Few watchmaking families actually involve all family members in the business; the Preziusos are a notable exception. Antoine, the father, is an indefatigable creator of watches; his wife May is a pillar of the firm. At their side are Laura, the family’s jeweller, and Florian, who is following in his father’s footsteps.
In 2000, Antoine Preziuso was 43. The start of a new millennium was a landmark for him, but his career had started well before that. He had come into watchmaking through the front door, having graduated top of his year from his watchmaking school in Geneva, followed by a first job with Patek Philippe. From there he moved to Antiquorum before opening his own restoration workshops, taking orders from Les Cabinotiers de Genève, and later Breguet. The next chapter in the story followed naturally: the creation of the ‘Antoine Preziuso Genève’ brand in 2000. Since then, Antoine’s watchmaking creativity has gone from strength to strength: hidden complications, creative jewellery, an exploration of titanium, taking part in the SIHH and QP exhibitions, and more besides.
At the same time, Antoine inaugurated his ‘Private Salons’ in Geneva, bringing together friends of the brand on an annual basis. Meanwhile the network was developing, too: Russia and the Middle East in 2003, the opening of the first store in Geneva in 2004, Kiev and Osaka in 2007, and Dubai in 2010, amongst others.
In 2011, Antoine sold his premises in Plan-les-Ouates to Jacob & Co. He wanted to maintain controlled growth, in keeping with his craftsmanship approach, and moved his business to the countryside outside Geneva. There, together with his son, he concentrates on top-end and bespoke watches.
One complication in particular stands out from the crowd: the tourbillon. Antoine has made it his speciality: “Ever since I was in watchmaking school I’ve been thoroughly captivated and enthralled by the tourbillon. There’s something mesmerising about this gravity-defying mechanism.”
In 2010, his ‘Mega Tourbillon’ was the largest in the world. It was followed by one of the very few ‘sports’ tourbillons in existence, the GTS. However, the ‘Tourbillon of Tourbillons’ was to have an even greater impact: featuring a ballet of three tourbillons rotating on a revolving platform, the piece won two awards at a single Grand Prix de l’Horlogerie de Genève competition in 2015. The future, already secure in the capable hands of Antoine’s son Florian, will doubtless be just as much of a whirl.
*On the occasion of GMT Magazine and WorldTempus' 20th anniversary, we have embarked on the ambitious project of summarising the last 20 years in watchmaking in The Millennium Watch Book, a big, beautifully laid out coffee table book. This article is an extract. The Millennium Watch Book is available on www.the-watch-book.com, in French and English, with a 10% discount if you use the following code: WT2021.
