Patek Philippe recently released its new watch 6301P-001 online for the first time. It has a grand sonnerie, a petite sonnerie, a minute repeater and a jumping seconds display. It is Patek Philippe’s first watch with a pure timekeeping function. Thierry Stern, the global president of Patek Philippe, also accepted an online media interview, detailing the behind-the-scenes story of this new work and his thoughts on the future.
Q1. Patek Philippe has always been able to make watches with a grand sonnerie as the main mechanism. Why did it not launch the 6301P watch with a grand sonnerie function until this year? Is there a story and reason behind it? Is there a plan to load other functions on this self-sounding movement in the future?
Thierry Stern: First of all, it is not easy to develop a self-sounding watch. It takes a lot of time to conceive. We originally planned to release a super-complex watch with a grand sonnerie function for the 175th anniversary. When the Ref.5175R Grandmaster Chime Master Chime watch came out in 2014, we already had the idea of making a pure self-sounding watch with a more low-key design. Before doing this, the first thing to consider is that in addition to confirming that we have the ability to create a self-sounding watch, the most important thing is to confirm that we have the ability to provide subsequent after-sales service, that is, we are still able to repair the self-sounding watch we made even after 5 or 10 years.
So the focus of our consideration is not just production, but also to plan the subsequent after-sales service in advance to ensure that no matter what happens to the self-sounding watch sold, we have enough ability to repair it. I often see great large self-sounding watches launched in the industry, but the problem is that there is often only one watchmaker who can repair it. Once the master leaves the watch factory, there is no one else who can maintain it. And I don’t want to see this situation happen at Patek Philippe. This is why it took us a long time to launch this Ref. 6301P, because during this period, we must ensure that my after-sales service department has sufficient logistical capabilities to maintain this watch, so it takes a lot of time to deploy. This is the characteristic of Patek Philippe. Any product developed today will be planned for future availability. You can be sure that we can still repair this watch 50 years later.
Q2. Faced with the unprecedented challenges brought by the epidemic, has Patek Philippe made any adjustments to its business strategy during this period to cope with the epidemic? Has it affected production? What do you think about the impact of the epidemic on the watch industry, the challenges and subsequent developments facing the watch industry in the future?
Thierry Stern: There is no doubt that the epidemic will have an impact on business. I remember that Geneva was closed for nearly a month and a half, which we could not have expected in advance. But the most important thing is that we are a family business and have experienced many good times and bad times. My father’s era experienced many bad times, whether it was disease, war, earthquake, or other disasters, we had no way of knowing when bad things would happen, so from a young age, my father often taught me to be prepared and reserved, and I must be mentally prepared for what might happen in the future. This is what I am doing, and this is why Patek Philippe has not been hit too hard, because we are reserved and prepared to deal with the disaster once it occurs. We have to reduce annual production, but because of the lockdown, we don’t have to reduce production capacity at all, because the lockdown prevented us from producing for a period of time, so the final output is about the same as we expected. By the end of January, I should be able to tell you whether we can produce as scheduled. Fortunately, everything is still normal, so we can produce normally. We still have to allocate some production capacity to provide mask production, comply with the government’s epidemic prevention regulations, and maintain a safe distance of one meter. We can fully cooperate with all these, and everyone is back to work safely. Seriously speaking, I think it may even be safer to be at the Patek Philippe factory than to be with my family at home. We have strict safety measures and controls, so production is not a big problem.
The sales part is more difficult because many dealers cannot open. Fortunately, many dealers can now operate normally, so I think by the end of the year, the turnover will definitely be 20~30% less. Compared with other brands, I think this is already very good. We are lucky to have great products, and you know that the quantity is not large. Patek Philippe’s current annual production is about 60,000. If I were Rolex, I would be more worried because they produce more than one million pieces a year. The crux is not that the products cannot be sold, but where to sell them. Many dealers are forced to close their businesses. This is what I said, everyone is learning and using different logic and methods to do business. Some brands rely on online sales, while others use telephone sales and deliver to your door, so we have to adapt. This is a very important feature of the market, adaptation, everyone must be able to adapt to the environment. The next generation will also learn, like my son’s generation, their reaction speed will be faster than ours, this is their generation. This is the first time we face it, but I believe it will not be the last time. So we have to coexist with it in harmony and adapt to it as much as we can. Although I don’t have magic to solve the problem quickly, I am still happy for now.
Q3. What is the brand advantage of Patek Philippe’s reputation in the watch industry? Every timepiece produced by Patek Philippe must be heard and approved by the president himself before it can leave the factory. For the president, is it more of a rational analysis to distinguish a good timepiece sound? Or is it more of a perceptual feeling?
Thierry Stern: I think Patek Philippe’s advantage is to let the world know that we can still make complex mechanical watches. Whether it is the sound or the thickness of the movement, we have a good foundation. That’s why I chose platinum as the case material for Ref. 6301P. Platinum is not the most ideal material for making repeater watches, but we have the technology to overcome this problem. This lets the world and professionals know that we have the ability to use platinum and still produce beautiful sound quality. Although platinum is 30% denser than other materials, the sound must be enhanced to stand out from the case, and there is also a very beautiful enamel dial, which is 0.85mm thicker than ordinary dials, which also makes it very difficult to stand out. These elements make it very challenging to make beautiful sounds, but we succeeded. This is what I want to show the world, to prove that we have the ability to break through technical barriers.
