Timeless elegance combined with avant-garde manufacturing technique. This has allowed Laurent Ferrier to become, in just ten years, one of the names firmly in the Olympus of watchmaking and a certainty for connoisseurs.
Son and grandson of master watchmakers, Ferrier has watch hands flowing through his veins, and he has been immersed in the world of complications and movements ever since he was a child.
At the age of sixteen, in 1968, he designed, during his apprenticeship, a pocket watch now known as the Montre d’École or School Piece.
For 37 years he worked in Patek Philippe as technical director, in the period that saw the birth of the famous Nautilus, participating in the creation of the model designed by Gerald Genta. Ferrier’s department receives drawings from Genta and instructions from Philippe Stern: Ferrier recalls that, after making the Nautilus, everyone was aware of having created the most beautiful watch ever seen before.
Watches and engines, only joys and (zero) sorrows
The decision to realize the dream of opening a brand in his name is linked to the passion for cars, also developed from a young age.
When the automotive world meets watchmaking, as is often the case, the results are no less than amazing. And we’re not just talking about Daytona…
Ferrier began racing in local competitions and then moved on to endurance racing. There are many similarities between racing and watches: in both cases, it is essential to seek perfection in execution and precision in results. In racing, just like in measuring time, details are everything and a millimeter is big enough of a mistake to fail.
And watchmaking, Ferrier will later discover, beauty and efficiency of use is not enough, it must also be connected at a tactile level with the pilot / owner.
After this race, François Servanin himself – under the influence of Laurent Ferrier – began to get interested in the world of watchmaking, so much so that the latter paid homage to him with a fantastic Nautilus with the engraving commemorating the 24h Le Mans of 1979 on the caseback. The idea of opening a business together was born: Servanin would have put the capital as an investor giving Ferrier carte blanche on all other aspects, given his massive experience as a watchmaker.
In 2009 Laurent Ferrier was born, a Genevan maison where every watch, from conception to production, is developed in-house in the Geneva laboratories and followed in detail. Discretion, class and innovation are the guidelines of the maison: “Respect for tradition does not exclude the drive for innovation” , this is Laurent Ferrier’s mantra.
In this venture Laurent Ferrier is joined by his son Christian Ferrier, born in 1976.
Christian has a background in micro-mechanics and began his career in the aerospace industry but, when his father decided to give life to the project, he joined Laurent Ferrier bringing his technical expertise.
The models
The emblematic style of Laurent Ferrier timepieces is neoclassical, with clean and balanced lines, elegant but with a mechanical heart of the highest sophistication. The pride of the wearer and the amazement of those who observe them are conquered through the subtle game between the classic and discreet aesthetics, which recalls Ferrier’s passion for pocket watches, and the very high sophistication and innovation of the mechanisms that are hidden inside the watch.
Ferrier watches do not follow fashions, they cross them while remaining always current, timeless beauties destined to last and serve in every context and on every occasion.
A distinctive feature of the Laurent Ferrier is the spherical winding crown.
Now let’s see some of the watches produced by the maison.
Galet Classic Tourbillon Double Spiral
In 2010, Laurent Ferrier made history with the Galet Classic model, which won the prestigious Best Men’s Watch award at the Geneva Watchmaking Grand Prix. For the first time, in fact, such a young maison wins the award, won thanks to the exquisite balance achieved by this timepiece, with a classic design but sophisticated movement.
The Classic model is, as the name suggests, characterized by timeless soft lines, reminiscent of the aesthetics of 19th century pocket watches.
The 41 mm case houses the Dial with Ivory Enamel Grand feu where the deliciously thin and elongated Roman numeral indexes stand out, a unicum. Like the hands, elegant and slender, renamed “Assegai” by Ferrier, like the javelins of the Zulu tribes.
The curved shape of the case reflects the classic simplicity that is in the DNA of the maison. The name, in particular, means “pebble”(galet in French) and Laurent Ferrier’s idea was precisely to imagine the perfection of an object that to the touch could give the same feeling as a pebble collected on the bank of a river, shaped by the course of the waters and welcomed like a caress in the palm of the hand.
The essential and classic appearance that recalls the pocket watches of the 19th century, is contrasted with a highly sophisticated mechanism, so much so that the Galet Classic Tourbillon Double Spiral has been certified by the Besançon Observatory.
The LF 619.01 mechanism is made entirely in-house in the Laurent Ferrier laboratories. For the first time, the Abraham-Louis Breguet tourbillon is equipped with a double direct pulse on the balance, which neutralizes the lateral displacement of the axis of the balance wheel while the tourbillon compensates for travel irregularities.
If the tourbillon designed by Breguet, in fact, serves to compensate for the travel irregularities deriving from the Earth’s gravity, the mechanism inserted by Ferrer maximizes the efficiency of the Tourbillon with the double direct impulse on the rocker.
The tourbillon is positioned in the back of the watch, a choice wanted by Ferrier to authenticate the vow of elegance and discretion of his watches: the incredible complexity of the tourbillon is in fact conceived as a precious secret that the owner keeps on his wrist and can only reveal when and to whom he thinks. A decisive change of course with respect to the now rampant tendency to flaunt and share every aspect of one’s life with bulimic protagonism.
