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Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
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Author:  Roffensian [ Tue Dec 18, 2012 5:44 am ]
Post subject:  Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
WatchTime published an article with Jean-Paul Girardin in their December article, I think that it's a reprint from their European sister publication Chronos.

JP Girardin is the face of Breitling - Schneider never appears publicly so this is as close to the top as you are going to get.

Focus was on in house movement so nothing on design, but a few interesting points - it's a long interview so not going to regurgitate it all:

- They are working on a 3 hand in house but issue is that they need to do it at the right price point which is difficult given that they sell fewer 3 hand watches. May also be a platform for a GMT / world time complication.
- No immediate plans to expand beyond capacity for 50,000 in house pieces a year, but they could if they had to - would take 2 or 3 years to expand capacity
- Bentley range may see in house at some point.
- In house production limited to brass parts, calendar disks and bridges / plates. They don't make stamped parts (levers for example) or wheels / arbors (they produce for prototypes, but not production) or screws, balances, springs, etc. They also don't do their own galvanizing or decoration (which surprised me), and of course they buy in hands, dials and cases.
- As they move away from Swatch Group they will still only use Swiss suppliers.
- They plan to stay in the CHF8,000 range - TransOcean was higher because of "unique complication". Doubtless that means that they will remain competitive with pieces in that price range currently - actual prices will continue to increase.
- Quartz pieces are "not unimportant" and don't compete with mechanical.
- Transparent casebacks should "remain a rarity at Breitling".
- Won't focus on ladies watches because they aren't a brand for classic smaller pieces and won't produce a small chronograph that compromises legibility.
Author:  Driver8 [ Tue Dec 18, 2012 6:14 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Roffensian wrote:
- They are working on a 3 hand in house but issue is that they need to do it at the right price point which is difficult given that they sell fewer 3 hand watches.

So, selling them at a non-exorbitant price would seem like a good answer to that particular little dilemma! Call me old-fashioned but if you want to sell a lot of something, keep the price reasonable.
Author:  Roffensian [ Tue Dec 18, 2012 6:20 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Driver8 wrote:
Roffensian wrote:
- They are working on a 3 hand in house but issue is that they need to do it at the right price point which is difficult given that they sell fewer 3 hand watches.

So, selling them at a non-exorbitant price would seem like a good answer to that particular little dilemma! Call me old-fashioned but if you want to sell a lot of something, keep the price reasonable.



Yes, but I think that the issue is that given that they are essentially a chronograph brand they need to base the business model on being profitable on a relatively small number of units which drives the acceptable production movement cost to a point that they haven't yet been able to achieve.
Author:  Driver8 [ Tue Dec 18, 2012 6:29 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Roffensian wrote:
Driver8 wrote:
Roffensian wrote:
- They are working on a 3 hand in house but issue is that they need to do it at the right price point which is difficult given that they sell fewer 3 hand watches.

So, selling them at a non-exorbitant price would seem like a good answer to that particular little dilemma! Call me old-fashioned but if you want to sell a lot of something, keep the price reasonable.



Yes, but I think that the issue is that given that they are essentially a chronograph brand they need to base the business model on being profitable on a relatively small number of units which drives the acceptable production movement cost to a point that they haven't yet been able to achieve.

Agreed - my post was somewhat facetious - I just forgot the winky emoticon! :)
Author:  Kodiak [ Tue Dec 18, 2012 1:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
I wouldn't mind them keeping the ETA movements (or their ETA clones) for some of the three hand Superoceans to keep the price reasonable. I am not one that would automatically pay a higher price just because it is in-house. Design still needs to be appealing.
Author:  Novacastrian [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 1:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Kodiak wrote:
I wouldn't mind them keeping the ETA movements (or their ETA clones) for some of the three hand Superoceans to keep the price reasonable. I am not one that would automatically pay a higher price just because it is in-house. Design still needs to be appealing.


:yeahthat Just the point i was going to make.
Author:  Roffensian [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 4:28 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Novacastrian wrote:
Kodiak wrote:
I wouldn't mind them keeping the ETA movements (or their ETA clones) for some of the three hand Superoceans to keep the price reasonable. I am not one that would automatically pay a higher price just because it is in-house. Design still needs to be appealing.


:yeahthat Just the point i was going to make.



