François-Paul Journe used to design for others. He launches his own brand

To finance his company, the watchmaker set up a club whose members subscribed for the first 20 tourbillon chronometers. Visit to his Geneva workshops. Archives, published on 03 April 1999. Isabelle Cerboneschi

A new watch brand will be present at the World Watch Show in Basel this month: F.P. Journe watches, named after their designer François-Paul Journe. The 42-year-old is no stranger to the trade: like the other members of the Académie des horlogers créateurs indépendants (AHCI), of which he has been a member since 1986, he works behind the scenes for prestigious brands such as Cartier, Chaumet, Breguet, Piaget, Ulysse Nardin and Asprey. One day, he had to step into the spotlight.

The houses that call on his services agree on one point: François-Paul Journe is a brilliant watchmaker. At the age of 14, he entered the watchmaking school in Marseille and then, two years later, the one in Paris, where he obtained his diploma. During his studies, he worked in the workshop of his uncle Michel Journe, a specialist in the restoration of antique watches and clocks. While in charge of the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris, he also had the opportunity to observe a Breguet double regulator clock that belonged to Louis XVIII, from which he still draws inspiration today. He created his first tourbillon watch in 1982 at the age of 25. In 1985, he set up his own business and began working for some of the biggest brands. He prefers not to recall the THA episode, the company he set up in 1989 in Sainte-Croix, which he then closed.

When we meet him in his Geneva workshop, the first thing he does is unveil his latest movements. He is reluctant to talk about himself: the important thing is his creations. And this year, in Basel, he will be launching two magnificent mechanisms. The first: ‘a tourbillon chronometer with an equal winding mechanism’. An auxiliary spring, which resets every second, powers the tourbillon. The second is ‘a resonance chronometer with double movement’. These two mechanical movements, whose two balances work in opposite directions, are set to the same frequency. They enter into resonance and absorb each other’s energy as they balance. ‘When worn, it loses less than a second a week’, says the watchmaker proudly.

You can recognise François-Paul Journe watches at a glance: the case with a rose gold dial and small screwed steel dials is very distinctive. It has a traditional yet modern feel. Its name ‘F.P. Journe’ is engraved on the dial alongside this motto ‘Invenit et fecit’ (I discovered and I made). ‘Watchmakers in the 18th century used to engrave this on their watches,’ he explains. ‘Putting this little phrase on our dials tells our customers: ‘We invented and made this calibre especially for this watch’,’ explains François-Paul Journe.

In his workshop, where around ten people work, you can see movements destined for other brands. You can make out a Piaget watch and a dial with typical Cartier numerals; pieces that will certainly be presented at the Salon international de la haute horlogerie, which opens on 22 April. But François-Paul Journe refrains from commenting: he knows how much the watchmakers he works for like to cultivate secrecy. At the computer, a movement is being developed: a modular base that can become a chronograph, a calendar, etc., as required. ‘When you’re a small company, you have no choice: you have to rationalise production’, stresses the watchmaker. All the prototypes are made here, in his workshops, as are the assembly and finishing. The rest is subcontracted.

When asked about the saturation of the collector’s watch market, François-Paul Journe retorts: ‘The market is full of tourbillons, but almost all of them come from Lemania. It’s normal for there to be a lack of sales. We need to encourage collectors to buy: they are ready to acquire original pieces. And there are no other tourbillons with a remontoir like mine,’ he says. To launch his new brand, François-Paul Journe found a special way of financing it: he created Les Amis de François-Paul Journe. ‘Each of the 20 members bought his tourbillon by subscription last year. They paid the sum of 40,000 francs. In exchange, they have the inalienable right to acquire any new movement by F.P. Journe from No. 1 to No. 20 at a preferential price and with priority.’ And for the future, he has already found a point of sale in Belgium, France and the United States. ‘Italy, Switzerland and Austria are under discussion.

François-Paul Journe has set himself a challenge for the future: ‘To go beyond the precision of quartz with a mechanical watch. A watch that would tell the exact time’, a myth for every passionate watchmaker.