Creating a symbolic timepiece has become a garden-variety move. Collabs between brands are all the rage and their abundace is a sign of our times. The one Giorgio Armani struck with Parmigiani Fleurier is altogether different. It's not a co-branding thing with an x in the middle. The collection Giorgio Armani 11 features but a single name on the dial : that of the Milanese tailor.
Before anything else, let's put things in their rightful place. In order to situate this timepiece, we need to unravel the maze of brands containing the word Armani. Giorgio Armani is their flagship, most upscale brand. It creates for both women and men, is rooted in the man's early 1980s tailor days, when he all but revolutionized the suit. There are Emporio Armani (aka EA) watches, but they belong in an inferior category, and use mainly quartz movements. They're really accessories.
The 11 collection on the other hand is one of fine watchmaking The fact that it's entirely manufactured by Parmigiani Fleurier is a testament to its blue-bloodedness. From their agreement struck in 20202, five models are born, in rose gold or steel, with black, gray, blue or cream-white dial. All of them are limited editions in the proper sense of the word since the largest will be the steel ones, a two times 50-piece series. Beyond its horological specs (calibre PF047 with moon phase, self-winding with a herringbone pattern rotor, finishings alla Parmigiani, cushion-shaped case of beautiful proportions and fit), the 11 collection is all about the detail.
The dial is stamped with a herringbone pattern, reminiscent of a cloth. The seconds hand has one end shaped like an eye, as if it were about to be threaded. The minutes and hours hands form a pair of scissors, a tool from the tailor's workshop. The crown is fitted with a black spinel cabochon, like a button. One could go as far as noticing that the applied indices, with their small indentations, look like a chalk sharpener, that other tailor's tool. Lastly, the name itself is a reference to the headquarters of the brand, Via Borgonuovo.
With different means and a determination that needs to withstand the test of time, Giorgio Armani is joining the choir of Dior, Hermès and Louis Vuitton. Their watchmaking ambitions are altogether older and more elaborate. But stitching theirs with Parmigiani Fleurier is certainly a sign that the Milan behemoth is taking things very seriously.