I assume that these will remain - many of the 3 handers are in the former Aeromarine range which isn't a likely target for an in house movement. More likely a Cockpit type piece, potentially with a new model with a GMT option, or maybe even a modern interpretation of the Headwind. Breitling are going to need to have options with a 3 hand movement to try and maximize the sales.
Author:  mfserge [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 4:50 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Wonder if they're going to change the 3,6,9 dial layout on future inhouse models or incorporate a big date. I'd really like to see them further the evolution of their inhouse movement with different dial layouts, 3 hand movements, and put the B04 in a Navitimer.
Author:  Roffensian [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 5:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
mfserge wrote:
Wonder if they're going to change the 3,6,9 dial layout on future inhouse models or incorporate a big date. I'd really like to see them further the evolution of their inhouse movement with different dial layouts, 3 hand movements, and put the B04 in a Navitimer.


When they announced the B01 movement they made a big deal about it being configurable for a 3 / 6 / 9 and a 6 / 9 / 12 layout so I assume that it's going to happen at some point, maybe they haven't done it yet because it would look too much like the 7750 / cal. 13 models?
Author:  Kodiak [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 5:19 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
I'm sure they have lots of options now with their base in-house chronograph movement. If they could slim down the Blackbird case a bit (to say 15mm), I might be persuaded to sell a few pieces and actually buy an in-house Blackbird :) . Still love that design with the big date.
Author:  mfserge [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 5:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Roffensian wrote:

When they announced the B01 movement they made a big deal about it being configurable for a 3 / 6 / 9 and a 6 / 9 / 12 layout so I assume that it's going to happen at some point, maybe they haven't done it yet because it would look too much like the 7750 / cal. 13 models?


Good point, I didn't think about that. Any idea if the B01 is configurable to a 3,9 layout alla Planet ocean Chrono 9300 or SOHC?
Author:  Roffensian [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 5:38 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
mfserge wrote:
Roffensian wrote:

When they announced the B01 movement they made a big deal about it being configurable for a 3 / 6 / 9 and a 6 / 9 / 12 layout so I assume that it's going to happen at some point, maybe they haven't done it yet because it would look too much like the 7750 / cal. 13 models?


Good point, I didn't think about that. Any idea if the B01 is configurable to a 3,9 layout alla Planet ocean Chrono 9300 or SOHC?



It should be, but without studying the schematics I couldn't say for sure.



Kodiak wrote:
I'm sure they have lots of options now with their base in-house chronograph movement. If they could slim down the Blackbird case a bit (to say 15mm), I might be persuaded to sell a few pieces and actually buy an in-house Blackbird :) . Still love that design with the big date.


The new movement is thinner than the 7750 at least (although obviously that wasn't the base for the big date version), but not significantly so - less than a mm. That will give a few more options but ultimately the height of the BB owes more to case design than to movement.
Author:  Kodiak [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 6:36 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
Roffensian wrote:
Kodiak wrote:
I'm sure they have lots of options now with their base in-house chronograph movement. If they could slim down the Blackbird case a bit (to say 15mm), I might be persuaded to sell a few pieces and actually buy an in-house Blackbird :) . Still love that design with the big date.


The new movement is thinner than the 7750 at least (although obviously that wasn't the base for the big date version), but not significantly so - less than a mm. That will give a few more options but ultimately the height of the BB owes more to case design than to movement.

Fantastic, I'll just get Breitling to shave off a couple of mm on the case thickness and we are in business! :D

I'm going to start selling some pieces... chop chop...
Author:  Robertus61 [ Wed Dec 19, 2012 9:44 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Interview with Jean-Paul Girardin
I'd be fine with some B01 modification and size-wise my models to buy would be the Chronomat 41 and the Montbrillant 01:
Chronomat 41 would need a weekday feature and maybe a big date (former as a coomon axis hand at 6, latter at 12).
I do not like oblique date window between 4 and 5 because they look like "drinken" digits and a bit like El Primeros... if date window then at 6, een when breaking the hour counter rim.
Montbrillant would need a simple full calender complication (date as a center hand, day and month as window at 12) like the '40-ies Datoras Valjoux 72c and the Montbrillant Datora Valjoux 7751). All B01-s would gain havint a Flyback feature and some day a center minute counter (like that of the old Lemania 5100-s or the recent off-spring in the Breguet Type XXI have).
Movement should have a full silicone escapement (to gain in smearing need, long-time precision and antimagnetism) and a balance bridge like on the Rolex movements, the new Omega movements and some AP movements, maybe others as well, again to gain in long-time preision).
Most important for me is the weekday feature on every chronograph.

Just my two cents of course.

Best,
Robert
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