It was against a backdrop of social and cultural revolution at the turn of the twentieth century that Eugène Blum and his wife Alice Levy, founded Ebel in 1911. The name is an acronym of the first letters of their names - Eugene Blum et Levy. Three years after the company formed it was awarded a gold medal at the Swiss National Exhibition. This drew the attention of the more established brands in Switzerland, and as a result, Ebel's private label business was to become their bread and butter for the next 70 years. They continued to produce Ebel signed pieces on a small scale basis. Alice Levy Blum ran the daily operations of the company, only occasionally involved with the creative aspects of designing the models and collections offered. Her husband handled the selling of the products, becoming a world traveller and company salesman in the tradition of Francois Constantin and Antoine Norbert de Patek. With the award of a Certificate of Excellence in 1929, Ebel's reputation was further enhanced. That year Charles-Eugene Blum joined the family business, and along with watchmaker Marcel Reuche, established a tight system of production control that won over ever increasing orders from the top names in the industry, including Vacheron Constantin.