A Grand Day Out - Visiting Vulcain HQ in Le Locle Part 3

Any story about visiting Vulcain HQ would not be complete without a tour of what may be a pretty phenomenal museum in the not-too-distant future. 

Although there are administrative offices on the second (first) floor, and an atelier on the third (second) floor, there is a magnificent, sun soaked area on the first (ground) floor that will make an amazing, albeit small museum should Vulcain ever decide to create one -

Lots of light, lots of beautiful vitrines, and luckily, lots of treasures to display -

This is the same (not exact, but the same) Vulcain Cricket that was presented to President Barack Obama upon his election, and curious to relate? That was the very first Vulcain Cricket ever given as a gift to a United States President.

But beyond that, lots of fun pieces from the archives -

But the archives run far deeper than the past 50 years. The thing that gets lost in all of the (justifiable) buzz about the Cricket, is that Vulcain was a pretty significant producer even before back in the day -

And this includes some pretty esoteric pieces -

But a visit to the Vulcain HQ will also reveal quite a bit of history - some downright historical, and some relatively recent.

While it is certainly true that watch brands are fond of professional footballers (soccer players) and vice-versa, it is worth noting that back before it was a fashionable (or today, overdone) notion to partner with players or teams, Vulcain was one of the first to dip their toes in the partnership waters -

With Real Madrid (above) and Fiorentina 

(below) -

And continued on into more recent times partnering with a Grinnell College graduate from Chicago who opted to pursue music rather than electrical engineering.  

His name was Herbert.  

While we may always wonder what he might have contributed in terms of inventions and developments to improve our daily lives, I personally feel that the world is a much better place thanks to Head Hunters and Future Shock, and Herbie Hancock made the right career choice -

And a small bit of Henki lore - the idea for the Herbie Hancock partnership was born in a seafood restaurant in Beverly Hills, California back in 2011 with the (then) new distributor of Vulcain. I was having dinner with the new North American distributor Mark Wasserman who had just taken over Vulcain having formerly distributed Oris. Oris as you may know had done a slew of jazz musician partnerships, including one of Herbie Hancock's former bandleaders, the son of an East St. Louis dentist and Julliard drop-out, Miles Davis.

In terms of "Presidential" brand ambassadors, it is important to once again try to clarify some misinformation that has continued to swirl around the Vulcain Cricket and its relationship to the Commander in Chief. The Vulcain Cricket gifted to Barack Obama in 2010 was THE FIRST Vulcain Cricket gifted to a US President (sitting or former). 

In fact, it might surprise you to know that before Vulcain presented a Cricket (the Watch of the Presidents) to a US President, Vulcain actually presented a Cricket to the leader of the Soviet Union!  But that is a story that we will be picking up in the next installment of The Greatest Marketing Campaign That Never Was (a marketing campaign).  

Like all good things, my visit had to come to an end, but my nearly 24 year quest to compile a clear and accurate record of the Vulcain Cricket and its relationship with the Presidents of the United States continues. 

It has taken me from Helsinki Finland, to San Francisco, Basel Switzerland, on to Beverly Hills, Las Vegas, La Chaux-de-Fonds and finally to Le Locle.  But the quest continues, so please stay tuned!

And nearly 24 years later, our story will take us to Finland.

And I will introduce you to a family that with the help of the son of the inventor of the Vulcain Cricket reinvigorated the the legend of the Watch of the Presidents.

Until then - Tempus Fugit!

Election Day, Vulcain, and Finally the Rest of the Story!

There is a certain shabby nobility in laboring away in anonymity, not least of which is that you get to write about just what you like ; )

Now one of my passions has been, and remains even now, the Vulcain Cricket.  But my passion is rooted more firmly in the "between time" between quartz crisis and the later "tarting up" of the brand by new owners.  That time being when the Paajanen family had the Cricket produced under license and presented them as gifts to US Presidents.

Now one very important factoid that the Big H, and then every other outlet that keeps referencing them (like GQ),  keeps getting slightly wrong is that the actual Vulcain that was actually given to Joe Biden, who actually wears it was actually not given to him by Vulcain, but rather by the Paajanen family. 

Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

But today is, a wonderful day for me - because FINALLY someone else out there has reported the true story of the Paajanen family, and the revival of the tradition of giving a Vulcain Cricket to the President (and sometimes Vice President) of the United States -

The Allure of The President’s Watch

THANK YOU Penelope Colston and the New York Times!!!

So I have already completed my civic duty and cast my ballot.  I dressed up my "Paajanen Cricket" with a beautiful new blue ostrich foot strap, and I am going to savor today as the day that hopefully, the rest of the world will finally learn about the true Vulcain ambassadors, and particularly Keijo Paajanen.

