Jaeger
Le-Coultre Replica Watches
Despite
the fact that the company known as Jaeger Le-Coultre was
not formed until 1925 company is based on one of the oldest
and most prestigious manufacturers in the business. Its early
beginnings date back to 1833 when young Antoine Le-Coultre
left his family watch making business to strike out on his
own.
The firm’s
history is peppered with new innovations in both movements
and instruments. One of the most famous of these is the invention
of the Millionometer, an instrument that allowed for measurements
one thousandths of a millimeter.
The company
is known for its many fine watches but perhaps the best known
model is the Reverso. This unique time piece first invented
in 1931 allows for the case to be turned 180 degrees thereby
protecting the face of the watch. Despite enthusiastic response
the Reverso did not gain commercial success due to the Depression
and World War II. In the 1960’s it was revived and
is now the oldest known model still under production.
Over the
course of its existence Jaeger has formed many partnerships
and liaisons with a number of prestigious events and companies.
It has partnered with Aston Martin to produce a line of models
inspired by automobile instruments; it has sponsored the
Venice Film Festival, and appeared in the Oscar de la Renta
Fashion show in New York.
One of
the few brands that still produces its watches in house.
Its production facilities are such that they can do this
without relying on outsourcing. In fact even during the quartz
revolution Jaeger Le-Coultre was able to maintain their production
even though many other companies were forced to shut down
their manufacturing process.
Their
in house production and testing is such that the Master Control
series testing was done at their own facilities instead of
being sent to an independent laboratory in Neuchatel. The
testing performed by Jaeger Le-Coultre was so rigorous that
if far exceeding the testing that would have occurred had
the movement been sent to the independent facility.
In 1978
Jaeger Le-Coultre sold 60% of the company to Mannesmann AG
while Audemars Piguet acquired the other 40%. Subsequently
in 2000 Mannesmann sold their share of the company to the
Richemont Group.
Jaeger
Le-Coultre remains one of the premier watch manufacturers
of the world with demand for their time pieces exceeding
the number of pieces produced every year.
Jaeger Le-Coultre
Replica Watches - A Brief History
The firm that is today
known as Jaeger Le-Coultre had its first beginnings in 1833 when Antoine
Le-Coultre, the 30 year old son of watchmaker Jacque Le-Coultre, opened a
factory in the town of Le Sentier in Switzerland. Although the factory was
small Antoine soon proved himself to be a master watchmaker and inventor.
In 1844 he invented an instrument called the millionometer which could measure
accurately up to one thousandth of a millimeter. Using this instrument precisely
measured components could be produced thus improving accuracy. It also led
to the adoption of the metric system in watch making.
For many years Le-Coultre
manufactured and sold movements, parts and tools and became the leading supplier
to many Swiss firms. His highly regarded movements were sold to Patek Phillipe
and several other companies. It is said that between 1900 and 1919 forty
thousand raw movements were produced and sold at approximately 100 to 400
francs each.
In 1925 David Le-Coultre,
grandson of Antoine, merged his company with that of Edmond Jaeger a company
that supplied famed watch house Cartier. The merger led to the now famous
name of Jaeger Le-Coultre and was the impetus for further technical advances
including the creation of the smallest mechanical movement in the world.
The Reverso, now one of
Jaeger Le-Coultre’s most popular models was first invented in 1931.
However the Great Depression and the advent of the Second World War prevented
the model from achieving its full potential. It was not until the 1960’s
when a visit from an Italian maker resulted in the revival of the model and
commercial success.
Since that time the company
has thrived producing such models as the Memovox and Futurmatic and selling
movements to other companies such as Vacheron Constantin and Audemar Piguet.
In 1991 Jaeger Le-Coultre celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Reverso,
the worlds longest running watch model.
In the spring of 2000
Jaeger Le-Coultre became part of the Richemont Group a luxury goods company
who also controls many other watch firms such as Vacheron Constantin, A.
Lange & Sohne, Cartier, Baume & Mercier and Piaget among others.
Jeager-LeCoultre
Watch
History of the Wristwatch:
The history of the wristwatch is indeed short. Wristwatches did not begin
to see widespread use until the 1920s. Men tended to regard the Jeager-LeCoultre
watch as effeminate. So, the vintage Rolex men's watch is a relatively rare
timepiece.
Watches adapted to the
wrist made sporadic appearances as early as the late 1500s. Queen Elizabeth
I is said to have been given one. In the early 1800s the wristwatch made
more frequent appearances when jewelry and watchmakers began creating gem
encrusted timepieces for royalty.
Impact of War: Toward
the end of the 1800s, women began to embrace the wristwatch as an item of
adornment. Despite the feminine association, the concept became accepted
as indispensable to military campaigns as mechanization in war grew. The
ability to read time with a quick glance rather than having to dig through
pockets was critical in battle.
Officers in the South
African Boer war (1899-1902) used wristwatches. By World War I, military
organizations began to demand them. They became especially crucial to fledgling
aerial combat operations.
As demand for Jeager-LeCoultre
watches in warfare grew, rugged timepieces covered with metal grids were
introduced. The first chronograph wristwatches were developed, and luminous
hands and markers were developed.
Between the Wars: Following
the war, automatic (self winding) wristwatches were created, drawing on technology
used in pocket watches. Initially they were unreliable, but were perfected
by the late 1930s and early 1940s. In the 1920s, the wristwatch became the
dominant means of timekeeping among both men and women. Then, as now, men
seemed to prefer more rugged, sportier models, including chronographs. Rolex
created the first Jeager-LeCoultre watch which was worn unscathed by a woman
channel swimmer in 1927. Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart strapped on
wristwatches for their celebrated flights.