In addition, in association with the tourbillon, Ferrier has designed its own escapement system with double direct impulse on the balance wheel, aimed at achieving maximum energy efficiency.
Galet Square
In 2015 comes another prestigious award for Laurent Ferrier, who wins the GPHG “Horological Revelation” award with the Galet Square.
In this case, it is the typical lines of the ’30s that inspire Laurent Ferrier for this sporty evolution of the Classic model.
The case idealizes a square (41 x 41 mm), lying on a cushion, with the result of creating a play of lines with soft elegance.
It is the first Laurent Ferrier watch in steel.
The watch beats an automatic movement caliber FBN 229.01 micro rotor, entirely produced by Laurent Ferrier, with a power reserve of three hours.
École Annual Calendar
In 2018, it’s the turn of the Galet Annual Calendar Montre Ecole,which earns another recognition for the Men’s Complication Category at the GPHG (Grand Prix d’Horologerie Geneve).
A crazy watch, which is enriched with the perpetual calendar, a complication that automatically compensates for the alternation of 30/31 days of the months, with the simple calendar that only requires the manual correction of the months with less than 31 days.
The dial features two horizontal windows, above the signature Laurent Ferrier, placed at 12 o’clock, to indicate day and month of the year, which are set simply by rotating the crown.
Entirely designed and built in the Ferrier laboratories, this model honors the canons of the maison in terms of sturdiness, efficiency, elegance and sobriety.
Bridge
The Bridge marks a turning point compared to the lines usually chosen by Laurent Ferrier, who “betrays” the soft lines of the “Galet” for a rectangular shape. Even in this case, however, the push always comes from the past: the nostalgic inspiration comes from the famous Geneva bridge, the “Passerelle de l’Ile“, which Ferrier observed as a child from his room.
Despite the particular shape and considerable dimensions of the case (44mm × 30mm and a thickness of 14.58mm), the Bridge lies perfectly on the wrist thanks to the curved line and is confirmed, like all the timepieces of the maison, a very enjoyable watch to wear.
It was necessary to design a new movement that would adapt to the rectangular shape of the case, a caliber LF107.01 as always entirely designed and manufactured in the Laurent Ferrier laboratories.
Grand Sport
Laurent Ferrier launches this model in 2019, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Le Mans 1979.
With a 44 mm steel case, it is the first model of the maison with an integrated steel bracelet.
The cushion shape, with soft and satin contours, continues in the sweetly harmonious style of all Ferrier timepieces.
The indexes and hands are covered in orange Super-LumiNova, an energizing touch that honors the sporting vocation without distorting it. The small seconds subdial is located at 6 o’clock.
For Laurent Ferrier, the “feel” connected to the watch is very important, which must also be joined at the tactile level to the owner’s wrist. The Grand Sport Tourbillon also meets this need, creating an ergonomic – as well as aesthetic – relationship with the wrist.
Arpal One
Arpal One is probably the most intriguing watch ever created by Laurent Ferrier. A unique piece, born in 2017 from the incredible collaboration with Urwerk for Only Watch. This unique timepiece is the result of the combination of the classic and clean taste of Laurent Ferrier and the visionary surrealism of Urwerk. An unexpected marriage but, since opposites attract, very successful.
Curvilinear, the line winks in detail at the world of four wheels (so dear to Laurent Ferrier) in a hypermodern key as typical of Urwerk.
The reading of time is in a linear key thanks to a rotating disc that moves on the display. The disc indicates the hours, while the minutes are indicated on a line at the bottom of the dial.
The parts of the rotating disc that do not indicate the hours are only partially visible, covered by the Arpal cover.
The name of the watch comes from the alloy used, Arpal, a material composed of 75% precious metals and the remaining 25% other elements, which is even more resistant than gold and platinum.
The strap is in sand-colored leather, very refined.
The movement is a RU5.03, automatic movement with a power reserve of 48 hours.
Our opinion
Laurent Ferrier is truly an incredible phenomenon in the world of watchmaking, an interweaving of wonderful contradictions, poised between tradition and innovation.
A young maison, born only in 2009 thanks to the genius of an experienced man, on the threshold of retirement age. The style of his watches enhances the classic lines of the past which feels timeless but, nonetheless, the movements and manufacturing techniques are of the most avant-garde thrust.
The breadth of the worldwide success, which has made these pieces coveted all over the world, is contrasted by the small size of the brand, which remains proudly exclusive, so as to make the owners of Laurent Ferrier watches almost a club, an elite of connoisseurs who automatically stand out from the crowd. Suffice it to say that among the admirers there is the legendary collector John Goldberger alias Auro Montanari.
Ferrier himself, for whom understatement as always been key, reportedly stated: “We are not even a Maison. We are just a small business that produces about 150 pieces a year.”
To know more, visit the official Laurent Ferrier website.
Translated by: Enrico Della Guerra
