Right this moment, when you ask almost anybody, “What’s the epicenter of watchmaking?” the reply will resoundingly be, “Switzerland,” however you may be shocked to be taught its neighbor to the west is basically accountable for the delivery of recent watchmaking as we all know it. In France, the earliest clocks date again to the Center Ages, primarily utilized by clergymen. Quick ahead a number of hundred years, you’ll discover the primary “wearable clocks” rising in France by the tip of the 1400s.
Over the subsequent couple hundred years, watchmaking turned an more and more thriving trade in France. Nonetheless, the horological neighborhood skilled its first disruption in 1685. That 12 months, King Louis XIV revoked of the Edict of Nantes, which had granted the minority Calvinist Protestants of France, also referred to as Huguenots, substantial rights within the nation, which was predominantly Catholic on the time. Because of the revocation, there was a mass exodus of Huguenots from France throughout the border to Switzerland, a lot of whom had been—you guessed it—watchmakers.
Nonetheless, the true golden age of French watchmaking got here within the 1700s at the side of one other main second for the nation: the Age of Enlightenment. Throughout this time, Paris turned the guts of the watchmaking trade. Right here, within the Île de la Cité (considered one of two pure islands within the Seine River proper within the middle of the Metropolis of Mild), is the Place Dauphone, a public sq. on the western finish of the island reverse the long-lasting Notre-Dame Cathedrale. Within the late 18th century, this space was residence to the workshops of three distinguished watchmakers: Abraham-Louis Breguet, Ferdinand Berthoud, and Jean-Antoine Lepine.
This golden age was in the end brief lived. By the onset of the French Revolution in 1789, Lepine was almost 70 and had retired, Berthoud continued producing some clocks and marine chronometers but additionally shifted his focus to his publication of Histoire de la Mesure du Temps, and Breguet had fled to Switzerland to keep away from execution for his affiliation with revolutionary chief Jean-Paul Marat.
By now you may be catching onto the development of French watchmakers making their means throughout the Swiss border. This pilgrimage from France to Switzerland has largely contributed to the success of the Swiss watch trade as we all know it immediately. Even now, it’s estimated that roughly 25% of the present workforce is made up of French nationals who cross the border to work within the Swiss watchmaking trade.
But, lately, there appears to be a notable resurgence of French manufacturers bringing the craft and recognition again to the nation. Once you consider French manufacturers, some huge names may come to thoughts—Cartier, F.P. Journe, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Van Cleef & Arpels, and, in fact, Breguet. Nonetheless, every of those manufacturers, whereas French based or French owned, is actually “Swiss Made.” So, who’s accountable for this French watchmaking renaissance? The reply is independents and microbrands, and we sat down with 5 of them to be taught extra about their contribution to the rise of French watchmaking within the present market.
Essentially the most tenured of the manufacturers we tapped is Yema, which was based again in 1948. Traditionally, it’s among the finest identified watch manufacturers in France and is now in its third era of household management. Positioned within the small city of Morteau nestled within the iconic watchmaking area of the Jura Mountains simply minutes from the Swiss border, Yema neighbors one of many largest watchmaking colleges in France: the Lycee Edgar Faure.
“The irony is that about 80% of the graduates from that college instantly go to Switzerland to seek out their first job,” shares Antoine Fraisse, the pinnacle of Yema’s PR, Digital Advertising and marketing, and Worldwide Gross sales. “They construct their expertise, after which we see a lot of them return to France later of their careers to workshops like ours.”
Whereas Fraisse couldn’t observe a definitive cause they see of us within the trade return again to their French roots, he did level out some key variations between the Swiss and French watchmaking industries that may very well be influential.
“The Swiss watchmaking trade may be very aggressive, significantly immediately” Fraisse explains. “Now, so many Swiss manufacturers have change into public or managed underneath the umbrella of huge teams—the stakes are excessive. Whereas in France, many of the manufacturers are independently owned like Yema. We’ve a really tightknit neighborhood. We exit collectively, we focus on concepts. It’s not aggressive, it’s collaborative.”
“I might additionally say French watchmaking is extra pushed by design and aesthetics somewhat than advanced performance,” Fraisse continues. “That helps us to maintain our prices down and our watches to be priced extra accessibly. We nonetheless manufacture a majority of issues in-house,” he clarifies, “then no matter we outsource is all inside a radius of fifty miles from our headquarters, so we maintain high quality, fashion, and value in thoughts for our collectors.”
Though Yema traces its roots again greater than 75 years, the model notably skilled a little bit of a revival in 2018. This period, maybe, marks this resurgence of French watchmaking. Between 2017 and 2019, we noticed the launch of three of probably the most distinguished French manufacturers available on the market: Baltic, Depancel, and Serica.
Baltic was based by three French watch fans and pals, with Etienne Malec taking the lead on the undertaking since its inception. The corporate started on Kickstarter again in 2017 with two fashions and a purpose of 60,000 Euros, nevertheless it ended up notching over half 1,000,000 because of overwhelming enthusiasm from the collector neighborhood for the model’s designs and imaginative and prescient.
“A give attention to design is certainly a energy of French watchmaking,” affirms Remi Martin, Gross sales Supervisor at Baltic. “Somewhat than focusing solely on the technical facets, French manufacturers usually give attention to type first after which adapt the technical facets to work across the design. Shapes, supplies, and textures play an enormous position,” he continues. “The purpose is all the time to finish up with one thing new by experimenting as a lot as potential. I believe that the French have this little further aptitude, that je-ne-sais-quoi. To be true to its identification, a French model must be daring, with out being ostentatious. That steadiness is what makes French manufacturers so completely different.”
For Baltic, it’s all the time concerning the balancing act—negotiating type and performance, boldness and subtlety, previous and current. “We strive our greatest to mix custom and modernity to make one thing that feels new but additionally acquainted on the time,” explains Martin. Take, as an illustration the model’s MR Traditional assortment, which options iconic Breguet numerals as a homage to one of many legends in French watchmaking. As a substitute of portray them on the dial within the conventional technique, the model opted to make them utilized and outsized for a extra up to date look.
