About the ‘racing machines’
“There is an incredible growth of new brands, and that is great. This abundance of creativity and new talent is good news for the industry. How can anyone complain about the vitality and health of the watch sector today? If we look at what happened during the 1980s, Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, and Jaeger-LeCoultre, for example, all had problems. Today, however, these brands are flourishing. The trend today is what I call the ‘racing machines’. It is another way to approach watchmaking and the ‘father’ of this sculptural trend is Richard Mille who inspired many others. But now, with 30 years of hindsight, the people who were totally credible back then are the same ones we find today. They all had the same teachers and attended the same school of restoration. They are watchmakers such as François-Paul Journe, for example, who has never deviated from his line.”

Everything remains to be done
“When you hear that everything has already been done in watchmaking, it is a big lie. Everything remains to be done, redone, reinterpreted, or reinvented. Creativity knows no boundaries. This is true, for instance, in the domain of the escapement, which has always interested me since my background started with restoration. History shows us that the lever escapement, while it is the not the simplest to make, is the most reliable in its many forms. Hundreds of thousands, even millions, have been created. They are used around the world in all countries. So, why renounce the lever escapement unless, of course, it is to avoid the balance spring whose source of supply is now problematic? By shutting off the tap, Nicolas Hayek did, in fact, render a great service to the industry since it was forced to act. Inside our group, we will soon be autonomous from the point of view of the balance spring. And, in the next five years, we intend to become one of the dominant players in the production and sale of movements. I am speaking of manufacturing movements on a truly industrial level, in quantities of hundreds of thousands. We won’t do this alone and are already setting up the foundations for this development, located mainly in the Jura and Fribourg regions where we will do the cutting, stamping, and gears as well as the plates. You will see, between now and then, watchmaking will return to the period before the war when the diversity of movements was incredibly rich.”




Second generation: Fabian Muller and Sassoun Sirmakes.


About silicon
“The research into materials has also become one of the biggest trends in watchmaking at the present time. As for silicon, this material offers many advantages—hardness, lightness, and surface states that reduce friction. Yet, it is also a problematic material because it breaks easily. I think that using it for an escape wheel is dangerous. It is also not repairable and its shape varies as a function of temperature, so in my opinion, silicon is not the panacea people think, even if it is interesting in the evolutionary scheme of things. There is also one other thing. What makes the charm of a mechanical watch? It is the sound of its metallic tick-tock. Between us, I believe this sound is completely beneficial for the organism.”




Aeternitas Mega with 25 complications, including a Grande and Petite Sonnerie (Grand-strike), Minute Repeater and Westminster Carillon.


Putting disputes to rest
“Today, my relationship with Vartan Sirmakes is calm and balanced. There were problems—that is certainly no secret—but the basic fabric of the relationship remained intact. And then there are the children to consider. My son just finished the Watchmaking School and is working with us. We are transmitting the culture of the company, the way to approach design, and the manner of conceptualizing movements. Watchmaking is a collective effort. And while today I am less needed inside the company, I travel a lot outside, visiting our markets. In fact, I go around the world three times a year. The success of Franck Muller is not a marketing success, but the result of true and profound relationships based on loyalty that I incessantly work at. Since the beginning, we have always reinvested our earnings into the company. This is why we have been able to gradually integrate the production of dials, followed by hands, crowns, and push buttons. It is good that we have done this since many of our suppliers have since been bought out. But the idea of ‘manufacture’—which we hear bandied around so much—is an immense deception. What interests us much more is the notion of ‘group.’ Franck Muller is now a group capable of offering its retail network a palette of complementary brands. Now, that is what is important."


Source: Europa Star August-September 2008 Magazine Issue