Baume Becomes Baume & Mercier
The end of World War I in 1918 brought sweeping changes in industry, the arts, and society in general. Women’s emancipation led them to wear jewelry watches as brooches, long necklaces or on the wrist, a trend made possible by the miniaturization of watch movements.
After proving its use in a military context, the wristwatch gradually took over from the pocket watch as the masculine timepiece of choice. Baume witnessed the emergence of a new generation, and the young William Baume, a great visionary and an accomplished watchmaker, was eager to take advantage of the new opportunities afforded by the ebullient mood of the era. Having by then settled in Geneva, he decided to partner with a colorful figure named Tchereditchenko, who subsequently adopted his French mother’s family name and became known as Paul Mercier. Born in Odessa to a Russian father, Paul Mercier was a passionate and refined individual, a dedicated art-lover who spoke seven languages and was endowed with exceptional business acumen.
Despite their very different yet complementary temperaments, the two men, shared the same vision of contemporary watchmaking, and decided to join forces in 1918 to create Baume & Mercier. William Baume handled technical aspects, while Paul Mercier was in charge of design and the commercial side of the business. Together, they established a full-fledged watch manufacture in Geneva, making top-quality watches as well as movements that were exported to the United States.
In 1919, barely a year after the company was set up, Baume & Mercier movements were awarded the “Poinçon de Genève” or Geneva Hallmark, the highest token of fine craftsmanship in watchmaking. A year and a half later, Baume & Mercier had become the watch brand producing the largest number of movements certified by this prestigious quality label.
On March 21, 1921, the Department of Trade and Industry of the Republic and Canton of Geneva awarded “Messrs Baume and Mercier, watchmakers in Geneva”, a diploma “certifying that their company ranks first in the number of pieces that received a hallmark at the official government office for voluntary testing of Geneva watches in 1920.”
In 1924, Baume & Mercier appeared in the Davoine official watch industry directory, the benchmark register of watchmaking companies, as one of the four Geneva-based manufacturers alongside Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin and Haas Neveux. Focusing firmly on high-quality watchmaking combining technical excellence with a contemporary look, the company enjoyed swift success despite the major crises that hit the Swiss watch industry in the early 1920s and after the 1929 stock market crash.
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