Louis-François Cartier (1819—1904) was a French jeweler and watchmaker. He started as an apprentice and eventually became a master by purchasing a small Parisian boutique from his mentor, Adolphe Picard, in 1847. Since then, Cartier has grown into a multinational luxury products business with over 250 boutiques worldwide.
Louis-François Cartier was the father of Alfred Cartier (1841-1925) and the grandfather of Louis Joseph Cartier (1875-1942), Pierre-Camille Cartier (1878-1964), and Jacques-Théodule Cartier (1884-1941).
The name Cartier has long been associated with fine jewelry, particularly created for royal families. This led to the phrase “Cartier is the jeweler of kings and the king of jewelers” gaining popularity. Over time, Cartier started creating elegant watches, gold-trimmed pieces, enamelwork, precious stones, powder boxes, travel bags, and perfume bottles for famous artists.
After opening his first boutique, Cartier’s work on new jewelry creations became more intense. He began experimenting and expanded into creating luxury home decor pieces, in addition to jewelry. Until the late 19th century, Cartier primarily made unique jewelry pieces for the wealthiest individuals. However, in 1874, his son Alfred Cartier joined the business and introduced interesting art pieces for less wealthy buyers. Alfred successfully revitalized the company’s reputation in Europe, which had declined during the Franco-Prussian war when expensive products were not in demand.
Alfred also revived the tradition of creating Cartier table clocks towards the end of the 19th century. His table clocks were highly regarded for their perfection and uniqueness. The first table clocks were commissioned by royal families from Eastern countries, Greece, and England.
In 1904, a Brazilian aviation pioneer named Alberto Santos-Dumont asked Louis-François Cartier for a hands-free way to check the time during flights. In response, Cartier’s grandson created the famous wristwatch, later named after Alberto Santos-Dumont.
In 1919, Cartier introduced the “Tank” wristwatch, which was inspired by the design of a military tank. Louis Cartier observed a Renault FT-17 tank during World War I, and this became the inspiration for the iconic Tank watch. The Tank watch gained popularity among A-list celebrities, including Jacqueline Kennedy and Michelle Obama.
In 1902, Jacques, one of Alfred Cartier’s sons, took over the management of the Cartier business. His brothers Pierre and Louis were involved in other areas of the company. They established branches in New York, Moscow, and the East.
In 1904, Cartier displayed his luxury jewelry pieces in Russia and caught the attention of Emperor Nicholas II. The Emperor was impressed by the quality and beauty of Cartier’s work. Afterward, Cartier created a precious Easter egg for the Russian Tsar. Unfortunately, the egg was lost following Nicholas II’s death and was only rediscovered many years later in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Until the early 1960s, Cartier had separate branches in Paris, London, and New York. The New York branch was sold in 1962, followed by the Paris branch in 1965. In 1979, the company underwent a reorganization and began operating as a global entity. Today, there are over 2000 Cartier boutiques located in New York, San Francisco, Paris, London, and Hong Kong.
