Panerai

Panerai was established in 1860 as a combined watchmaking school, repair workshop, and a sales showroom under Founder Giovanni Panerai. In the late 19th century, partnerships with leading Swiss watchmakers set the groundwork for Panerai’s watch production model, and in-house mechanical engineering, component fabrication, and instrument design core competencies. Panerai has a deep heritage rooted in tactical and amphibious devices for special forces, with much of Panerai’s consumer catalog - which would debut 133 years after the company’s founding - featuring modern reexaminations of original turn of the century and WWII-era tactical prototypes and dive models, like those found in the Luminor and Radiomir collections. Beyond looking backwards for inspiration, Panerai today is also synonymous with innovation. The R&D-focused watchmaker was the first to include auxiliary straps and strap-changing tools as standard with its watches, giving way to a rich subculture of owners who collect and trade Panerai accessory straps.