I was an apprentice at a time that no longer exists. We had to arrive half an hour before the jewellers and leave after them. We had to set up the workshop and of course tidy it up and clean it after the day’s work. I even slept in the workshop for a while. I had just arrived from Italy and had no accommodation. My boss had authorised me to do so. It helped me out for a while. Well, as I said, those were the days that no longer exist. And then when I started, I was young, but I was hired in the Rue de la Paix, I was 18. I was proud. I was unbearable, with old age I admit it, it’s called wisdom I suppose. You see, even my sweetheart agrees. One day, when I had exasperated the first one, I got a memorable beating from Mr. Cartier. It was in the late 30s. In front of about 40 people. To say that it put my mind back in place is an understatement. I was furious and red with shame. But anyway, I gnawed at it during the day. The next day, he came to greet me as if nothing had happened. He died a few years later. He was a great, great man. They don’t make them like that anymore!
E., a jeweller, in principle retired, in principle…
This is Basel!
"You have to realise what the Basel fair looked like in the 1970s and even 1980s. It was crazy. There were people, buyers. And we were selling. We prepared the show religiously, creating new collections and especially presenting one or more exceptional pieces. That's what it took! I remember...