Patek Philippe watches China's first shop quietly fall

Although ranked first among the top ten watches in the world, Patek Philippe chose a low-key way to start his “Journey to China”, unlike the big fanfare of Cartier and other famous watches entering China.

A few days ago, Patek Philippe's first store in China has quietly landed on the outdoor beach No. 18, which is the third store in the world after Geneva and Paris.

According to Dirk Paulsen, head of Geneva’s head office, the establishment of the Patek Philippe Bund 18 store aims to nurture the Chinese market for Patek Philippe and establish brand positioning and image.

Obviously, China’s potential broad market has become a huge driving force behind the influx of famous watches such as Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin.

An interesting scene, in the Bund on the 18th, the location of the Patek Philippe store is located opposite the same store in which Cadia, which seems to have heralded the competitive relationship between the two sides. However, Dirk Paulsen does not think so.

"Cartier is not our competitor. Our product prices and design are at different levels and we have different customer bases." Dirk Paulsen's words seem to be "big words", but obviously he has enough reasons to say so.

In fact, Patek Philippe was founded in 1839 as the only remaining watchmaker in Switzerland solely owned by the family. Its watchmaking process was not only handcrafted, but it was completed in the original factory in Geneva, and it is the only one of the brands in the world. The mechanical movement was awarded the "Geneva Seal" brand.

Due to the limited production, the current annual output of Patek Philippe is no more than 25,000. The brand's total production for more than 150 years is only about 600,000.

In addition to the limited number of products, Patek Philippe's watchmakers are also "perfect." It is reported that it takes 10 years to train a Patek Philippe watchmaker. A sophisticated Patek Philippe watch requires a skilled watchmaker to make it for two to three years, and a simple watchmaking system will take at least nine months.

Therefore, it is often the case that there are customers who want to purchase Patek Philippe but have to wait for a year or more.

"As long as five years, Patek Philippe you buy will be able to appreciate three times. Therefore, buying Patek Philippe is a better investment than any stock." Although Dirk Paulsen's words appear to be "exaggerated" suspects, but Patek Philippe is indeed because of its The limited policy makes him worth more, and Patek Philippe, the world’s largest auction site, almost always occupies the highest auction price.

Not long ago, Patek Philippe once again refreshed the world auction record of antique watches. A gold watch customized for a U.S. banker in 1933 was sold for an unprecedented amount of 11 million U.S. dollars.

Not only that, but Patek Philippe’s customer list is even more “horrific”, with a total of 100 kings and 54 queens, but no shortage of prominent Einstein, Curie, Charlotte Blount, Tchaikovsky, etc. person.

According to reports, the average retail price of Patek Philippe watches is between 13,000 and 20,000 US dollars.