The Curious Case of Blancpain’s Mythical Founding

Did you know that Blancpain, a luxury watch brand, boasts about being the oldest of its kind in the world, founded way back in 1735? Well, hold onto your watch straps because it turns out this might not be the whole truth.

A Tale of Tweaked Timelines

Blancpain’s story takes an interesting twist considering they only started claiming the 1735 founding date in the mid-20th century. Before that, their advertisements in 1900 proudly stated 1815 as their year of establishment. So, what changed?

 

Enter Jean-Jacques Fiechter, a character in our story who, in the 1950s, took some artistic liberties with the company’s history. He stitched together tales of an ancestor, Jehan-Jacques Blancpain, creating watches as far back as 1735. However, historians and records say otherwise, suggesting that the actual Blancpain beginnings were much later, around the 1810s

 

Photo Source: Perezcope

Historical Hiccups

The records—or rather, the lack of them—tell a more realistic story. Searching as they might, neither Blancpain nor the village of Villeret can produce any documents to prove Jehan-Jacques registered as a watchmaker in 1735. It smells fishy because while watch companies usually treasure such documents, Blancpain’s “record” appears to be nothing more than a prop for their website.

Rebirth of a Name

Fast forward to 1983, and the Blancpain brand was bought and relaunched with passion by new owners, far from its supposed roots in Villeret. Turned into a luxury icon under the Swatch Group, the brand now spins a tale that would make any marketer proud—but remains a historian’s headache.

 

Photo Source: Perezcope

Truth vs Tradition

To this day Blancpain sticks to its narrative, perhaps because the story sells better than the truth. So, next time you admire a Blancpain watch, remember that while it might tell the time perfectly, the story of its origin is probably more fiction than fact. After all, in the world of luxury watches, sometimes the tale is just as important as the timepiece.