Panerai | Modularità Expressiva
At the end of January, the Swiss-Italian company opened the doors of a new boutique in Geneva with a totally innovative concept. This space combining Italian tradition and digitalisation offers customers a truly extraordinary experience.
Panerai is the product of distinct traditions rooted in two countries: the sophistication of Swiss watchmaking artistry and an illustrious design heritage from Italy. At the end of January 2022, the brand unveiled its unprecedented flagship store concept named “Modularità Espressiva”, located at 21 Rue du Rhône, Geneva. This two-floor area featuring innovative modular architecture and magnified by Italian design combines tangible and digital elements designed to treat customers to an exclusive sensory experience.
While Panerai’s iconic luminous green wall clock may be the first element to grab customers’ attention upon entering the boutique, one of the most striking new features is the presence of an impressively large video wall featuring an array of products. TV screens and touchscreen monitors are also available to display details that are of interest, while glassless lightbox displays break down barriers between products and customers by inviting the latter to interact with the watches.
This experiential interaction continues as visitors take the staircase leading to the second floor and discover the Laboratorio di Idee, a wall dotted with portholes enabling customers to touch creations and to explore Panerai’s philosophy of creating and developing new materials and movements in a transformative and sustainable way.
This core vision comprising sustainable building and transformation is echoed in the modular lounge on the second floor, a stunning room featuring Italian furniture and iconic design pieces, complemented by Italian literature. This light-flooded area is further enhanced by some of the most fascinating horological complications as well as a range of Panerai special editions. The lounge can be rapidly transformed into an elegant dining room for hosting clients or press events.
A few steps from the lounge, an Art Deco style bar welcomes visitors for a coffee or cocktail before morphing into an interactive rotating shelf on which they can view and try on their favourite strap and case combinations. A mobile platform follows the curve of the bar and allows customers to sip a drink during the experience. The lower section of the bar structure is composed of ten containers holding ten different coffee beans from around the world, thereby turning a core component of Italian culture into an impressive artwork.
An original Vespa from 1956 and a beautiful bookcase housing glassless product displays and vintage Italian elements set the final touch to this area. A modular stand-alone display shelf area can be used to highlight the latest new releases. When required however, these shelves can be folded down so as to free up additional space.
The highlight of this floor is an unusual periscope through which customers can immerse themselves in the stories that have shaped Panerai’s destiny.
This new “Modularità Espressiva” creative concept will be soon adopted in Panerai boutiques worldwide, reshaping the brands’ relationship with its customers. In 2022, Panerai is planning to open a new boutique every fortnight.
Luminor Geneva Boutique
To celebrate the opening of the new boutique, the brand released a Luminor Geneva Boutique timepiece in a 121-piece limited edition. This contemporary watch features a 44mm matt black case composed of DLC-coated titanium, while for the first time in the brand’s history, a grainy dial accompanies the P.5000 movement: a manually wound calibre with an eight-day power reserve, a characteristic it shares with previous Panerai models produced for underwater commando troops.
Additionally, a picture of the majestic Jet d’Eau fountain, Geneva’s most famous landmark, appears engraved on the caseback as a tribute to the city. Two straps – one in recycled PET and another in green rubber – provide a pair of resolutely different styling options for this sporty timepiece that is water-resistant to 30m.