Patek Philippe is far from alone among watchmakers in reducing the number of authorised dealers it will work with moving forward, but news that it is cutting 30% of its worldwide doors will send shock waves through the industry.
WatchPro has been hearing from retailers and their customers when Patek Philippe has pulled out of stores, but the extent of the consolidation had not been confirmed until the brand responded to an inquiry today.
“We confirm that Patek Philippe SA is currently working on a global restructuring of its retail distribution network which will eventually result in a reduction of about 30%,” WatchPro has been told.
“This process also includes the UK and Ireland, no details of locations or quantities of retailers can be shared for the time being,” the statement concludes.
Patek Philippe is the only watch brand stocked by Boodles, one of the UK’s most prestigious high end jewellers.
But even the impeccable reputation of Boodles has not saved it from losing Patek Philippe from two of its stores.
In a note accompanying its 2021-22 accounts, filed at Companies House, Boodles says Patek Philippe has cut back its dealerships from 40 to 25 agencies in the UK in the last year.
“Boodles has lost two of their six agencies. We are assured that there are no plans to scale back further in the foreseeable future,” the company states.
Another former Patek Philippe partner in the UK is Wempe.
As WatchPro reports today, the German retail group has closed its multibrand showroom on Bond Street, which was a stockist for Patek Philippe.
Wempe still has seven stores in Germany offering Patek Philippe, according to the watchmaker’s website.
The Patek Philippe website has not been updated to the latest authorised dealer list for the UK, which still shows 38 doors.
Patek Philippe’s most recent published accounts show UK sales rose by 80.2% to £187 million for the year ended in January 2022.
The watchmaker’s only internally operated boutique, on London’s Bond Street, operating under the trading name Patek Philippe Salon Limited, saw sales increase by 185% to £69 million as shoppers returned to the capital.
The boutique contributed £13.4 million of gross profit compared to a break even in the prior financial year.
Growth in wholesale was back to the long term trend for both revenue and profit while the boutique still appeared to be somewhat behind trend as international shoppers continued to visit London less, and may have been put off shopping for big ticket items by the inability to instantly reclaim VAT.
Being a watch enthusiast for 55 years, I visited a Patek AD last week. I happen to know its sales manager. I asked, if I wanted to order a simple, plain Calatrava, how long would I have to wait until delivery? He responded, about two years… I found that answer “interesting”. Although they had a few watches on display, none were available for sale. With the above in mind, I believe most people would consider six months as reasonable, but two years, and that is not for a complication! If I wanted a custom built Rolls-Royce, the wait time would be nowhere near as long!
Great article, Rob, Interestingly enough, I live in Texas, USA and they don’t even place you on a list here and if you express interest, there’s no timeframe as to when one can potentially purchase a timepiece, I was told. I was interested in a Calatrava model.
The AD said if I purchase jewelry from them I can potentially be offered an opportunity to purchase a timepiece in the future, but no promise as to if, when or which one. Incredible! I wonder if others are having the same experience of being required to purchase alternate products to “potentially” be offered an opportunity to purchase a timepiece? A big No Thank You, for me… This is not how I conduct business nor how I wish to conduct business.
Patek Philippe ADs I speak to flatly deny they push jewelry as a gateway to buying waiting list watches, but I have heard reports like yours from too many people to believe this is universally true. What ADs will say is that customers can work their way towards a Nautilus or Aquanaut if they start with a Calatrava, add a complication and then go for a sports watch. I also hear waiting lists are shortening, so it may be that your Calatrava is more achievable than you think.
Now 35 dealerships in the UK. Leonard Dews lost the dealership, could be due to pushing jewellery as a gateway to buying waiting list watches.