Longines Saint-Imier Date 38.5 (L2.763.8.52.3)

Longines has celebrated the 120th anniversary of the registration of a logo that the famous St. Imier watchmaker still uses today. Protected since 1889 in Switzerland (FOIP), this factory trademark comprising a winged hourglass and the name Longines is the oldest of its kind still active, in its original form, in the international registers kept by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). To mark the 120th anniversary of its logo, the brand has organised a themed exhibition in the Cite du Temps in Geneva, published a study about the symbol and created two exceptional limited series of timepieces numbered from 1 to 120.

During the event held in the Cite du Temps in Geneva, speeches were given by Brigitte Bolli Jost, Brand Registration Responsible at the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property and by Francis Gurry, the Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organisation, at a press conference on the subject of national and international challenges, intellectual property and the need to protect trademarks in a globalised world.
When it registered a factory trademark in 1889 that is still used today, Longines took a decisive step to protect its name and signature, as Walter von Känel, President of Longines, reminded those present during a press conference attended by representatives of the international watchmaking press. Registered in 1893 with the original organisation on which the World Intellectual Property Organisation was based, the 1889 trademark is the oldest of its kind still active in its original form in the registers kept by the United Nations special agency.

Longines has organised an exhibition at the Cite du Temps in Geneva that explains the context in which this trademark was adopted and protected. The exhibits include historical models as well as original documents and follow the development of a logo, its symbolism and the creation of a watchmaking tradition. The exhibition is open to the public every day from Friday 2 October until Sunday 1 November, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The St. Imier watch manufacturer has also published a short study of the history and the challenges involved in creating the Longines brand from the point of view of the registration of a logo dating from 1889 that is still in use today. Finally, Longines has created two limited series of watches, under the designation Longines Heritage Retrograde, each numbered from 1 to 120, as a fitting tribute to a logo that has been protected since 1889.

History

In 1867 Ernest Francillon founded the Longines factory by bringing out-workers employed by his trading office (which had been set up in 1832 by Auguste Agassiz) under one roof and introducing new manufacturing technology. At the same time he adopted the name Longines (from the local name of the site of his new factory) and chose a symbol to represent his company, the winged hourglass. This symbol has been continually used by Longines, albeit in various forms, since the company was founded to identify and characterise its products, and is still in used today.
On 27 May 1889 Ernest Francillon registered a factory mark consisting of a winged hourglass within a double circle which contained the signature EFCo (Ernest Francillon & Compagnie) and the name Longines. This mark was registered with the Swiss authority that dealt with the protection of trademarks at the time, namely the Federal Office for Intellectual Property (FOIP). For Longines the 1889 registration was the start of an important tradition of graphic and symbolic signatures. Since, for the first time, a trademark whose use and protection in its original form was to continue beyond the 21st century was legally recognised. The protection of the trademark was ensured at an international level in 1893 and makes Longines the oldest trademark still valid in its original form in the international registers of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
The registration of this logo was part of the industrialisation of watchmaking in Switzerland in the last third of the 19th century, in which Longines played a leading role. Initially, the trademark chosen by Longines - the winged hourglass - served to authenticate the company's products. But it quickly became a means of fighting against counterfeiters who hoped to take advantage of the excellent reputation built up by the St. Imier watch manufacturer. Subsequently, the factory mark was used in other contexts apart from on the product itself and began to determine the visual identity of the brand. This logo, registered in 1889, has therefore been part and parcel of the development and construction of the Longines brand which, in line with its watchmaking heritage continues to use it to this day.
To highlight the context of adoption and protection of this trademark, Longines has organised an exhibition at the Cite du Temps in Geneva which includes both historical articles and original documents. It reveals the development of the brand, the symbol that embodies it and the creation of a watchmaking tradition. Longines has also published a study that analyses the history and the challenges of creating the Longines brand in relation to the registration of the original logo, still used today, in 1889. Finally, Longines has created two limited series of watches under the name of Longines Heritage Retrograde, each numbered from 1 to 120, as a tribute to a logo which has been protected since 1889.