Hands-On with the 100% Swiss-Made Piccola & Jofrette PJ1

It’s not entirely uncommon for my first encounter with a brand to be when they inquire about attending Windup Watch Fairs. There are a lot of brands out there, more every year, so it’s hard to keep up with every new launch. Conveniently, Windup is a great way for new brands to meet enthusiasts and potential customers (sorry, this wasn’t meant to be a Windup pitch), resulting in a natural amount of outreach. When new brands come in, whether to me or a colleague, we give them a quick review to see if they are a conceptual fit for the fair, which they are more often than not.

Occasionally, a new brand will stand out, for one reason or another, and they’ll get the seal of approval and an immediate request for a sample to review. Such was the case with Piccola & Joffrete. What stood out wasn’t the watch’s design, though it is altogether pleasant if conservative; rather, it was what appeared to be a high level of finish and a dedication to Swiss manufacturing.

Many watches say Swiss-made on them, the definition of which I’ll elaborate on below, but few say 100% Swiss-made like the Piccola & Joffretes. Typically, those that are 100% Swiss (which is also hard to tell as transparency isn’t a strength of the watch world) cost significantly more, likely starting in the five figures. So, the final aspect that made Piccola & Joffrete (PJ) stand out was their relatively reasonable price point, Swissness considered, of 2500 CHF.

There are several criteria a watch must meet to have “Swiss-made” or “Suisse/Swiss” on the case or dial. As of 2017, at least 60% of the production cost of the watch must be attributed to Switzerland, the movement must be Swiss-made, and engineering, assembly, and QC must take place in Switzerland. Furthermore, the movement must meet a similar 60% value attributed to Switzerland. Often, in watches of a certain price point, likely 10k and below, the movement accounts for the bulk of that 60%, if not all or more, and thus the rest of a watch is made abroad as manufacturing in Switzerland is far more expensive as labor is expensive, and I would assume, geared towards smaller production runs. Mind you, this 60% is cost, not retail price.