Swiss luxury watchmaker with Italian heritage selling through exclusive retail network
Panerai manufactures precision watches at its Neuchâtel facility, blending Italian design with Swiss horological craftsmanship. The hiring mix is sales-led (27 of 44 active roles), with accelerating velocity concentrated in commercial positions—aligned to their core challenge: scaling the boutique and wholesale distribution network. The tech stack is enterprise-operational (SAP, Windchill for PLM, Jira) rather than product-engineering focused, reflecting a manufacturing and retail-sales business model.
Notable leadership hires: Commercial Director, Heritage Director
Panerai is a luxury watchmaker founded in Florence in 1860, initially supplying the Italian Navy with precision diving instruments. The brand was acquired by Richemont Group in 1997 and now operates a manufacture in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, where watches are developed and crafted. Distribution is handled through an exclusive global network of boutiques and authorized distributors across 13+ countries. The company sits at the intersection of heritage-driven design and operational manufacturing, with active projects spanning boutique expansion, retail activation, NPS monitoring, and CRM strategy.
Meyrin, Geneva, Switzerland. The company also operates a watch manufacture in Neuchâtel where movements and watches are developed and crafted.
Growing and scaling the retail and wholesale distribution network while managing aged inventory, meeting sales targets, and improving customer satisfaction metrics (NPS detractors).
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