When it comes to large commercial watchmaking operations over the past twenty years, few, if any, executives have made more of a mark than Jean-Claude Biver at LVMH.
His personality, bombasity and passion, developed over 50 years in the business, brought him as close to becoming a brand in his own right as anybody before or since his retirement in 2018.
But he never had his name on a watch dial, until today.
Mr Biver, the evangelist, helped launch Biver the watch brand in the company of his 22-year-old son, Pierre, who the great man was quick to point out had done all the hard work.
Pierre returned the compliment, promising he will work three times harder than anybody to ensure he never lets down the family name. “We have too much pride and admiration in what he has achieved,” he insisted.
The launch of Biver the brand may turn out to be the most memorable moment of this year’s Watches and Wonders, before the main show has even opened its doors.
Held on the family farm, where Mr Biver Sr. famously makes around five tonnes of L’Etiva cheese per year, around 150 invited journalists gathered to witness the birth of a new watch brand.
On the product front, a handful of prototypes were unveiled with the promise that 10-15 minute repeaters with a tourbillon would be produced this year, with the first deliveries expected in September.
No prices were given for the watch, and the main diamond encrusted prototype on display did not have a movement inside it, but that did not dampen the mood in the room and even reinforced the key message at the event, which is that watchmaking is about people, passion and soul, not trivialities like products and prices.
Ahead of the launch, it had been expected that this would be a very high end affair, and the only mention of prices came in the question and answer session, when Mr Biver Sr turned the obligatory question: “How much?” into a pledge about the quality of finishing Biver watches would attain.
“We are exaggerating our finishing,” he swerved. “Whether we are talking about watches costing CHF 50,000 or CHF 5 million, we will never compromise. Finishing is what gives a watch its soul,” he insisted.
There was an air of celebration about a brand being created in only one year. The first mention Jean-Claude getting back into the game came in the spring of 2022, when he let slip in a radio interview that he and his son were working on a project together.
Suppliers were hastily assembled for a minute repeater tourbillon movement that is being made by Cercle des Horlogers using components from the finest exponents. H. Moser & Cie., for example, is making the hair springs.
The first prototypes were designed by Philippe Girard at M-Design. Future time-only watches and chronographs, may use Dubois Depraz movements.
Today’s launch event was convened not so much to launch a watch and a brand, but to outline a philosophy about the heart and soul of watchmaking being poured into the Biver family business.
There were genuinely touching moments when Pierre presented his father with a unique version of the new watch and a slightly more cheesy passage when his 50 years in the business was marked with a sparkling cake, which took a little too long to arrive, and a rendition of Happy Birthday.
There was barely a dry eye in the house.
There was no shortage of nostalgia, including Jean-Claude Biver recalling his first day on the job at Audemars Piguet in 1973 when his boss demanded: “We need passion, not just skill,” advice many industrialised maisons would do well to remember.
It will be Pierre who runs Biver day-to-day, but the launch was all about an encore for his father, who is back in the business after a five year hiatus.
“This is an incredible comeback, but also a goodbye,” he observed. “At 74, I may have another five or ten years [before a final farewell]. I have been given another five minutes at the end of a 50-year career.”
Nobody among the seasoned hacks in the audience will begrudge him that.
Mr. Biver is a true legend, and a company bearing his name will be an enduring legacy! Bravo, Mr. Jean-Claude and Mr. Pierre!
JC Biver has shown throughout his entire career at multiple watch companies that staying closely connected with your business partners (suppliers, distributors, and after-sales service) makes a huge and powerful personal impact. In that regard he was quite a contrarian in the industry and showed that old time personal relationships really do work well.