Perrelet Watches Review – Quality and Style
Perrelet watches aren’t as well-known as they ought to be, given that the company has been making quality timepieces for more than two hundred years. Founded in 1777, Perrelet watches have been innovative and accurate and even today offer an attractive, highly reliable timepiece that is guaranteed to get people talking when they see one. While they may be the product of one of the older watchmakers in the world, their designs are quite modern, and will appeal to both fans of traditional and the avant garde. If you want something truly unusual in a luxury wristwatch, you should definitely consider taking a closer look at this old school brand.
Read on for our full Perrelet watches review.
Build Quality
Movements
Innovation
Styling and Features
Care and Maintenance
Warranty
Prices
Where to Buy
Summary
Perrelet Watches Build Quality
The build quality of Perrelet watches is exceptional; the company uses stainless steel, gold and titanium for their cases. The watch faces are protected by rock-hard, scratch-resistant sapphire crystal. Bands are leather, rubber, stainless or gold, depending on the model. Water resistance is quite good, though it will vary by model. These timepieces are built well and with proper care, will last for decades.
Not surprisingly, all of the movements of Perrelet watches are built in-house in Switzerland and are purely mechanical, either manually or automatically wound. Many of these models feature mechanical complications, and you’ll find a few open heart or skeleton models that make it easy to see the moving parts inside.
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The company’s founder, Abraham-Louis Perrelet, is one of several watchmakers who have been credited with inventing the automatic movement. The company continues to innovate to this day and their Double Rotor movement is both accurate and shock resistant. They offer a few models with a tourbillon, as well.
Styling is rather unusual for an older company, as they have models with traditional styling as well as many with a more modern look. If you like that mid-1950s boardroom-style timepiece, their First Class model will suit you just fine. If you want something more edgy and colorful, the Turbine will certainly catch the eye of anyone passing by. For women, there are tasteful styles featuring mother of pearl and diamonds, and cases are available in gold, stainless steel, black PVD-treated stainless steel, and titanium.
Their Double Rotor model, which features a moving rotor on the face, is rather eye-catching as are the tourbillon models. If you like to see the moving parts, you’ll have the choice of skeleton models or those with an open heart design, which show off the balance wheel in a small window at the bottom of the face. These are attractive, elegant watches that can appeal to all tastes. The company frequently produces limited edition models; some of these are limited to as few as ten pieces.
As Perrelet watches are highly complicated mechanical timepieces, you will find that maintenance is a bit more complex than it would be for a quartz-powered timepiece. You should store your watch in a cool, dry place, and keep them away from strong magnetic fields or extremes of temperature.
Models with automatic movements should be stored in a watch winder to keep them running smoothly. You should have your timepiece inspected every 12 months to ensure that it’s running correctly and every five years or so, it may be necessary to send your watch back to the manufacturer for a servicing and cleaning. With proper care, your watch should run well for a lifetime.
The warranty is somewhat better than most, as the company warrants their product for three years from the date of purchase against defects in materials and craftsmanship. The average warranty in the industry, even among high-end brands, is two years, so this one is better than average and we applaud them for it. As these timepieces are thoroughly tested before shipping, we suspect that defects are generally quite rare.
As you might expect for products from a long-established luxury brand, this brand is expensive, ranging from moderately so to extremely so. Models start at about $3000 and run to nearly $100,000 or so for certain limited edition models. Most models are available in the $5000-$15,000 range; the more expensive examples are the exception, rather than the norm.
Still, these are not entry-level timepieces; they are luxury models for those with a taste for the well made and the unusual. Collectors like the brand, of course, and high prices are frequently paid for older examples as well as newer limited edition models that are no longer available. While we can’t recommend buying this brand as an investment, they may turn out to be a good one in time.
As with most luxury products, the makers prefer to restrict distribution and to regulate pricing of their products. This helps keep demand high, which, in turn, keeps prices stable. No luxury goods maker wants their product to appear to be commonplace or ordinary, and restricting sales to a handful of select jewelry stores in major cities helps maintain pricing and scarcity.
Officially, you can buy the brand only in about 20 retail shops in the United States, and not many more than that in Europe. Unofficially, you’ll find them at a few Internet retailers, and they can offer your best opportunity to buy at a discount. You won’t necessarily find the full line of products at Internet retailers, but significant discounts are sometimes available, so it’s worth checking out.
Perrelet Watches Summary
This brand has a lot to offer for fans of classic watchmaking. They feature elaborate complications, innovative mechanical movements, good build quality and stunning looks that will turn heads anywhere you go. While they’re not for everyone and they’re not inexpensive, you’ll find that they look great and will last for a generation or more. If you like the rare and the unusual, Perrelet watches are a good choice.
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