Just a few lies among friends

In the US, lying is very much a sin, if not a crime. In watchmaking, some inveterate liars are listened to and respected. We mock their ‘achievements’, but we admire their sheer gall. After all, what’s a few lies among friends…?

Those people who use the term ‘manufacture’ when they are actually just finishers will most likely be found out. The same goes for those who call themselves designers, when, in actual fact, they’ve been shopping around the independent operators, those who say they’ve invented a new calibre, when it’s the subcontractor who’s the real mastermind, or those who outsource their R&D whilst proclaiming themselves to be kings of the complication. They are working themselves into a tight corner, especially if they take themselves seriously.

A guilty fascination
Having said that, we are all party to the act and this tendency of ours to harbour a secret admiration dates back to the mists of time. It’s almost an inherent part of our human condition. Yes, we’ve all seen it: the shameless schoolboy who has the temerity to stand up to his teacher and tell a blatant falsehood with such conviction, much to the amusement of his fellow classmates. We’ve all smiled at his outrageous claims, his minor ‘economies with the truth’. Are we all so naturally subversive as to accept that lying is a healthy act of rebellion? We have all laughed at the achievements and blagging of those charismatic individuals among us for whom the art of hoodwinking has become second nature, those who end up believing in their own fictitious fabrications. They look you straight in the eye, and you absolve them without so much as a confession. Yet you actually allow yourself to be taken in by such outrageous nonsense that, at the end of the day, you chuckle at your own gullibility, at having been so easily duped. Rarely as verbose as when they have a rapt audience, nutcases of their ilk actually brighten up your day, add a little spice to the existential hum of life.

Although you’ll rarely stay angry with a patent liar for long, even though he’s seen you as a mug, one day you’ll have had enough. Especially if, after taking you for a ride, you see him trying it on again with someone else, once he’s realised he’s pushed the envelope a bit too far with you. Clearly, it’s pathological. People who traffic in the vague and imprecise in this way, mercilessly taking advantage of the plausibility of a situation, are ultimately doing their industry a vast wrong.

Truth is always the best way
The watchmaking industry, like any other self-respecting microcosm, is only too well aware that some of its members are given to overstatement. It lets them carry on, even deriving some amusement from it, because cheekiness in others is a fascinating trait, especially in a context where uniformity prevails and business connections are involved. But should we continue to admire these blaggers ad infinitum? No, because fewer and fewer people are likely to fall into the trap. An army of collectors is rising, with a growing level of knowledge that would put a professional in-store sales team to shame. Thanks to the plethora of knowledge tools available via blogs and forums, there is nothing that can’t be learned in the end.

There are, indeed, places where there is nothing to learn that hasn't already been learned. Salubrious environments, where it is perfectly harmless to pay attention, listen to the discussions going on, benefit from the knowledge and presence of those around you. One just such environment, incidentally, is worth the detour: from 5 to 8 June 2012, the 11th international subcontracting fair, EPHJ-EPMT-SMT°, is being held for the first time in Geneva at Palexpo. Some 650 players, all directly or indirectly involved in watchmaking, are expecting the arrival of around 13,000 trade visitors.

The fair is the biggest trade event in Switzerland. It is a known fact that among the steadily increasing visitors in the last 10 years, there is now a growing number of aficionados, collectors, enlightened amateurs and semi-professionals… Moles, snoopers and curtain-twitchers keen to know what’s going on behind the scenes, are ready to pounce on their idols backstage, on stage, front of house. No secret will be safe in the aisles and alleyways of the trade fair. Liars, cheats and blaggers be warned… you might as well be upfront, you don’t necessarily have to reveal any trade secrets. Go ahead and disclose the talents that have earned you your distinctions, the names of all the people who have done all the hard graft in your place. You may rest assured, the dream associated with your image and products will be preserved intact. Truth, when it must be said, does much to cement relationships of trust.

° EPHJ-EPMT-SMT trade fair, Watchmaking-Jewellery, Microtechnology and Swiss Medical Technologies Professional Environment