Betty Fiechter

Betty Fiechter
A bust of Fiechter in her hometown of Villeret, Switzerland
Born	Berthe-Marie Fiechter (1896-04-29)April 29, 1896 Villeret, Switzerland
Died	September 14, 1971(1971-09-14) (aged 75) Bienne, Switzerland
Occupation	Businesswoman
Years active	1912-1971
Employer	Blancpain

Betty Fiechter, born Berthe-Marie Fiechter (April 29, 1896 – September 14, 1971) was a Swiss businesswoman. She was known for her tenure as director of luxury watch manufacturer Blancpain.[1][2]

Life

Early life and career beginnings

Fietcher was born to Jacob and Mary Fietcher in Villeret, Switzerland on April 29, 1896.[1] Her father owned a watch movement company, which sparked Fietcher's interest in watches.[1] Fiechter first joined Blancpain as an apprentice in 1912 as part of her trade school curriculum.[1][3] Two years later, Blancpain purchased her father's company and Fiechter joined full-time.[3] The company had been owned by the same family since its founding in 1735 and Fiechter grew close to the owner, Frédéric-Emile Blancpain.[1]

During World War I, Fiechter volunteered as a nurse in Saint-Imier, where she met Andre Léal.[3] Léal would go on to work at Blancpain as a salesman.[1][3] She continued to work at Blancpain during this time and became assistant to the company's owner in 1915, who personally trained her to lead the company's workshops.[3]

Leadership of Blancpain

After Blancpain's death in 1932, Fiechter became the company's director and co-owner alongside André Léal.[1] Without a member of the Blancpain family involved in the company, the pair renamed the company Rayville S.A.[4] After Léal died in 1939, Fiechter became the company's sole owner.[1] As director, she emphasized creating women's watches and was known for having a stern-but-fair attitude towards her employees.[1][3][5] Under her leadership, the company created multiple new watches that had wide appeal, including the Fifty Fathoms diving watch.[3]

In the 1960s, Fiechter led a merger between Blancpain and several other manufacturers into a single company called the Société Suisse pour l'Industrie Horlogère.[3] The merger allowed each manufacturer to retain a clear identity while benefiting from the financial support of the other manufacturers.[3] Fiechter's impact on the Swiss watchmaking industry was widespread, with her nephew Jean-Jacques joking in 1984 that "the downfall of the Swiss watchmaking industry coincided with an all-male recruitment drive."[6]

Personal life and death

Fiechter did not marry but had a partner who was killed in an accident in the early stages of her time as director.[3] She was close to her nieces and nephews, eventually partnering with her nephew Jean-Jacques to run the company when she became ill.[3] Fiechter died in Bienne, Switzerland on September 14, 1971.[1][7][8] A marble bust of Fiechter, commissioned by two of her nephews, was erected in her hometown of Villeret in 1996.[9] A second monument was created in 2021 by Swiss artist Helena von Beust and consists of a life-size statue of Fiechter and an accompanying biographical video.[10] The monument stands in Villeret's town square.[5]

References

1. Felder, Rachel (2024-03-03). "Overlooked No More: Betty Fiechter, Pioneer in the World of Watches". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
2. "How Betty Fiechter rose to become the first woman CEO and owner Blancpain". Lifestyle Asia Singapore. 2019-12-07. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
3. Roldan, Beatriz (2022-08-16). "Betty Fiechter, la primera mujer en la cumbre de la relojería suiza" [Betty Fiechter, the first woman at the top of Swiss watchmaking]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2022-08-16. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
4. Pereztroika, Jose (2024-08-30). "A Bunch of Baloney? – The Fabricated History of the Modern Blancpain Brand". Perezcope. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
5. "Des femmes d'exception : Betty Fiechter (4/5)" [Exceptional women: Betty Fiechter (4/5)]. Radio Jura bernois (in French). 2022-07-25. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
6. Diezi, Cecile (1984-03-30). "La passion du passé, les méthodes de l'avenir" [The passion of the past, the methods of the future]. L'impartial (in French). p. 27. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
7. "Avis Mortuaire" [Mortuary Notice]. Journal du Jura (in French). 1971-09-15. p. 17. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
8. Kingston, Jeffrey S. (September 2021). "A Woman of Consequence". Lettres du Brassus. No. 21. Retrieved 2024-10-31.
9. "Hommage à Betty Fiechter" [Tribute to Betty Fiechter]. L'impartial (in French). 1996-05-11. p. 29. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
10. "Cinq statues de pionnières dévoilées" [Five pioneer statues unveiled]. ArcInfo (in French). 2021-12-17. p. 10. Retrieved 2024-10-30.