Sadly, I finally confirmed that Keijo did, indeed, pass away last year. Curious to relate, about three years ago I pitched the idea of creating a new watch called the Paajanen Friendship 1.  Like so many ideas, it never happened, but I like to think that maybe it could still could ; )

The last US President to receive a Cricket from the Paajanens was Donald Trump who received it in 2018, and sadly, that is the end of this part of the story.

Wishing you well Keijo, and wishing you were still here -

A Vulcain Cricket President's Day

Okay, this has run before in various iterations, but as it is President's Day here in the "Land of the Free" I thought I'd re-heat this one a bit for you.

Now while it is true that president's have had various watches of note, it is, in fact, the Vulcain Cricket that has gotten the most "mileage" in terms of the number of US President's who have received and worn them.  This tradition started back before many of you readers were born.  President Johnson was presented one, and got so "wound - up" that he dispatched staffers to scour watch stores for Vulcan Cricket watches so that he could present them as gifts.

Vulcain, like so many other watch brands, bet big on The River card back in the late sixties/early seventies and got, well, "Rivered".  Per Wikipedia (as this is a lot cleaner than the Urban Dictionary):

river

The river or river card is the final card dealt in a poker hand, to be followed by a final round of betting and, if necessary, a showdown. In Texas hold 'em and Omaha hold'em, the river is the fifth and last card to be dealt to the community card board, after the flop and turn. A player losing the pot due only to the river card is said to have been rivered.

But time heals all wounds and Vulcain was brought back to life not by a fund manager or wealthy hedge fund in the UAE.  No, it was a small family jewelry store in Helsinki Finland.  They worked with Revue Thommen to create a new version of the Vulcan Cricket -

This one is mine ; )

So this President's day, let's take a look back -

Keijo Paajanen and his family brought Vulcan back and the tradition of presenting a Vulcan Cricket to US Presidents and others was re-born.  Here's a few excerpts from the Q & A with Mr. Paajanen -

How is it that you and your family got involved with the Vulcain Cricket in the first place?

Keijo Paajanen - It was through a meeting we had with Mr. Michel Ditisheim in Switzerland.  He was the Director for MSR (Montres Suisse Reunion) and a shareholder for Revue Thommen S.A.   It was actually his father Robert Ditisheim who originally created the Cricket!


JH - Helsinki, Finland is a long way from the US.  What was it that motivated your family to start presenting the Vulcain Cricket to US Presidents in the first place?

KP - As many watch historians and fans know, there was in the past a tradition of presenting a Vulcain Cricket to US Presidents.  We wanted the great story to continue and also because our family has always wanted to have good relations with the USA. My father and his family escaped from advancing Russians (Soviets) in 1939 (JH notes - this is the period of the Winter War).

JH - Who have you presented Vulcain Crickets to?

KP - To Ronald Reagan, George Bush (and same time Gorbachev), Gerald Ford (I personally met), Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter (I met also personally) and finally last year to Vice President Biden.

Well, time has since moved on, the Paajanen's are no longer in the jewelry business, but Keijo is kind enough to stay in touch and share stories about what were for me the glory days of Vulcain.

Vulcain and the Presidents in 3 Parts

Well, as they say, the third time is the charm!

As it is Presidential season here in the US, I thought I'd share some Vulcain watch history.

So let's clear some facts:

Part 1 - The Vulcain was for sometime given as a gift to US Presidents and Vice Presidents.  For example, Richard Nixon got his Vulcain Cricket while he was Vice President in 1955. He received his Cricket from the National Association of Watch and Clock Makers.  He was in very good company.  
It has been worn by Presidents Dwight Eisenhower, Harry S. Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson.  


PART 2 -  is for me, where it gets really interesting.  PART 2 is when Vulcain is dormant, a victim of the Quartz Crisis.  The company - at least its name - is held by the people behind Revue Thomen, and most particularly it was Michel Ditisheim and the Paajanen of Helsinki, Finland who really kept the Vulcain Cricket alive.  The Paajanen's hold a special place in their heart for America - and to that end they arranged to produce a limited number of Vulcain Crickets to present to US Presidents and Vice Presidents when/if they should ever visit Finland.  Now keep in mind, they are selling very few Vulcain Crickets - they do this out of a sense of connection to the US - their family had fled the advancing Soviet army and they have always viewed the US as their friends.  And by the way - it is really nice for the US to have friends like the Paajanens!

Gerald Forld, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan among others.  And most recently Vice President Biden have all received a Vulcain Cricket from the Paajanens.

Keijo Paajanen with Gerald Ford

Keijo Paajanen with Jimmy Carter

A thank you letter from Ronald Reagan

Part 3 - This is the "now time".  I believe that President Obama received a Vulcain from the new ownership of Vulcain, and my hope is that this tradition continues.  But as we often say in the world of foreign affairs - it is about winning "hearts and minds".  The Paajanens have won my heart and mind.  This is a family motivated by nothing but good will.  I truly wish there were more people like them.