Is Panerai still relevant anymore (compared to Omega/Rolex)?

[321Forever]

I’m chiming in for a second time because…why not?

I was looking at some of the other Richemont watch houses and Panerai is a lot like them, meaning that they run more like lux fashion/jewelry houses that are appealing to anyone interested in the brand, rather than to the hard core fans. This makes sense in a way because the magnitude of the fan base relative to production is a lot smaller than for Rolex, PP, or even Omega with the Speedy Pro and Seamasters.

Cartier is a lux jewelry brand, but they sell iconic Tank watches at ~$3K USD with Quartz movements, some with solar charging. The automatic movements are “in-house” but really centrally Richemont (same as Panerai). They have a lot of models, but not as many as Panerai.

Piaget is more upmarket with the Altiplano, but the Polo S movement is only a little more nicely finished than the Cartier. They offer a more exclusive experience in their stores than Cartier, which sells handbags and housewares, so their boutiques are grander.

IWC has Mark XXs for ~$5K USD in a range of colors and their new in-house movement is basically a copy of the ETA 2824. They have a lot of models like Panerai, but have not made changes to most of their lines apart from the Pilot models. They still brand themselves as being more tech-horological, but this is more to the general watch lover and not the IWC brand lover. The IWC brand lover is missing the lack of advancement in the Ingenieur and Aquatimers.

ALS is spared from most of this. They keep plugging away with their hand finished cases and movements and their product line is fairly stable. Richemont views them as their PP competitor and as their production is small, they are trying not to screw it up. It would be pretty amusing to see a new white gold ALS Saxonia with a snap-on case back, housing a typical Richemont movement.

And this year, almost all of them now have a version of a quick release strap mechanism. As though Richemont decreed all brands will get them. Watch boxes are also scaled down now, too (which is great for the environment, but I did like those big white lux IWC ones).

Thus, Panerai has a lot of models to appeal to more people. To keep costs in check the movements are no longer worth showing. The consumer who wants one doesn’t care about the depth rating or screw in back either. They may be deciding between one of these and the returning Cartier Pasha.

What may be the value proposition of these brands are the storefront boutiques. They all are pleasant to visit. The sales staff are generally friendly and knowledgeable. I’m sure it feels great to buy a Must Tank in a Cartier boutique. This is a huge contrast to Rolex where you are always in an AD.

TL;DR? Summary- what’s happened at Panerai is like a lot of the other Richemont brands.