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From Joe DiMaggio to Albert Einstein, Princess Diana to Victoria Beckham, watchmaker Patek Philippe has lengthy been a celebrity favourite. But the Swiss model’s popularity has taken an surprising flip lately.
Namedropping luxurious labels could also be nothing new in hip-hop, however lyrical references to Patek Phillippe exploded in 2017. That 12 months, one-third of the songs on the Billboard Hot 100 talked about the model, in accordance to music web site Genius.
Travis Scott has rapped about his “two-tone Patek,” Cardi B (pictured prime) “flooded” hers with diamonds and Gucci Mane suggested that his was “gon’ make this crooked judge try throw the book at me.” Young Thug, Migos and Future have all talked about their Patek Philippe timepieces, whereas Lil Uzi Vert has such affinity with the watchmaker that he launched two tracks honoring it, “Patek” and “New Patek.” (“New Patek on my wrist,” he stated within the latter, “white diamonds, them sh**s hit pink.”)
The phenomenon coincided with a wider surge of curiosity in watch amassing, in accordance to Nick Marino, senior vice chairman of content material at on-line watch journal, Hodinkee.
“Since Patek Phillipe has always has been one of the most prestigious watch brands, it stood to reason that it would be the one that everyone was talking about,” he stated by way of video name.
“Hip-hop has an extended and storied historical past of shouting out manufacturers that artists like, going again to ‘My Adidas’ by Run-DMC, and it simply so occurred that watches caught hearth.
“Rappers are smart,” he added. “They know what standing means and they know what exclusivity means. You may count on rappers to speak about Richard Mille, as a result of that’s a younger, flashy, ‘new money’ watch model – and rappers love that one too – however I really like that they love the old-money watch manufacturers.
“By positioning themselves as Patek customers, rappers are positioning themselves in the lineage of elites going all the way back to the 19th century. That’s power.”
The model’s place in pop culture is a far cry from its Nineteen Nineties “Generations” advertisements, which featured predominantly White dad and mom and their kids bonding over treasured horological heirlooms. The memorable marketing campaign helped set up the well-known catchphrase, “You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation.”
As a model that promotes historical past and heritage as markers of high quality, turning into a standing image for the Instagram era might need sat uncomfortably with the 182-year-old firm. But, Marino stated, the watchmaker has not visibly repositioned its model – nor want it fear about turning into too popular: “In plenty of methods, the younger viewers – the hip-hop viewers – has discovered Patek possibly moderately than the opposite means round.
“This brand has been a symbol of luxury since 1839, so I don’t think there’s any danger of them being seen as a flash in the pan,” he stated, including: “Twenty-seventeen was a lifetime ago in hip-hop, and people are still talking about these watches.”
Indeed, in accordance to Sharon Chan, director of watches at Bonhams public sale home in Hong Kong, Patek Philippe’s place within the zeitgeist is “a very positive sign” for its future.
“Five to eight years ago, Patek Philippe watches were mostly bought by older clients,” she stated over the telephone. “But not too long ago, it’s all of the youthful era – the second or third era (down) from the primary collector shoppers we had.
“Their collecting style and the types (of watches they’re interested in) are quite different. In the past, experienced collectors looked for the most complicated versions of products. Nowadays, they tend to go for simpler functions – something simple-looking or made from different materials. Whereas in the past 80% of our Patek Philippe watches we sold were (made from) precious metals, now, most customers are requesting the stainless-steel ones.”
“Rarely, do (the watches) really just go down to the next generation,” she added. “But it is a brand that connects the generations together.”
Celebrities’ fixation with Patek Philippe may replicate its standing because the world’s costliest watchmaker – if public sale data are your measure, a minimum of. The model is accountable for eight of the ten priciest watches ever to go underneath the hammer, together with a stainless-steel Reference 1518 that fetched over 11 million Swiss francs ($11.1 million) and a pink gold model that smashed estimates to promote for almost $9.6 million final September.
Considered among the many most intricate mechanical watches ever produced, the Patek Philippe Henry Graves Supercomplication turned the world’s costliest timepiece when it offered for 23.2 million Swiss francs ($24 million) in 2014. That document was comprehensively smashed 5 years later by an unworn Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime 6300A-010, created particularly for a charity public sale in Geneva, that fetched 31 million Swiss francs ($31.2 million).
