For 2009 and beyond, Officine Panerai is continuing its course in watchmaking, focusing on its own movements and using them in its sought-after, eye-catching styles. Even in these tough economic times, Panerai is doing well.
“The business is still good,“says Angelo Bonati, president and CEO, Officine Panerai.”We have just the eternal problem linked to the production, compared to what the market is asking for. At the moment, we are doing very well. Of course, the months ahead might be difficult. The strongest markets for us are the US and Asia, except Japan."
At the SIHH, Panerai is offering another new calibre, an automatic movement. “The reaction has been very good to the in-house movements,” Bonati says. “At the beginning, the collectors, the Paneristi, were a little bit afraid because they didn’t understand what we were doing. Now, everyone is accepting very well this kind of direction. It’s a unique way for the brand to go forward, and it is working for us. We are launching this new movement, which will be presented in three different watches - one with a power reserve, another with a GMT, the last with a GMT and a power reserve.”
In addition, Panerai will introduce the Luminor Chrono Daylight 44mm-Titanium. The current model keeps the distinctive shape of the Luminor case, as well as its main constructional feature, the lever bridge, which has the dual function of protecting the crown and of ensuring its water-resistance by keeping it constantly pressed against the case itself. But from the technical point of view there are numerous new features: the new Luminor is a COSC-certified chronograph with date. In addition, the new watch is made of grade 5 titanium, hypo-allergenic and resistant to temperature and corrosion.

The Future
Bonati is looking forward to the future. “We have a lot of potential to develop inside the brand,“he says.”We are confident that the future will be good because we are building a new manufacture, we are developing our in-house movements, and we are exploiting our brand. If nothing changes in the world economy, we will continue to grow in our way while improving. We will focus on improving in technical ways. I am convinced that the mechanics and technology are the unique tools that we have to improve our brand in the future."


Source: Europa Star December-January 2009 Magazine Issue