A pilgrimage to the Geneva Salon (Report)

[Richmor]

Thank you for sharing your experience with your excellent pictures.

[teqp]

Awesome photos, thanks for sharing. It looks like an amazing time!

[toucan]

Looks great!

[Skyrider01]

Sounds like you had a great trip! Visiting FPJ and getting your CB, then a Patek visit. It doesn't get any better than that!

[Hairdude1]

Awesome shots, thanks for sharing!

[Racerdj]

It's a visit I will never forget. Fantastic pictures!

[benlee]

Nice trip report Tom. The Patek Salon in Geneva is a must-visit for any watch collectors. Several years ago, I made my first trip there and like you also wrote a very detailed report.

I will be visiting there again next week and hope to preview some of the new novelties.

[nish99]

That’s like a trip to heaven! Thanks for sharing your experience and pics. Dying to try on a PP sometime and hopefully afford one someday! And if I do I’ll surely make this trip too! Worth it.


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[SL BRABUS]

Good time....!!!

Thanks for sharing......

[1688]

Originally Posted by tng11

If I can figure out a way to upload the videos I took of the minute repeaters chiming, I will do so.

But anyways, there was so much more to explore, but I felt that as if I was more than satiated on this visit. I thanked the rep profusely for all of his time, the good conversation and the genuine red carpet treatment that me and my friend received even though we weren't buying anything.

He sent us on our way with Museum tickets, and much to my shock, started loading us up with Patek swag, thanking us for being customers of Patek Philippe (even though I wasn't wearing one, I had talked about the pieces I've owned.)

It was truly an experience that made me happy and proud to be a Patek Philippe owner.

The Museum experience was awesome, albeit no pictures allowed. I had to use a mop to wipe up all the drool off my face when I saw some of the vintage perpetuals/chronographs.



And later that night, we went to dinner with a friend from my backpacking days who happened to live in Geneva and worked at Vacheron Constantin in Plan-les Ouates. He brought along his girlfriend and friend who also worked at Vacheron Constantin, and just so happened to be wearing a 5712/1A. We swapped watches for the entire evening (the both of them were in awe over the CB as fellow WIS):



Needless to say, it ended up being a very fun night with lots of good food and wine (and as an aside, I highly recommend Fiskebar at the Ritz-Carlton).

Wow...impressive photos and must have been quite an experience! What kind of Patek swag did you end up with??

[tng11]

Originally Posted by benlee

Nice trip report Tom. The Patek Salon in Geneva is a must-visit for any watch collectors. Several years ago, I made my first trip there and like you also wrote a very detailed report.

I will be visiting there again next week and hope to preview some of the new novelties.

Thanks Ben! I do recall reading your report (yours was much more detailed than me), but I didn't expect the same experience as I'm no VIP! I'm glad to have been proven wrong - I was treated like a king despite not wearing a PP!

[onmyhand]

This is by far, for me, the best thread I have read in this forum. Very nice pictures taken of all the watches and also on the interior of the salon. For many of us who have not have the chance to visit the salon, I thank you for all your efforts to present to us.

[KBM]

Fantastic experience, you got to handle the stuff most WIS can only dream of! Thanks a lot for sharing the pictures.

[tng11]

I posted a bunch of pictures, but maybe I should include a couple of my thoughts.

In terms of the Nautilus lineup - I was happy to see them all at once in the flesh. The white 5726/1A is growing on me, but the 5712/1A is definitely a favourite of mine. The new 5740G would be my top pick, but completely out of my budget.

I did not fancy the new Aquanaut chronograph - it's too big for my wrist and I don't like the orange. The new clasp is a nice improvement, however. I also loved the 5168G dial, but thought it was too big diameter-wise for its thinness.

The 5524G is a piece that I continue to like more and more. It wears big, but not egregiously so (I wore 42mm ROO for years). My only hesitation is that it would be a piece I would wear only on weekends with casual wear, and the aim of my collection is having pieces that are versatile enough to wear with anything, any day of the week. I was not a fan of the 5524R.

In terms of annual calendar, I liked the 5205G quite a bit, but would have preferred the date wheels match the dial colour. My favourite annual calendar would have to be the 5396G with slate dial and Breguet numerals (not pictured, but I tried it at the London Salon), and possibly the 5905P in black, although I think it's a bit thick and top heavy for a dressier piece.

Another piece that I continue to dream of is the 5170P (tried on at Wempe in London) - that blue dial is stunning and I love the baguette diamond markers.

The ultimate end game for me would be to have a PP minute repeater, specifically in platinum and with cathedral gongs. That's probably not in reach for the next few decades, but always nice to dream about!

[Raemondo]

Awesome report! Thanks for sharing

[conkers]

Nice report! Thanks for sharing.

[lapince]

Originally Posted by Helmi

Very nice Tom, the 5740 is definitely a favorite for me. May be because it is very close to 5712 (my all time favorite) looks and size wise?

Is the blue on 5740 very different from the 5712's?

Yes very very different, the 5740 blue is just awesome, 5712 is more grey blue, no comparison really, I loved it, might consider getting one in 3 or 4 years, would prefer a 5712P or G but in lack of it is my favorite Nautilus, with the exception of the original 5711 P but the price is insane when one shows up for sale

[KevinP.]

Nice pics and write up.

It was an amazing time and worth the journey. The Salon treats you like you’re at a RedBar meet up and not a customer.

[KWSub]

Fantastic report and amazing pics! I definitely hope to be able to visit someday. Thank you for sharing!

[Ahfe]

Tom, are all the pieces available for sale at the salon or just for display? Like 5712, 5711, 5990, and the Basel 2018 models?

[Totoro]

Congratulations Tom. Definitely an experience to remember. Thanks for sharing the pics and story. So what's next on the list? Hahaha.

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[tng11]

Originally Posted by Ahfe

Tom, are all the pieces available for sale at the salon or just for display? Like 5712, 5711, 5990, and the Basel 2018 models?

The high demand models are there just for you to try on. I was told that they are not adding names to the lists for any Nautilus and most of the Aquanaut references if you are not a local.

[1William]

Very nice.

[benlee]

Just visited the Salon few days back. The 5270P and 5740 PP Nautilus steals the show . The downside is the sales agent that attend to me, while polite, have that very condescending tone ( at least that's my perception ) and I can see he was quite bored with his job.

Quite a world of difference from the experience I had few years ago during my last visit here when one of the Salon directors attended to me. He also "offered" me the chance to get on the wishlist for the 5270p seeing that I quite like it. In PP Salon they called it wish-list because nothing is guaranteed.

[arosado]

Amazing pics. Thanks for sharing this awesome experience.

[CDub Rolex]

This is a great report. I’m seriously considering adding a quick day trip to Geneva in September when I’m in France. Can I PM you with food and other questions?

[tng11]

Originally Posted by CDub Rolex

This is a great report. I’m seriously considering adding a quick day trip to Geneva in September when I’m in France. Can I PM you with food and other questions?

Of course - but I did only spend two days there!

[AK797]

Originally Posted by tng11

Of course - but I did only spend two days there!

Charge him, get some of that price rise money back.

[uniqueMR]

Incredible. Wow. Thanks for sharing...

[avilhena]

Incredible report! Thanks a lot for sharing!