Founded in Geneva as Patek, Czapek & Cie (the present title was adopted after Polish co-founder Antoni Norbert Patek partnered with Frenchman Adrien Philippe), the model claims to have been making watches “without interruption” since 1839. Queen Victoria was among the many watchmaker’s early shoppers, buying certainly one of its “keyless” watches – the primary on this planet to function with out prior winding – at London’s Great Exhibition in 1851.
New know-how would proceed underpinning Patek Philippe’s enchantment among the many period’s wealthy and well-known. In 1868, the corporate produced what it believes to be the world’s first wristwatch for the Hungarian Countess Koscowicz (a declare hotly disputed by rival Breguet, which says a 1810 timepiece it made for the Queen of Naples was the world’s first). Patek Philippe has since been awarded over 100 patents, from the primary perpetual calendar mechanism for pocket watches to “time zone” watches that featured a second hour hand for worldwide jet-setters.
But its most unique vary has confirmed to be certainly one of its least difficult: the Nautilus.
Designed to resemble a ship’s porthole, Nautilus watches price upwards of $30,000 every, with costs on the secondary market usually considerably larger. Following popular ranges like 1932’s Calatrava, the gathering launched in 1976 and has been worn not solely by royalty and rappers, however enterprise moguls, athletes and Hollywood stars.
More not too long ago, Drake has proven off his emerald-laden Patek Philippe Nautilus Reference 5726, custom-designed by late clothier Virgil Abloh, whereas Kylie Jenner is often pictured sporting a white gold diamond-encrusted Nautilus Reference 5719. The Nautilus additionally makes common appearances on Instagram, ranging from the refined (see John Mayer carrying his in a mirror selfie) to the not-so-suble (see actuality star Scott Disick waiting exterior a then-unopened Patek Philippe retailer alongside the caption, “What time ya opening @patekphilippe?”).
It is the stainless steel Nautilus Reference 5711, specifically, that has acquired cult standing in celebrity circles. In 2019, the New York Times reported that solely “carefully vetted clients” could be added to a ready checklist – after which they would wish to wait up to eight years to buy one.
Then, final 12 months, the corporate provided an surprising response to the demand: it discontinued the 5711.
In the aforementioned Times article, firm president Thierry Stern, whose household has run the watchmakers since 1932, advised that Patek Philippe didn’t need to be seen as a one-model model. “We make about 140 different models at Patek Philippe, and the basic Ref. 5711 in steel is just one of them,” he was quoted as saying. “We have many other models that are more complicated and arguably more beautiful.”
The 5711 nonetheless made a quick reappearance in late 2021, with the discharge of a limited-edition olive-green model and a Tiffany & Co. collaboration within the US jeweler’s iconic blue. But – for now a minimum of – the mannequin seems to have been scrubbed from the model’s web site, the place the coveted 5711 is conspicuous by its absence amongst over 25 other types of Nautilus.
Waiting lists and hovering resale costs clearly bolster the model’s aura of exclusivity. But the shortage could also be a real matter of provide and demand. While Rolex is assumed to produce within the area of 1,000,000 timepieces a 12 months, Patek Philippe’s annual output could also be as little as 50,000, Chan stated.
“Everyone thinks (waiting lists are) a marketing strategy, but because the demand has increased in such short time, they really cannot meet it. Over the past two years, my watch circles are seeing 10 times the normal requests for the Nautilus or the Aquanaut,” she stated, referring to one other popular vary launched in 1997.
“That’s just my little circle, so can you imagine, all around the world, how many people are trying to get one or two or three for themselves?”
If the watchmaker had been to ramp up manufacturing, it would come at the price of high quality, which may itself threaten the model, added Hodinkee’s Marino.
“What any elite watchmaker will tell you is that they produce as many as they can to maintain the level of quality that their customers expect,” he stated. “Now, could Patek produce a ton more watches and put their name on it? They could. But then it wouldn’t be Patek anymore. The limited nature and the craftsmanship is what you’re paying for to begin with.”