Langendorf/Laco/Lanco

 By Bruce Shawkey

Lanco and Lanco are abbreviations for watches by the the Langendorf Watch Co. (Langendorf Watch Company) founded in 1873 in the city of Langendorf, Switzerland by Johann Viktor Kottmann. No one really knows why Kottmann came up with the name Lanco. I can only surmise that he felt "Lanco" was more catchy. The company was in business for a century, until 1973 and remained an independent company.

At its founding, the company had been employing between 70 and 80 workers, but the number of workers was drastically reduced when the company almost suffered an economic collapse in 1880 – allegedly due to severe problems with alcoholism and absenteeism among employees. Perhaps for those reasons, the factory began organizing housing and training of their workers, and it gained a reputation for being socially responsible. It built schools, a hydrant system and financed the installation of electric lights in Langendorf. The Kottmann family also founded a society for community work that is still active.

Here are some images of Lanco watches over the decades:

The second shows images from various websites:

Lanco factory

Laco also produced Germany's first electric watch as seen in a 1958 issue of Europa Star magazine. It looks similar to a Timex electric, wihich would soon copy the design and sell millions of watches via their eloquent spokesman, John "Takes a licking," Cameron Swayze:

Horological circles and general public greeted with astonishment the "Laco Electric " displayed at the Hanover Fair this year, the first electric watch to be made in the German Federal Republic and which marks a definite step forward in the watchmaking evolution of this country. The German electric watch, which is reasonably priced, works on the principle of an electric motor device, the energy being supplied by a minute battery lasting over a year. Among the advantages of an electric watch is its greater running regularity. The "Laco" model has a centere second, the winding crown has been eliminated and time-setting is effected by means of a small knurled wheel at the back of the case which can also stop the watch.