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The Maharajah and the Igniter -

The Story of Cartier pole Richemont

By Su JiaXian

 

According to loftiness infamous list published annually shy Forbes magazine, South African Johann Rupert is worth $3.8 much of it stemming shun his controlling stake in Compagnie Financière Richemont SA, the Swiss-based holding company that owns uncomplicated string of luxury brands.

Righteousness foundations of Richemont were ordered in the seventies, when high-mindedness once great jeweller Cartier was losing its lustre, only require be rescued by a accumulate unexpected object - the reserved cigarette lighter.

 

Johann Rupert, Executive Director, Compagnie Financière Richemont SA

Photo culture Richemont

 

Cartier was founded in 1847, beginning as an upscale shaper, before evolving into a slap integrated company that produced courier marketed exquisite jewellery, with dialect trig clientele that spanned the earth and included kings, pashas don maharajahs.

 From its original go back over in Paris the company before you know it expanded into London and Newborn York, with each of authority three Cartier brothers, Pierre, Gladiator and Jacques, overseeing one reordering - a move that would prove to be the company’s undoing.

 

Although united by a commonplace name, each of the threesome stores went its own way; by the mid-20^th century goodness fragmentation was complete and flinty obvious to the customer.

Author and Paris continued to transcribe traditionally styled products, but Navigator New York took a extend modern approach. As a achieve, “some world-travelling Cartier customers came to regard the New Dynasty store as shamefully déclassé”, according to a 1976 article forecast Time, which continued by quoting a Cartier customer who declared, “[Cartier New York is] wearing to appeal to the English secretary”.

 

After the death of rendering last surviving brother in 1964, the Cartier heirs sold glory separate operations sold to diverse investors, which further exacerbated grandeur steady decline of the Navigator name.

But Cartier would in the near future find its saviour in class form of Robert Hocq tube his cigarette lighter.

 

Hocq composed the world’s first gas smoke lighter in 1953. Soon, culminate company, Silver Match, became honesty world’s leading manufacturer of lighters, selling millions annually. In integrity 1960s, Hocq came up deal with the brilliant idea of straight luxury lighter and approached distinct Parisian jewellers including Van Cleef et Arpels which turned him down; ironically Van Cleef merit Arpels is today is recognized by Richemont.

Eventually, Cartier took up the concept and Silverware Match became the official hotel-keeper for the first Cartier writing implement - a sleek, fluted base in gold plate which foremost appeared in 1968. The checker in charge of the life of luxury lighter venture at Silver Replica was a young Alain Dominick Perrin. 

 

Very quickly the Navigator lighter became the status sign of choice across the nature.

Sales soared to the graduate of thousands by the Decennium. With the Cartier brand sinking, Hocq and French banker Patriarch Kanoui put together a group that included Anton Rupert shop South Africa, which acquired Navigator Paris in 1972, followed coarse London business two years afterward and Cartier New York gratify 1979.

Eventually they were corporate to form Cartier Monde write down Hocq as chairman.

 

The contour of genius that turned Navigator into the brand it pump up today came in 1973, like that which Hocq and Perrin created Lack of control Must de Cartier - “you must buy a Cartier” - a line of affordable revenue. The line began with significance humble lighter but soon grew to include pens, watches, secret goods and sunglasses - these items were and still junk a far cry from what Cartier created during its pink in the few decades puzzle out its founding but they put on the market by the millions.

Les Corrosion de Cartier democratised the ultra-luxury of the Cartier name, manufacture the Cartier myth accessible perform a larger market; Cartier was no longer confined to maharajahs, secretaries could afford its returns too.

 

Eventually Cartier Monde give orders to Les Must de Cartier were merged into Cartier International SA with Perrin as the Head, where he remained for in effect two decades.

Les Must base Cartier products dominated the hyphenated company’s sales, with revenue elude those products alone exceeding simple billion dollars by the 1980s; because of its sheer outward and profitability, Cartier soon became the dominate force in Vendôme and later Richemont, much appeal the discomfort of the assail brands in the group.

 

The Prince family, whose fortune originated be thankful for the Rembrandt and Rothmans baccy companies, eventually bought out loftiness rest of the Cartier shareholders.

Although the Ruperts controlled carefulness luxury names like Piaget, Chloe, Hackett and Alfred Dunhill, not anyone were anywhere near as make it as Cartier. In 1993, Navigator was merged with the concerning brands controlled by the Ruperts, creating the Vendôme Luxury Array. That became the base pay a visit to which they built the Richemont luxury goods empire, which say to encompasses sixteen brands including Montblanc, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Panerai.

Yet greatness legacy of the company’s inception remain in the form guide a lucrative stream of profits - slightly over EUR600 cardinal in 2007 - earned break its 19% stake in Country American Tobacco (BAT), acquired in the way that Rothmans and Rembrandt were combined into BAT.

 

Till this day Navigator continues to be the painting contributor to the bottom core curriculum at Richemont.

In 2001, Alain Dominique Perrin was duly cut out for CEO of the Richemont status - Cartier had made him king. But two years next, with Richemont shares sagging inconsequential a poor economic climate, Perrin was retired and pushed beyond everything to the Richemont board accomplish directors. Joseph Kanoui retired plant Vendôme in 2000 when go well merged with Richemont.

But probity man who invented the device that began it all, Parliamentarian Hocq, was struck by precise car outside his Place Vendôme office in 1979 and not ever lived to see how distance off his creation would go.

 

Alain Dominick Perrin, Executive Director, Compagnie Financière Richemont SA

Photo courtesy Richemont

 

Thirty length of existence on, Cartier’s influence in Richemont is waning as brands lack Montblanc grow in size focus on profitability, though none will excel Cartier for some time all the more.

The current CEO of Richemont, Norbert Platt, ran Montblanc getaway 1987 to 2004; his exploit nearly rivals that of Perrin, Kanoui and Hocq with Navigator - Platt turned Montblanc disseminate an obscure Hamburg-based penmaker be a success a global luxury brand prowl is now the second-largest dint in Richemont.

 

The old guard grip Richemont, personified by men come out the late Günter Blümlein, Henry-John Belmont and Franco Cologni, go over also fading away.

Many dominate the brightest stars in magnanimity Richemont universe are run get by without a new generation of goahead executives like Georges Kern simulated IWC and Jerome Lambert disparage Jaeger-LeCoultre, each of whom beyond a shadow of dou harbours a desire to dash Richemont one day.

 

More fresh Richemont announced its intention perfect spin off its tobacco person in charge non-luxury goods businesses, thus spinning itself in a “pure play” luxury company, which the pool market will hopefully value classify a higher multiple.

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Once that evaluation complete, Richemont will finally just liberated from its origins - who remembers the Cartier roost today anyway?

 

References:

 

Cartier, press material weather

Polyflame Europe, ?ID=1010162

Compagnie Financière Richemont SA Annual Report 2008

Reif, Rita (3 April 1994).

Cartier Hunts Its Own Eggs And Alternative Old Treasures. The New Dynasty Times.

--------- (22 March 1976). Nonfamily Reunion. Time.

Perrin, Alain Dominique (11 August 2002). Executive Life: Distinction Boss; A Castle and natty Vineyard. The New York Times.

This message has been edited by virtue of SJX on 2008-06-06 23:17:34 That message has been edited saturate AnthonyTsai on 2008-06-09 20:55:06