The rise, splendour and transformation of Cartier

In 1888, the son of company founder Louis Cartier recognized the importance of wristwatches and added products from other luxury manufacturers such as Vacheron Constantin to his range in addition to his own ladies' models. At the latest when the British court orders no less than 27 diadems to crown the then Prince of Wales, King Edward VII appoints him as purveyor to the court and the London boutique is stormed by British high society, the Cartier House has arrived at the Uhrenolymp. The markets in Czarist Russia also proved fruitful; in 1909 the Cartier Shop on New York's Fifth Avenue stocked the beautiful, rich and famous. The reference to the aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont was developed in 1904 by the ingenious watchmaker Cartier Santos, the first real pilot's watch ever, and in the seventies it will experience a brilliant rebirth in the "Les Must de Cartier" concept. A watch legend, similar to the Tank and Pasha collections, which caused a sensation in the Art Deco style in the second decade of the 20th century. Pasha was dedicated to the Sultan of Marrakech and this aroused desires among the Maharajas in distant India.In the first decades of the 20th century, other crowned heads come to the exquisite taste - Cartier's flights of fancy are unstoppable. Until the expiry of the family lineage in the fateful year 1965 leads to the splitting up of the family business. The "Monde Cartier" becomes the "Vendome Luxury Group". But this cannot diminish the Nimbus Cartier as a synonym for sublime luxury and established wealth. It has long been synonymous with a lifestyle that can hardly be more luxurious, and other luxury product segments have long been occupied: perfume, eyewear, silk scarves, lighters, stationery and leather goods - the designated trivialities without which the sophisticated woman or man of the world cannot leave the house. The straightforward, classic design - unmistakably Cartier - implies elitist, refined demands. In 2009, Cartier celebrates its 100th anniversary in the USA, now under the umbrella of the luxury goods company Richemond. Cartier is a world leader in the jewelry segment.

Cartier icon and world clock heritage: Cartier Santos

It may be seen as an irony of history, but the emergence - and anything but luxurious - of aviation and military fostered the rise of the wristwatch. The traditional pocket watches on the gold chain proved unusable in acts of force such as first flights or battles. The fact that the ladies' watches were worn on the wrist after the turn of the century was considered "unmanly" by the men's world. But already in 1880 Wilhelm I had wristwatches built for his naval officers. From 1904 the Brazilian Alberto Santos-Dumont ascended to many test flights with the predecessor of the Cartier Santos and on 12 November 1907 the Playboy and aviation pioneer wore "his" Santos on his wrist during his spectacular 220-metre powered flight. During the First World War, the troops followed suit, and finally the wristwatch also arrived in civilian society. The first Cartier Santos broke with the conventions of the time, according to which a watch had to be round, and appeared boldly square-edged, with rounded corners, which ran around a raised glass edge and a leather bracelet. Today, the best-known men's wristwatch in watch history is presented in three collections: Santos de Cartier Galbée, Santos 100 and the classic Santos-Dumont, which takes up this attitude with alligator leather, gold case and a narrower bezel. Complications? Except for a date display at Santos-Dumont. The Santos Galbée features the typical small screws on the case, steel bracelet and Roman numerals. Pure aesthetics for aesthetic purists. As the watches grew in diameter in the eighties, the delicate Cartier diameters seemed almost filigree. Today they are back in vogue, just like the bicolor versions that had temporarily lost ashore.

Difficult to top luxury, precision for perfectionists

In 2009, Cartier presents the first completely in-house developed automatic movement and quotes the Santos year of birth with the name 1904MC. A double mainspring barrel increases accuracy and power reserve, the rotor, which pushes the automatic movement with every movement, is based on an innovative ceramic ball bearing. Haute Horlogerie" entered Cartier with the development of the astrotourbillon, which uses innovative mechanics to compensate for the deviation in movement caused by gravity. Cartier also occupies the concept watches sector, for example with the extraordinary ID Two, in which a vacuum inside the transparent case makes a screw connection unnecessary.

Women's power at Cartier

"Innovation" is the credo of Carole Forestier-Kasapi, the current head of Cartier. But even before her, strong, sophisticated women had the upper hand. Jeanne Toussaint must have been gifted with absolute taste in the 1920s; she laid the foundation for the Must de Cartier, because it was the time of the Brilli cigarette tips, the golden jewels and pretentious little things. In the seventies Nathalie Hocq awakened Cartier from hibernation. Papa Robert Hocq had acquired Cartier in 1972. His daughter had an ingenious career before she brought new impetus to old, albeit well-oiled machinery in the Rue de la Paix. She was a sales and marketing talent with an unerring sense for design, stones, exhibitions, people, markets. She negotiated in Arab harems and New York Fith Avenue penthouses. "Mademoiselle Cartier," as she was respectfully called, and her habit of smoking black cigars was fashionable. Today, international head of marketing Hélène Poulit and in this country Patricia Gandji. Women also hold management positions in China, Korea, Mexico and Taiwan.