Gigantic

From Grail Watch Wiki
Revision as of 16:06, 24 February 2023 by Sfoskett (talk | contribs)
(diff) ← Older revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Gigantic was a watch brand founded in 1927 in Geneva and active through 1990.

Gigantic SA was registered on October 18, 1927 on Rue de Lausanne 78 in Geneva. It was founded by Paul Cattin. The Gigantic name was previously used by Roger Henry, though he ceded it free of charge to Cattin.

On November 29, 1929, Gigantic was taken over by Georges Henry, an active businessman who founded Nanda and Ilosa and managed Pretto through its litigation with Automatic EMSA over the first mass-produced automatic watch by Glycine. Henry managed all of his companies as one, co-locating Gigantic and Ilosa before relocating the former to Rue Butini 20 and closing the latter by 1934.

In 1938, Gigantic was relocated to Rue du Stand 30, a prominent address in Geneva shared with notable firms like Le Fils de L.-U. Chopard & Co. and Manufacture des Montres Niton. Other notable neighbors in the following decade included Baume & Mercier, Henri Hofer, and Dreffa.

Gigantic became one of the so-called dissident watchmakers resisting the control of ASUAG and Ebauches SA in the 1930s. A 1941 grant from the Swiss federal government resolved the issue, however, with Gigantic giving up production of ebauches and becoming an etablisseur, constructing watches using movements from compliant FH members.

Gigantic was re-established on October 11, 1944 with new funding and grew after World War II. The brand was known for anti-shock and anti-magnetic models, using the slogan "durable et précise." By 1949, Gigantic was manufacturing watches under Georges Henry's old Nanda brand in addition to Gigantic, and he acquired the Autorem brand as well.

Gigantic and Nanda fell out of use in the 1970s and the company faltered. It was judged bankrupt and closed by the courts on May 21, 1990.

External Links