Repeater watch production relies on a large team. There were many people involved before me, checking, making gongs, assembling hammers, etc. The final inspection must come to me or my father. In case I need to deliver urgently when I am on vacation, I have trained an agent who can do the final monitoring when I am not in the company. I always think that there should be a backup plan. I don’t want to be the only one, and this person will follow me to control the sound quality and listen to every repeater watch with me. In the future, I will also train my son. Of course I am honored to be the final appraiser, but I must be prepared in case of emergency. If I die, don’t worry, there will still be someone who can do the final quality control.
You asked me what is the best way to test the sound quality, ears or technology? In fact, I use both. I have a speaker, a small box that can block all interference. There is a microphone inside that can record the sound, save the sound to the computer, and provide an analysis report. I can see the sound quality through this report, but the most important thing is hearing, I need to hear it. I spent 3 to 5 years to train my hearing to judge what is good and bad sound. I think the ears are the most important in the end, because customers don’t read the analysis report when they buy a watch, but listen directly with their ears. This is what I do, so I am also very proud, after all, I have heard so much. In fact, everyone can do it, it just takes time to train. Without my ears, I think it would be difficult, especially with glasses.
Q4. This year’s presentations are all online. How do you view the impact and interaction of the Internet on the watchmaking industry? Will this affect the future international presentation method? Will the Geneva International Exhibition take shape next year?
Thierry Stern: This will definitely change the watch industry. Will we sell online tomorrow? No, but we may need the help of the Internet. I think the focus now is on communication, how we launch new products. In the past, we launched them at the Basel or Geneva exhibitions, but we may not be able to do so now. Whether we can continue in the future depends on the situation of the epidemic. The Internet is a new century. My two sons are 17 and 19 years old. The Internet is logical for them. They are used to receiving information on Instagram, so we must also adapt and think about how to launch our new products in the digital world. The epidemic gave us the final push. Many brands used to take years, but now they only need to build an online platform in just six months.
Usually our watchmaking industry reacts slowly to the online world, but now we have to adapt. So you ask if there are changes, this is definitely true. But I am not sure if we will do it. I don’t think we will dive in, just like the brand’s values: tradition and innovation. These two words will always be together, so tradition is to still see you and chat with you. The innovation part is to be able to provide some great video elements on the Internet. I have to adapt. So it’s not a huge change, but a slow evolution, adapting to the environment and the new generation. The new generation is inseparable from their mobile phones. They are almost glued to their mobile phones. I don’t know if you have children, but my children never put down their mobile phones. So we still have to use it.
In response to your second question, Geneva is still very serious, but we have decided. It is not an easy decision. You also know that it takes time to prepare for the event. Whether we are ready to set up the exhibition, it is no problem. But we don’t know how the epidemic will change and whether everyone can fly. I can’t make a decision a week ago. After all, there are many things to prepare, including booking hotels, etc., which will take several months. So we have to make a decision as soon as possible in the unknown future. This is a very difficult decision, and I haven’t decided yet, but it should be soon, so you will have information soon, maybe within a month. This is very difficult. I can’t give you an answer today. There are many unknowns in the world, so let’s wait and see! Just like if the vaccine goes well and can be given to everyone, then it will not be a problem, but I am worried that it will take at least a year for the vaccine to be popularized. If it is difficult to get the Golden Eagle, believe me, it is even more difficult to get the vaccine.
Q5. President, have you ever worn this Grande Sonnerie watch for testing and experience? How do you feel? If you wear this Grande Sonnerie watch on a daily basis, will you turn on the Grande Sonnerie timekeeping switch, Grande Sonnerie, Petite Sonnerie, or mute it?
Thierry Stern: This is a good question. Have I tried to wear it? Yes. But only in the factory, because everyone knows me. Everyone looks at me without looking at my face, but at my wrist first. So it is very dangerous to wear it outside the factory. It will be exposed immediately, and everyone will take pictures. Even my own friends, it is difficult for me to chat with them. So I will only wear it in the factory when testing new watches. So I say it is easy to wear, because this is my job. I feel very happy, because it is a very low-key watch. There is no indication on the dial that it is a very expensive Grande Sonnerie watch. This is also my original intention for this watch. I hope to have a very beautiful watch, very thin, very low-key, and this is also our original intention for making it. For example, when I was designing this watch, I was struggling with whether to display the two power reserve indicators on the dial. I wanted to hide them and make them so low-key that you would not know they were there. But when I discussed it with the head of the R&D department, he said, “President, we need it!” He was right. From the customer’s perspective, they need to know this information. I could actually put it on the back, but I didn’t, so I agreed. I understand, but I hope they will design it to be more low-key, so there are two power reserve indicators on the dial. Of course, I would like to wear it. It is a great watch. But customers are always the first priority. There are not enough of them, so I will not wear it. I would rather sell it to customers first. I am very lucky. The watch I am wearing now is model 6007A. It is a very good watch and I am very happy with it. But one day I will wear a Grande Sonnerie, but not now, maybe when I am older. If I wear it, I should set it to Grande Sonnerie mode during the day. I think it is pleasant to tell the time. But at night, I will definitely switch to silent mode. I don’t want to know what time it is when I go to bed. I think the Grande Sonnerie is more suitable for daytime, but not necessarily for evening. If the dinner party is with watch lovers, then of course the Grande Sonnerie mode will be used. But if it is not a lover, I should set it to silent mode, because it will be considered noisy by everyone. Your phone is ringing non-stop, and I have to explain that it is not my phone, but my watch. In fact, I should make a vibrating function. I just thought of this idea, and it is a good idea. Imagine that the next launch will have a vibrating mode. Now that I share it, many people will want to launch it. This is a good idea, I will study it.
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