Blancpain
- Founded
- 1735
- Based in
- Le Brassus, Switzerland
- In our catalog
- 5 watches from $11,800 to $20,000
Blancpain has two sides. One is the Fifty Fathoms, the dive watch it built for French navy combat divers in the early 1950s. The other is traditional high watchmaking: moon phases, complete calendars and very fine movements. Both are made in the Vallée de Joux, and both are treated seriously.
History
Jehan-Jacques Blancpain set up as a watchmaker in Villeret in the Jura in 1735, which is why Blancpain calls itself the oldest watch brand in the world. The family ran the business for generations. In the twentieth century it passed to other owners, and in 1953 it produced the Fifty Fathoms after French naval officers Robert Maloubier and Claude Riffaud asked for a reliable dive watch. Its rotating bezel and readable dial helped define what a dive watch should be.
The quartz crisis nearly finished the brand. In 1983 Jean-Claude Biver and Jacques Piguet bought the name and relaunched it with a clear message: Blancpain would only make mechanical watches. They built a reputation on moon phases and other traditional complications. In 1992 Blancpain joined what became the Swatch Group, and it is now based in Le Brassus.
Signature models
- Fifty Fathoms Automatique: The modern flagship diver, with a sapphire bezel, a three-day power reserve and a 45 mm case.
- Fifty Fathoms 42: A smaller version of the classic diver that suits more wrists.
- Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe: A cleaner, more everyday take with a ceramic bezel and a sunburst dial.
- Villeret Quantième Complet: A complete calendar with a moon phase, often with Blancpain's "smiling" moon face.
- Air Command: A reissue of a 1950s flyback chronograph made for the US Air Force.
What it's known for
The Fifty Fathoms is often named next to the Rolex Submariner as one of the originals of the genre, and Blancpain treats it as its icon. The 2023 collaboration with Swatch, the Scuba Fifty Fathoms, introduced the design to a huge new audience. On the classical side, Blancpain movements are thin and finely finished, and the brand still offers complications other makers have dropped.
Price and positioning
Blancpain sits above Omega and alongside Breguet in the Swatch Group's prestige tier. Most Fifty Fathoms models cost $11,000 to $20,000, with complications far above that. Blancpain watches tend to lose more value on the secondary market than Rolex or Patek, which can make pre-owned pieces good value.
Blancpain watches in our library
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe ($11,800 to $12,800)
- Blancpain Villeret Quantième Complet ($15,500 to $16,500)
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms 42 ($16,000 to $17,000)
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatique ($16,500 to $17,500)
- Blancpain Air Command ($19,000 to $20,000)