a customer, not only must they capture his or her attention with a finely crafted product - they also have to make them feel they are a special guest in their world. Invite them in. Take them behind the scenes and tell them the story of the object or the company. Create a sense of uniqueness. So as to stand out from their rivals, these brands have developed a content marketing strategy. Meaning articles, narratives and analyses written by experts or specialist journalists, and which focus on the brand and its products. This content can also take the form of videos that spark an emotional connection with the existing or potential customer. THE 21ST-CENTURY SHOP WINDOW. In addition, this high quality content is intended to make the brand feel more familiar, and to provide precise and valuable information on its different activities. It’s a way for brands to communicate directly with their audience without necessarily having recourse to the media or advertising. “A brand can post content directly on its own website, on a third-party website, or in other channels such as magazines,” explains Yann Saoli, marketing manager at LunaJets. This is the getting-to-know-you phase. Now it’s time to start serious dating, i.e. sales. The question being, how to make this content directly available to buy online? One of the best-known examples of content shopping is Net-a-Porter. Launched by former fashion writer Natalie Massenet in 2000 and sold to the Richemont group in 2010 before a merger with Yoox, it is a reference in online luxury selling. The Net-a-Porter team puts together a sharply curated selection of avant-garde products, some of which aren’t available anywhere else. But Net-a-Porter is more than just a catalogue of items for sale. Not just ready-to-wear, the site is “ready to seduce” too and has developed two online magazines – The Edit for women

EXPERT OPINIONS. A number of prestigious firms have caught on to the fact that narrating and staging their products is a powerful means of introducing a wider audience to their brand territory. For this to succeed, however, the brand in question must have a strong and clearly defined identity and message. “Take Hermès and its Maison des Carrés as an example. You immediately enter a cartoon world where everything is for sale,” comments Laurent François. “The site is a mix of creative content and pure e-commerce. It’s also a platform for events, a kind of pop-up store but with lasting content.” Can this strategy of shoppable content work for watchmaking, which came late to the e-commerce party? Laurent François is convinced it can. “Brands should be using entertaining, educational content such as documentaries and history-based narratives to attract people who know less about the technical side of watchmaking to their e-commerce site, where they can buy the content in question.”

FHH Journal too The Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) was established in 2005 to promote Fine Watchmaking worldwide, to spotlight creativity, and to inform, train, recognise and organise. The Foundation publishes two magazines - the online FHH Journal and an annual print magazine – to keep the public up-to-date with this fascinating industry. Content is written by specialist journalists and experts in the field. Conscious of how valuable these thousands of articles are, in 2017 the FHH asked itself what it could do to ensure they could continue to be read, and to what extent it could put this expertise at its partner-brands’ disposal, to help them better sell their products. “We write about brands and watches, but these texts have a relatively short lifespan,” commented Raphaël Ly, who is Digital Communication Manager at the FHH. “We looked for a way to keep this content going that would serve a purpose.” The answer is Shop Your Content, which Raphaël Ly describes as being “a fairly similar concept to Net-a-Porter, except that we don’t have an e-commerce

platform and selling isn’t our business.” In a word, the FHH is turning this wealth of editorial content into a bridge between the end customer and brands’ e-commerce sites. “The idea is to select a number of watches that we’ve already written about, and to supplement these articles with analyses by our experts. We then insert links in the articles that take the reader directly to the brand’s e-commerce website.” This new tool will appear on FHH Journal, which gives a wide view of watches and watchmaking, as well as on the more specific Trends platform, which presents the year’s new products from Fine Watch brands. In the case of FHH Journal, which looks at watches that are already in stores, links can generate immediate sales. The Trends platform, in contrast, features new models that haven’t yet been released; the FHH is responding with a system that allows customers to place a pre-order. Says Raphaël Ly, “we want to position the FHH website as a support for purchases as well as a source of expert information.” (IC)

TOMORROW

gives its readers the opportunity to shop content. “The Hodinkee website/blog has become a reference in the watch segment,” says Yann Saoli. “Now they’re in a position to sell watches directly through the site, sometimes in excess of $60,000.”

A luxury brand can derive numerous benefits from content marketing. First of all, says Yann Saoli, “it’s a way for the brand to position itself as an expert in its field. Think of the lot essays that Christie’s publishes on its website. These expert analyses and descriptions provide potential bidders with important information, but they reassure too, and when the item in question is a complex product such as a grand complication watch they educate. It’s also a means of engaging an audience, be they existing customers or not, and driving them to the website. Engagement enhances loyalty towards the brand and increases the number of repeat visitors.” Watch website hodinkee.com already

Editorial direction FRANCO COLOGNI Managing editor FABIO TETA Editorial staff CHRISTOPHE ROULET (editor-in-chief), ISABELLE CERBONESCHI, LUC DEBRAINE, MARIE DE PIMODAN-BUGNON, MICHEL JEANNOT, PIERRE MAILLARD, ALAIN STELLA Collaborators FRANCESCA DONELLI, GRÉGORY GARDINETTI, FABIENNE LUPO, RAPHAËL LY, JULIEN PFISTER, IVANA RADICA, PASCAL RAVESSOUD, EMMANUEL SCHNEIDER Design CANA ATELIER GRAPHIQUE, Route de Jussy 29, 1226 Thônex (GE), Switzerland Photos and illustrations LAZIZ HAMANI, CARLO STANGA Archives and photo agencies GETTY IMAGES, ISTOCK Translation, Proofreading SANDRA PETCH, PAULINE DE LABARTHE Published by FONDATION DE LA HAUTE HORLOGERIE Rue André-De-Garrini 4, 1217 Meyrin (GE), Switzerland Printed by GRAFICHE ANTIGA SPA Via delle industrie 1, 31035 Crocetta del Montello (TV), Italy

Rue AndrĂŠ-De-Garrini 4, 1217 Meyrin (GE), Switzerland T. +41 22 808 58 00, info@hautehorlogerie.org www.hautehorlogerie.org ÂŠ Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, 2018 All rights reserved for all countries. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic, recording, information retrieval system, or otherwise, without prior written permission from Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie.

FHH hautehorlogerie.org FHH Journal journal.hautehorlogerie.org FHH Trends trends.hautehorlogerie.org FHH Forum fhhforum.org FHH Academy fhhacademy.org

HAUTEHORLOGERIE.ORG