Cartier History

By visiting our Cartier Catalogue you can see the models that we have currently in stock.

Cartier History

The name Cartier is synonymous with beautiful objects of quality and style. Although Cartier are perhaps better known for their fine jewellery, their signed wristwatches have made a huge impression on the global watch market and have become increasingly collectable over the years.

1819:Louis Francois Cartier (1819-1904) followed the steps of his grandfather, also called Louis Francois Cartier (1755-1793), by becoming a goldsmith. He started his career as an apprentice to Adolphe Picard, producing handmade jewellery in a small workshop at 29 Rue Montorgeuil, and quickly developed into one of the finest jewellers in Paris

1847: Adolphe Picard died, Cartier succeeded him and the company that bore his name was born

1853: Louis Francois was able to expand his business of designing and selling jewellery to the more fashionable Palais-Royal district, in premised at 5 Rue Neuve des petits Champs. He became a favourite of Princess Mathilde, the cousin of Napoleon III, whose patronage opened the door to Parisian society. This made a move to larger premises at 9 Rue des Italiens a necessity

1874: Alfred Cartier (1841-1925) took over the company from his father Louis Francois. Alfreds three sons - Louis, Pierre and Jaques - would eventually turn the family business into a global empire

1898: Cartier made a final move in Paris and they still remain at 13 Rue de La Paix today. His son and associate Louis Cartier, who proved not only an outstanding goldsmith but also businessman as well, accompanied Alfred Cartier. Louis Cartiers genius was to make Cartiers name famous worldwide

1902: The first London Cartier shop opened at 4 Burlington St and was soon appointed official purveyor to the court of King Edward

1907: Under the management of the youngest of Alfred Cartiers sons, Jaques Cartier (1884-1942), they moved to 175 New Bond St. Jaques Cartier was well suited to the quiet conservative life of London and helped to create new designs and assisted in the purchase of important gemstones, accompanied by his wife Nelly Harjes

1909: Following the success of their London branch they expanded into the huge American Market by opening a shop in New York run by Pierre Cartier (1878-1965). Just as the aristocracy patronized the London branch, so Pierre Cartier had his particular crowd of adoring patrons. Pierre, whose lifelong ambition had been to become an ambassador, was well suited to the fast pace of life in New York. He eventually married Elma Rumsey a rich girl from Missouri. Cartier Paris initially sent all merchandise for they shop across the Atlantic, but a workshop was soon set up in New York and Pierre with the help of Jules Glaenzer, quickly established the brands image across America

1910: A further two Cartier branches were opened, in Moscow and the Persian Gulf. Soon business was so good in New York that they moved to splendid new premises at 653 Fifth Avenue. The opening of the New York shop had given Cartier worldwide recognition

1917: The "Tank" wristwatch is introduced during the First World War, was Cartier\'s most famous model. The tough new war machine the Americans introduced to the fighting in Europe, Inspired the tank to design a rugged yet beautiful watch that became a classic, inspired Louis Cartier. Cartier made an exclusive contract with Edmond Jaeger, who moved into Cartier\'s premises so he could manufacture mechanisms for Cartiers personalized watches. They guaranteed an annual order of at least 250,000 Fr worth of business and in this time Jaeger concentrated on small flat watches. The early men’s wristwatches were all handmade in France, with movements by Jaeger, Cartier Paris and the European Watch and Clock Co, who manufactured complicated movements such as chronographs, minute repeaters, and digital wristwatches

1920’s – 1930’s: Ladies wristwatches began to get smaller and smaller. The smallest was a 2-line movement manufactured by the European Watch and Clock Company and Jaeger. The ability to create many unique wristwatches was of great advantage to Cartier because customers were able to select from various designs, or order custom made pieces. Because the shops only sold their own brand they had no competition from other competitors in store. Cartier wristwatches were produced with movements by Jaeger, Vacheron, Le Coutre, Cartier itself and The European Watch and Clock Co. These watch cases were manufactured in Paris, Geneva, London and New York, and each branch was responsible for the production of their own wristwatches. However, the French branch exported its watches to other shops. Cartier’s wristwatches were fast becoming the status symbol of the rich, and people became eager to purchase all the unique models that were being manufactured

Cartier History

1931: Cartier designed its first waterproof wristwatch with a three-piece case made in Paris. Other designs to come from Cartier Paris were a covered wristwatch, a shutter wristwatch, a reversible wristwatch a chronograph and a minute repeater

1935: fashionable beach resorts were opened, Cartier Cannes and Cartier Monte Carlo

1938. Further branches were opened in Geneva, Hong Kong and Munich. Claude Cartier and Pierres Cartiers son in law Pierre Claudel assisted in the running of the empire

1940s: Saw a period when the "Moonphase" was a very sort after watch. Its movements were generally by Jaeger or the European Watch and Clock Company. Stainless steel was used during the war when gold became less available. The Cartier London workshop for wristwatches was set up in 1939 and was located at Ormand House, Roseberry Avenue, London EC1. Wright and Davis made the cases. After the Second World War in 1946 Cartier were looking for new designs, keeping up with the tradition of changing times. Cartier London started manufacturing mens wristwatches in a more serious way and the workshops were able to expand quickly because of the popularity of these custom made pieces. Diamond and sapphire watches were very popular during this period, as were Cartier watches with different colored enamel round the bezel

1942: Louis and Jaques Cartier both died

1945: Their brother Pierre became the president of Cartier International and from then on stayed almost entirely in the shop in Paris until he retired to Geneva in 1947

1962: Claude Cartier sold Cartier New York but remained president of the company until 1963

1968: Cartier had evolved from a family business into an enormous multinational organization.

1960s: Jean-Jaques Cartier designs with R Emerson a wristwatch that was a large uneven shape that looked as if it had been in a car crash. This "Crash" watch was the wristwatch that many people later called the "Dali" watch, after artist Salvador Dali. It really had nothing to do with him however, and the correct name for it is the "Crash" watch

1972: Joseph Kanoui headed a financial syndicate that bought control of Cartier Paris. Robert Hocq became president of the company. He once again united the three branches of Cartier and took over the London and New York Management in a move to re-establish Cartiers image of prestige and importance. Cartiers great empire has evolved from humble beginnings on the Rue Montorgeuil in fourteen distributing companies in the richest countries in the world. The company is continuing to keep the magic of Cartier alive

1970’s: The London Cartier workshop closed after produced handmade wristwatches for 43 years, meeting the individual demands for all sorts of customers, as the 1970\'s ended the company as a whole started to use quartz movements for their wristwatches, as they were producing them in such large quantities. Cartier was still able to go back to their original designs and simply adapt the movements to quartz

1980s: Cartier added about a 100 different models to their line and always remained one step ahead of the competition. They manufactured watches in steel, gold and combinations of the two for the fashion conscious people in todays market. This ability to see what the market demands is vital to being able to meet their customers’ expectations for watches of the greatest style, performance and quality

 
Cartier has remained so special because they have always made wristwatches in a variety of shapes, round, square, tortue, tonneau, rectangular, and oval, rather than limiting themselves to one or two shapes. Their designs have always managed to be classic and modern at the same time. A Cartier watch can always be relied upon to make a fashion statement. Their emphasis and quality and design were a heritage from their beginnings as jewellers. Their jewellery for women has always been among the most beautiful in the world, and remains a collector’s pleasure. Cartier have consistently used the best quality for their watch cases, dials and movements, and this has reaped rich rewards as their customers return time after time to acquire more of the unique Cartier Magic.

Cartier History