Cartier

In 1847, the founder Louis Francois Cartier took over the jewelry workshop in No. 29 Rue Montorgueil in Paris from his father Adolphe Picard, the master of apprentice. This was how the famous brand Cartier came. In 1853, the jewelry workshop moved to Rue Neuvedes Petits Champs 5 when France was under the reign of Napoleon III. Ceremonies and balls were the common social activities in Paris and the prosperity of the country contributed greatly to Cartier’s business and its growth. Since Cartier captured Napoleon III’s cousin Mathilde Princess’s attention, Cartier expanded its business very fast and throve. The Royal Family and the nobles were all fascinated.

In 1888, Cartier tried to put a lady mechanical watch inside the golden bracelet inlayed with diamonds. In 1898, Alfred and his elder son Louis ran the business together and changed the company name to Alfred Cartier & Fils. It moved to Rue de la Paix 13 in Paris in 1899. Afterwards, the three brothers Louis, Pierre and Jacques took over the family business. They traveled all around the world to expand the business from India to Russia, from Persian Gulf to American countries. The branches were then set up in London and New York in 1902 and 1909 respectively and this established a strong base for Cartier.

It did not take long for Cartier to capture the attention of European royal families. In 1902, the King Edward VII-would-be Prince Wales once praised Cartier as “The Jeweler of Kings” and “King of Jeweler”.  

Cartier named its watch as Carier Santos for the aviation pioneer Albert Santos-Dumont (1873-1932), which made the brand Cartier become a smash hit in 1904. Such a watch was tailor-made for Santos to read the time during the flights and this was how the first aviation watch ever came.

Born in Brazil, Santos-Dumont delved into developing balloons with power. He was a plane developer as well as a famous aviator at that time. Until now, many Europeans still think Alberto Santos-Dumont, instead of the Wright Brothers in America, was the father of aviation. Santos-Dumont was still respected as the father of aviation in Brazil until now. That was why Cartier watches have always been the apple of upper class’s eye. 

Cartier was granted with Royal Warrants of Cartier by King Edward VII in 1904. After that, Cartier received the warrants from Spain, Portugal, Russia, Siam, Greece, Serbia, Belgium, Romania, Egypt, Albania, Duke of Orleans and Monaco. Louis Cartier was a very creative genius. Not only did he have a good taste, but he also got incredible ideas for business. He was so obsessed with luxurious accessories and timepieces. He innovated the technology for precision. The famous masterpiece Portico Mystery Clock gained the patent. Louis Cartier completely showed his talents of being a jeweler in these two aspects. 

Some of the watches designed by Louis Cartier can still be found nowadays. For example, the well-known Tank series is the rectangular watches inspired in 1917 by the US new tank. Fully utilizing his experience in jewelry design, Louis Cartier put the different craftsmanship, for example, gemstone cutting, porcelain enamels, pattern carvings, three-dimensional relief, precious stone setting and the mother-of-pearl inlay, into the timepiece designs.  All these made the Cartier timepieces be the collectables and worth the appreciation. Louis Cartier carried on the business and taught his marvelous watch-making craftsmanship to his son Alfred (1841-1925).

Since 20th century, Louis Cartier blended the inspirations and the styles from Egypt, Persian, Far East and the Russian Balletsrusses with geometric patterns and abstract designs. In 1906, the Cartiers used some rich colours and some new materials such as onyx and corals in the designs to form a new art style. Such a style was displayed in the international accessories and craftsmanship exhibition held in Paris in 1925 and it was called Art Deco. It was so well-known all over the world and led the contemporary art and trend. Under the management by Louis Cartier, the business has been thriving. He innovated the style of jewelry design. This contributed greatly to the development of jewelry and wrist watch industry as well as setting a new good market base for expensive products. With the efforts of the three brothers, high jewelry, timepieces and accessories were the main artistic aspects guided by the Cartiers.

In the 21st century, Cartier is at the top among all luxurious jewelry watches in the world. Cartier represents classics, new designs and extraordinary craftsmanship and is the pioneer of jewelry and timepieces. Since 100 years ago, Cartier has captivated the royal families, the nobles and the superstars all over the globe with its elegance. It materializes the dreams of fashion people and is the legend so well known all over the globe. Cartier expands the business to five continents with over 220 shops and special sales network. With the expertise and experience, Cartier marks the importance in every significant moment. Cartier’s 150-year legend continues and this marks its success by displaying its unique charm in grace.

**no guarantee about story is completely accurate and existed difference**