During the Great Depression,
demand for wristwatches withered and many top watchmaking companies went
out of business. Despite reversals, many design innovations were introduced.
With the advent of World War II, watches in most countries were an unattainable
luxury and production ceased for all but military needs.
Today, the Jaeger-LeCoultre
Reverso is one of the most famous watches ever produced. But were you aware
that the company got its start producing ebauches for other companies? A
little known fact about Jaeger-LeCoultre is that in addition to producing
movements for its own watches, the company has also produced movements for
famous watch houses such as Vacheron Constantin, Audemars Piguet, and IWC.
As a matter of fact, in the early part of the 20th Century, Jaeger-LeCoultre
even supplied ebauches to the great firm of Patek Phillipe. Then as now,
Jaeger-LeCoultre was considered one of the finest watchmakers in Switzerland.
The year was 1833 when
thirty-year-old Antoine LeCoultre, son of Vallee de Joux watchmaker Jacques
LeCoultre, opened a small factory in the town of Le Sentier. Amazingly enough,
the current Jaeger-LeCoultre factory is only a few feet away from the site
of the original factory. In any event, LeCoultre soon proved himself to be
a gifted watchmaker, but an even more brilliant inventor. In 1844, LeCoultre
revolutionized the watch industry with the invention of the millionometer,
an instrument with which measurements of up to one thousandths of a millimeter
could be made accurately. As a result, precisely finished components could
be manufactured, resulting in greatly improved accuracy in timekeeping. Likewise,
the metric system became the universal measuring standard in watchmaking,
while other systems were rendered obsolete.
LeCoultre''s motto -- "we
must base our experience on science" -- was particularly true when it
came to manufacturing precision movements and tools. The artistry came later
at the hands of a master watchmaker, who assembled, decorated and regulated
the movements. In short order, LeCoultre became the leading supplier of movements,
parts and tools to the watchmaking industry in Switzerland.
LeCoultre movements were
so highly regarded, in fact, that until 1910, the company provided Patek
Phillipe with most of its raw movements. It was only in later years that
Patek Phillipe built its own movements from scratch. In the meantime, other
companies had come to rely exclusively on LeCoultre''s products, from which
they would create finished watches. LeCoultre''s success was so great that
between 1900 and 1919, 40,000 raw movements were produced. Movements sold
for between 100 and 400 francs each, not an inconsiderable sum of money back
then.
In 1925, the grandson
of the firm''s founder, David LeCoultre, merged his company with that of
Edmond Jaeger, the exclusive supplier of watch movements to Cartier. This
is when the modern company known as Jaeger-LeCoultre first came into existence.
Incredibly enough, up to this point Jaeger-LeCoultre had not sold any watches
under its own name. The merger, however, prompted further technical innovations,
not the least of which was a case made from stainless steel, as well as the
creation of the smallest mechanical movement in the world, which weighed
less than one gram.
The year 1931 saw the
introduction of the Reverso, a wristwatch that could be turned 180 degrees
within the case, thereby protecting the crystal and dial. It was a fantastic
creation and one that was enthusiastically received by the public. Unfortunately,
the worldwide economic crisis and World War II combined to prevent the Reverso
from achieving its full potential.
Changing fashions coupled
with the advent of waterproof watches might have forever doomed the watch
to obscurity, had it not been for an Italian dealer who visited the factory
in the 1960s and noticed a number of unused Reverso cases sitting in a watchmaker''s
drawer. The Italian dealer bought the cases and fitted them with movements.
The finished watches were an instant sell-out and the rest is history. Today,
the Reverso is by far Jaeger-LeCoultre''s most popular model and the rest
is history.
Another interesting story
concerns David LeCoultre''s bid for Patek Phillipe. In 1932, Patek Phillipe
was in major financial straits and looking for a white knight. LeCoultre,
whose company manufactured movements for Patek, wanted to acquire a majority
interest. He came close to finalizing a deal, but the Stern brothers, whose
company supplied the dials used in Patek Phillipe watches, ultimately acquired
the company. Although Patek Phillipe has certainly prospered under the Stern
family''s management, it is nonetheless interesting to contemplate what effect
a Patek Phillipe/Jaeger-LeCoultre merger may have had on the Swiss watch
industry.
Needless to say, the company
has continued to thrive, introducing such innovations as the Memovox, Futurematic,
Atmos Clock (which in and of itself could be the subject of an article) and
strikingly original movements such as the world''s thinnest automatic with
a thickness of just 2.35 mm, just to name a few. The thin automatic movement
in particular was an incredible success, as both Vacheron Constantin and
Audemars Piguet featured it in wristwatches advertised as being the world''s
slimmest self-winding timepieces. During the 1970s and early 1980s, Jaeger-LeCoultre
produced a 36 jewel, self-winding calibre for Patek Phillipe. Once again,
both companies had come full circle.
On a final note, it is
worth noting that Jaeger-LeCoultre is one of the few companies in Switzerland
that still produces its own movements, cases, dials, hands and bracelets.
Virtually every single component in a Jaeger-LeCoultre watch is hand-finished,
produced in-house, and this in turn results in strict quality control. As
a result, Jaeger-LeCoultre watches are recognized as being among the very
finest hand-crafted watches available, and evidence of this can be seen in
the fact that Jaeger-LeCoultre regularly produces such masterpieces as the
Reverso Tourbillon and Reverso Minute Repeater. There is also the Master
Control series of watches, which boast 1,000 hours of testing and assembly
at the patient hands of a master watchmaker.
In any event, if you are
contemplating the purchase of a Jaeger-LeCoultre wristwatch, you''ve made
an excellent choice. It''s a highly prestigious and respected brand with
a long and wonderful history.
