The Academy for Haute Horlogerie Experts

From 1978 to 2012, Ugo Pancani used to spend his days in the classrooms of the Istituto Statale di Istruzione Superiore Leonardo da Vinci in Florence, where he introduced many young students to the art of haute horlogerie. In those decades, out there, this world changed a lot. In the way of understanding the same "objects" and, consequently, of giving them value. In 2012 he was called by the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie in Geneva, which led him to relate to training in a still different way. "The main purpose of the Foundation, supported by 41 brands including legendary names in the history of timepieces, is the promotion of haute horlogerie worldwide, promoting knowledge even to non-professionals. At the moment, the Academy boasts 21 teachers, and a program of meetings and courses mainly focusing on three targets: competence, disclosure and evaluation. And the latter is perhaps the most delicate phase for a professional or aspiring professional, since it allows them to make a judgment on the authenticity of a piece and consequently leads to its listing. For this reason, we have launched three different certification steps, for those who want to approach this profession with the proper preparation. The counterfeit market is a frightening reality nowadays: you must be really prepared and competent in order not to run into mistakes, and our courses offer the right tools for this purpose. Recent vintage auctions have shown what important economic implications this sector may have, but this has also made it increasingly attractive for those who want to do illegal business. If until a few years ago fakes were blatantly fake, now they are produced with such sophistications that make them much less "fake". A bit of insight into ​​this phenomenon is given by the figures on anti-counterfeiting interventions carried out in just one year by Swiss customs: 1094 for a value of seized goods equal to 2.7 million Swiss francs ".