Bangkok--28 Aug--Maxima Consultants
LONGINES, timeless elegance from Switzerland celebrates 180 years of elegance, traditional and performance with the launching of ‘Longines Saint-Imier Collection’, an exceptional timepiece inspired by the close links with the village that has seen the foundation and development. As the only watchmaking company that was set up and still remains in Saint-Imier, Longines has stayed true to its historical values: tradition, elegance and sport.
The Longines Saint-Imier Collection is fitted with mechanical movements that have sprung from the fertile area that constitutes the watchmaking heritage of its home territory. The new collection is now available at leading department stores. For more details, please contact at Tel 02-610-0251.
Based in the Swiss town of St. Imier since 1832, Longines is celebrating its 180th anniversary in 2012. The famous Swiss watchmaker can boast a technical expertise born of tradition, elegance and performance. With many years of experience as a timekeeper for world championships in sport or as a partner of international sports federations, Longines — famous for the elegance of its timepieces — is a member of the Swatch Group Ltd, the world’s leading manufacturer of horological products. The brand known by its winged hourglass logo now has outlets in over 130 countries.
In 1832 Auguste Agassiz entered the world of horology when he joined a trading office established in St. Imier. He soon rose to become the manager and the company took on the name Agassiz & Co. At this time he was producing timepieces under the “?tablissage” system, whereby watchmakers worked at home and supplied their products to the trading offices. Agassiz built up a network of commercial contacts, which enabled him to sell his watches on other continents, in particular in North America. During the 1850s Agassiz’s nephew Ernest Francillon took over the running of the office. When Francillon took on this responsibility he considered ways of perfecting the manufacturing methods used in watchmaking in the area. He concluded that it would be advantageous to try to bring together the different stages that go towards making a watch under one roof. Francillon’s intention was to set up a factory where he could assemble and finish each watch, introducing a degree of mechanisation. In order to achieve this, he bought two adjoining pieces of land in 1866 on the right-hand bank of the River Suze, which runs through the St. Imier valley. The site was known locally as Les Longines and he adopted this name for the factory he built there in 1867. Ernest Francillon took on Jacques David, a young engineer who was also related to him, to help develop the machines needed for perfecting the manufacture of timepieces. During the 1870s Francillon’s choice of industrial options was proved sound and the factory continually expanded until the first third of the 20th century.
In 1889 Francillon patented a trademark comprising the name Longines and the now famous winged hourglass. Today Longines is the oldest trademark or logo still in use in its original form registered with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). As early as 1867 Longines was using the winged hourglass symbol and the tradename ‘Longines’ as a guarantee of quality in order to combat counterfeit products aimed at taking advantage of the reputation already established by the company.
The technical research carried out at Longines was rewarded by various prizes which gradually gave the company its reputation of winning the most awards in international and world exhibitions up until the 1929 exhibition in Barcelona, by which time Longines had won no fewer than 10 Grand Prix.
Using the expertise it gradually acquired, Longines established a network of advantageous links with the world of sport which enabled it to offer its skilled services to various prestigious disciplines during the 20th century.
Longines bases the signature timeless elegance of its products on an aesthetic heritage which it updates and applies with a skilled balance between refinement and classical design.
Today Longines produces timepieces adapted to the constraints of modern times but still respecting the values which it has always upheld and on which are based the four pillars of its collections: Elegance, Watchmaking Tradition, Sport and Heritage.
The new Longines Saint-Imier Collection is inspired by the foundations of the watchmaking tradition on which the brand, known by its winged hourglass trademark, has been built. Longines was set up in 1832 in what was then a small village nestling in a valley deep in the Swiss Jura mountains: Saint-Imier. Right from the firm’s early days, Longines Watch Co. Francillon Ltd. has played a central role in life in Saint-Imier, which has since become a watchmaking hub. The fate of Longines and the village of Saint-Imier has thus been closely interwoven. This long relationship has now been sealed by a collection of exceptional timepieces all fitted with mechanical movements: The Longines Saint-Imier Collection.
The shape of the case — inspired by a model dating from 1945 — is a common theme throughout the collection. The sleek lines and the distinctive lugs provide these new models with a subtle balance between classical and contemporary design. The Longines Saint-ImierCollection includes watches that show the hours, minutes, seconds and date, and chronographs, plus a prestige model featuring four retrograde functions as well as a day/night display and phases of the moon. All the models in this collection are fitted with mechanical movements whose intricate workings can be admired through the transparent sapphire back cover.
The versions that show the hours, minutes and seconds with a date aperture at 3 o’clock are available in steel, in steel and rose gold or in rose gold. With a choice of four case sizes (26 mm, 30 mm, 38.50 mm and 41 mm), including some set with diamonds all our customers will find a version that fits snugly on their wrist. The choice of dials includes black, silvered or white mother-of-pearl with diamonds index and, thanks to the Super-LumiNova coating on the hands, reading the time is never a problem. The watches in this collection are fitted on a black or brown alligator strap, or a steel or steel and rose gold bracelet, with a folding safety clasp, to match the dial.
The chronographs are fitted with an L688.2 column-wheel movement specially developed and produced by ETA exclusively for Longines. The case is made of steel, steel and rose gold or, for certain models, rose gold alone, and is available in two diameter sizes: 39 mm and 41 mm. The silvered or black dial shows the hours and minutes and has a small second at 9 o’clock and a date aperture as well as the chronograph functions: a centre sweep seconds, a 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock and a 12-hour counter at 6 o’clock. These chronographs are fitted on a black or brown alligator strap or on a steel or steel and rose gold bracelet, all having a folding safety clasp.
Finally, a prestige model embodies the quintessence of Longines’ watchmaking know-how. This timepiece, with a diameter of 44 mm, houses calibre L707, specially developed and produced by ETA exclusively for Longines. There is a choice of a black or silvered dial featuring 12 Arabic numerals and showing four retrograde functions (day of the week at 12 o’clock, date on the right-hand side of the dial, second time-zone with a 24-hour scale on the left-hand side of the dial and a small seconds at 6 o’clock) as well as day/night and the phases of the moon. These exclusive models are mounted on a black or brown alligator strap, or a steel bracelet to match the rest of the design, all with a folding safety clasp.
The new Longines Saint-Imier Collection is now available at leading department stores.
Auguste Agassiz and Ernest Francillon, the founders of LONGINES
The Longines Saint-Imier Collectionmodel L2.263.5.87.7 Retail price is 137,300.- Baht
The Longines Saint-Imier Collection model L2.563.4.59.6 Retail price is 71,400.- Baht