Gerard (jlux) shares his decade-long pursuit of the Parmigiani Fleurier Ovale Pantographe, a watch that captivated him with its unique design and horological innovation. His detailed review highlights the telescopic hands, distinctive case, and exceptional movement finishing, offering a personal perspective on what makes this reference truly special. Gerard also provides a candid assessment of Parmigiani Fleurier's past market strategies and expresses optimism for the brand's future direction under new leadership.
...or the arrival of the Parmigiani Fleurier Ovale Pantographe.
Turning back time about 10 years I was being shown a watch at an exhibition that completely blew me away : the PF Ovale Pantographe !
The telescopic hands,the dial lay-out,the unusual case shape and the superb movement won me over in a heartbeat.
Time was passing and many watches came and went but the memories about that watch continued coming in waves.
I finally gave in and decided to actively hunt the watch.Now,not too many of those have ever been made and the few being offered most often did not meet my criteria in terms of pricing,condition,location,...
Up until recently when I discovered the watch at a reputable seller where all my conditions were met and now it has become a proud member of my collection.
This must be one of the most unique case designs ...ever!
The star of the show are of course the telescopic hands. Just one word : mesmerizing!
The typical PF lugs add character to the watch and help the ergonomy on the wrist.
The 111 movement finishing is at an impressive level with all these many perfectly executed inward angles. And the 7 day power reserve is also a great plus.
This certainly is at Lange level ...or better (?).
And a shot on my 17cm wrist : certainly not a shy watch but extremely comfortable due to the case and lug shapes.
Finally a few words on the brand Parmigiani Fleurier which I like and for which I have a lot of respect.
BUT , many mistakes have been done in the past with a kind of "try and error" approach to the market and,above all, missing consistency in many fields including design and marketing.
We saw many fantastic watches but also design monstrosities like the Pershing models, nouveau-rich design Kalpa's and even the attempt for entry level steel models.I guess it was not very clear to themselves what kind of brand they wanted to be!
Then they did a very poor job controlling the distribution of their watches with way too many brand new pieces landing directly at the grey market with huge 30-40% discounts : that is of course a deadly sin for a luxury brand and the safest way to lose customer interest and loyalty!!
I do however now see a big change for the better under the leadership of the new CEO Guido Terreni:they have drastically reduced the number of SKU's with a strong concentration on the new Tonda PF.They have also strongly reduced the number of selling points working with strong partners.And they seem to work on a stronger consistency in the message to the final customers.
I certainly wish them all the best for the future and can see myself integrating one of these very nice Tonda PF's into my collection in the near future,
Thanks for looking and reading,
Gerard
