A few immediate thoughts while reading it:
1. Patek's background in the Polish nobility played a part in positioning its products among the upper echelons of society in western an eastern Europe, the Levant, across north and south America, and beyond. It clearly wasn't the only factor but I don't think it's controversial to suggest that his familiarity with - and access to - such circles were of practical benefit.
2. Placement at exhibitions and world fairs - events that were patronised and frequented by royalty as well as an emerging monied class of industrialists - further enhanced the allure of their watches. It was a decisive move and over the course of decades helped to cement the reputation of the company at the top table of prestige watchmaking.
3. Exposure to high society wouldn't have cut it on its own, however. Most of the royal families and aristocracies of the Old World were in retreat around the Fin de Siècle: some were gone for good and others were on the way out.* That made Patek Philippe's competitive edge arguably its most important quality at this time. Its serial victories in chronometry trials mattered a great deal in industrialising societies where accurate timekeeping mattered as freight began to move more intensively by rail and via shipping. Folks needed watches that could keep the time as well as look good. This history of open competition is quite unlike the company today, which eschews third-party tests of performance.
4. The purpose of the pamphlet is of course celebratory, and by their nature commemorative products tend to lionise individuals selectively. But less than a decade before its publication the company was so close to becoming bankrupt that it was melting down its stock of gold watches to pay its employees. I find that a particularly affecting moment in its history and one that deserves more attention.
In sum, borne of nobility, steeped in nobility and sustained by nobility - alongside some superlative watches - this is how I think of Patek Philippe down the years.
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* One owner of a Patek Philippe pocket watch was Emperor Pedro II of Brazil. He was from the line of the European houses of Braganza and Hapsburg, and his watch should still be on display today at the Palácio do Itimaraty in Rio de Janeiro.