The first time I visited the manufacturing centers of Parmigiani Fleurier was back in 2009, and, while I knew a little bit about the company, the visit was something of a revelation. It was easy back in those days to think of Parmigiani as a relatively small-batch undertaking, even as something of an underdog, and it occupied a very specific niche in the minds of American watch enthusiasts. The watches were certainly respected for the quality of their movements and the idiosyncratic biomorphism of their designs, but you never got the feeling that the manufacture was going to rise to the level of a more widely recognized luxury brand. Of course, the failure to do that isn’t a failure at all unless that’s the target you’re shooting for, which is why I got home from the visit more confused than ever. Parmigiani Fleurier wasn’t, and isn’t, a small undertaking; the company and its satellites include an enormous factory in Fleurier (Manufacture Vaucher, in which Hermès, which also makes Parmigiani’s straps, owns a 25% stake) as well as facilities like the casemaking company Les Artisans Boitiers, the component and balance spring maker Atokalpa, and on and on.
Hands-On: The Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda 1950 Special Edition Meteorite ‘Abyss Blue’
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