A very merry christmas and a happy healthy 2007 to all of you!

Dear enthusiasts and fellow watch nuts,

we´re close to reach the holiday season, which will cause Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard to close until January 8th in 2007.

A well deserved break after an exciting year, full of surprises, stunning watches, many news and a lot of stories.
For both JeanRichard and Girard-Perregaux it seems to become a most successfull year, but a break in some way either; 2006 will go into the history of Girard-Perregaux as the last production year of "Pour Ferrari" models, of which none will be made in the future. Therefore pieces like the "Tribute To Enzo Ferrari" or the classic "S. F. Foudroyante" will not be available to the markets any more, which marks the end of a very successfull decade with Ferrari.

Looking back, 2006 to me was dominated by two developments at Girard-Perregaux.
One is the increase of interest in and awareness of the "BMW Oracle Racing" models, which turned out to be exceptionally successfull. The dedicated models, such as "USA-71" and "USA-76" are much appreciated and are vivid proof this new cooperation really does catch on.
In addition, fascinating projects such as the BMW "Individual" 760IL for Girard-Perregaux or Girard-Perregaux watches to be prominently featured in nation-wide and international print and TV media campaigns give an idea it´s not just another co-branded model line, but the result of likely-minded brands with enthusiastic staff cooperating in a great way.
Based on this, i´m sure we´ll get to see some more stunning projects - and not just watches.

2006 is the year of technical achievements either, resulting from the continuing efforts of Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard in this field.
At Girard-Perregaux, only a very small number of models do not come with GP manufacture-made "in-house" movements; meanwhile, more than 90% GP watches come with a GP movement and the ratio is about to increase further.
This due to the large investments in the field of Research & Development, which sums up to investment values of much more than 10 mio Swiss Francs each year. One outcome was the highlight of SIHH 2006, where Girard-Perregaux introduced the two new calibers GP2700 and GP4500, but new complications like the almost "perpetual moon phase" of the Evo 3 (which meanwhile is lovingly dubbed the "Evo Moon" among the fans).
At JeanRichard, many more models are now to come with JR´s own caliber JR1000, which is equipped with a variety of unusual and interesting complications ranging from power reserve indications, regulator-style layouts up to chronograph cadratures.

2006 brought an interesting addition, in that the "Vintage1966" model is the first three-hands model by GP since some years. This beautiful watch brings GP back to the history of the brand, interpretating a seemingly familiar theme in a modern, but still classic way. This won GP a lot of new fans and personally, i´m in hope more like this will follow.
But GP hit home in the higher-end range either, with the "Sapphire Bridges" Tourbillon being a most unique combination of very classic GP elements with a completely new look and materials not used before, while maintaining the iconic look of GP´s most famous model. With back orders surpassing production quantities of much more than a decade, the "Sapphire Bridges" sold out literally within hours after introduction and i´m sure it will be among the hottest tourbillons once production pieces hit the markets.
Other iconic models, such as the wildly popular WWTC, received careful updates.
All these testify GP´s vision to always strieve for individuality and perfection, which i´m sure will push the brand further in the future.

And while it might be an impression i´ve expressed before, all above, together with GP´s unique philosophy, structure and portfolio, make me feel very confident the brand is doing more successfull and better from year to year.

Let me close this with a "family shot" and my sincere thanks:

from left: Dr. Luigi "Gino" Macaluso, Dominique Fléchon, Ariane Maradan (assistant to Willy Schweizer), Willy Schweizer, Stefano Macaluso, Anne Bieler, Andrea Caputo, Massimo Macaluso, Sandrine (GP´s latest addition)

In short, it´s been an exciting and great year.

My sincere thanks for the amazing support and continuing friendship to the wonderful staff of Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard, as well as the subsidiaries and distributors all over the world, headed by Dr. Gino Macaluso!

My sincere thanks to all of you GP and JR fans; it´s you who make this such a special place and of that i´m very proud!

May all of you have a peaceful christmas time, great holidays and a wonderful 2007 in good health! And one more watch to all of you!

Warm regards,
greetings from Germany,

PeterCDE
"Chief Cheerleader"