Why not set up a watch brand when you're over 70? For 72-year-old Jean-Claude Biver, it doesn't seem like such a crazy idea.
Age still takes its toll though, and that means there's no time for procrastination. It wasn't long after Jean-Claude Biver made his decision before he announced his plan to the entire world in an interview with Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS), and he's already eying a place to rent for the future office. No fixed date has been set for the launch of JC Biver, nor is there a date to unveil the first watch. All that's known is JC Biver will be "a small brand, family-owned and very exclusive."
The idea had been in the air. There's a reason why journalists were keen to learn whether there was a possibility that Jean-Claude Biver might set up his own company. It came up in nearly every interview he gave since leaving LVMH's Watch Division in 2018, which he'd headed since March 1, 2014. Experts had already been speculating that he wasn't satisfied with an honorary role as President of the LVMH Watch Division without executive powers.
Jean-Claude Biver never completely ruled out the possibility of starting his own brand, but he listed a number of arguments against the idea since announcing his retirement in 2019. They ranged from age to being unable to attract financing to build a strong team.
Biver's bicycle accident in October was a turning point. After three months spent recovering in hospital, it seems Biver has regained the strength of self-belief. His concept has shifted a little. Biver no longer intends to build a team from former colleagues who are already renowned but aims to recruit watchmakers aged 30-35 on average, and he's even considering securing deals with horological schools.
No one has any doubts over whether the company will be a success. Biver has too many wonderful watches to his name for that, who was awarded the French Legion of Honor and the Special Jury Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, paying tribute to his immense contribution to the watch industry.
He saved the watch brand Blancpain when it was on the brink of extinction, which almost sank into oblivion in 1961 before receiving a new lease on life in 1982 when it was bought by Biver and Jacques Piguet. The company was such a success that the founder of the Swatch Group Nicolas G. Hayek decided to acquire it in 1992.
Hublot was another company considered a sinking ship which caught Biver's attention in the early 2000s. The company’s popularity sailed to the crest of a wave with the talented visionary at its helm. It only took a few years before Hublot was acquired by the LVMH Group, where Biver was responsible for its watch brands until 2018. Biver has reignited burnt-out stars, so he certainly has what it takes to make a new one blaze even brighter.