A unique, 2-metre high timepiece made for the 1855 Paris Exhibition dominates the foyer. Frescos reproducing drawings by Apianus, Charles V’s astronomer, cover the ceiling overhead.
Headquartered in downtown Geneva, F.P. Journe Manufacturers is the only watchmaker in the world to produce all its exclusive movements and mechanical creations in 18K pink gold. The building perfectly epitomises the brand’s traditional watch making philosophy.
François-Paul Journe, who describes himself as having been a bit boisterous in his student days, left his hometown of Marseilles at age 15. Journe went to Pais to join his uncle, who restored old watches, and to attend the Paris Horology School. He developed his passion for old timepieces as well as the quiet and detailed artistry it involves there in the workshop and under the tutelage of this uncle, a man well versed in the art of age-old watch making techniques.
Fascinated by the 18th Century, the “Golden Age of Watch Making”, once Journe completed his training he started creating his first tourbillon mechanism at age 20, which he finished 5 years later. This piece, which he manufactured single-handedly, proved to be a true rite of passage and gave Journe a sort of legitimacy as a master watch maker, marking the beginning of his career and calling.
Journe’s reputation soon earned him respect from both collectors and the luxury market’s most important figures, who he invited to his own workshop where he repaired old timepieces as well as manufacturing unique complications and pieces. His successful creations were rewarded with the most prestigious watch making prizes, which instigated his move to Switzerland in order to pursue his work under the best possible conditions.
Journe’s desire to offer his growing clientele exclusive, quality watches pushed him to found his own brand. F.P. Journe’s “Invenit et Fecit” began by manufacturing a series of 20 watches on commission.
The company currently produces approximately 900 exclusive watches annually. The brand is now present on the European, American, Asian and Middle Eastern markets.
Each watch is manufactured by a single watchmaker, which guarantees the piece’s quality and excellence. Although François-Paul Journe may well be an efficient businessman who was successful in carving out a pla-ce for himself on an extremely competitive market, he still spends most of his time in the workshop inventing new movements, new ways of reconciling innovation with respect for tradition.
Although every piece is manufactured based on François Paul Journe’s own designs, his watchmakers are all accomplished artisans. They have the good fortune to express their talent working on new, exclusive and technically innovative calibrated movements.
F.P. Journe’s collection notably includes the Tourbillon Souverain (Aiguille d’Or 2004) and the automatic calibre Octa models as well as the Grande Sonnerie - a real jewel of a timepiece – the manufacture of which involved processing no less than 10 separate patents.
François-Paul Journe avoids the commercial environment at watch fairs as much as possible in order to maintain the exclusivity of his creations and he doesn’t foresee substantially increasing his production volume. As Mr. Journe puts it, “I don’t really look at what other manufacturers produce. What I’m interested in is continually pursuing my passion for the art of watch making.”
