Here's the Lowdown on the Patek Philippe Cubitus
President of Patek Philippe Mr Thierry Stern shares about the new square icon during the international launch in Munich.
At Patek Philippe’s Germany headquarters in Munich, the Singapore press were the first group to be introduced to the new Cubitus collection. What an absolute privilege. Even better, we had first dibs with the President of Patek Philippe Mr Thierry Stern, who arrived in such high spirits that he couldn’t help but immediately launch into conversation: “For me, the goal really was to find a square watch that was sporty and classy.”
“For me, the goal really was to find a square watch that was sporty and classy.”
Why square, specifically? “Because we don’t have many of them in the collection,” he says. “And if we want to have a complete collection, I need a beautiful square watch to be a part of it.” Indeed, Patek Philippe has done plenty of shaped cases under the Gondolo line, mostly rectangular, tonneau or cushion, but when it came to squares, turns out there really aren’t many examples throughout the entire history of the brand.
Mr Stern’s excitement about a new square watch isn’t just about the form but also the feeling of discovery, of surprise. Nobody would have expected Patek Philippe to debut a new square collection, and Mr Stern took that as a personal challenge. “In the beginning, we tried many different styles, but they were always too thick. Which, as you know, I don’t love,” he says. “Frankly, the first designs were also too easy. Anybody could do it. No, Patek Philippe has to go further, be something more.”
Which brings us to the Nautilus; everyone was acutely aware of the resemblance. It may not have been part of the Cubitus’ inception, but an uncompromising quest for thinness naturally led Mr Stern to the iconic design; he still thoroughly enjoys the slim profile of the original Nautilus, even today. In the end, the Cubitus has all the trappings of the Nautilus — a spiritual sibling, if you will — but with its own DNA, personality and movement.
Speaking of, the new calibre 240 PS CI J LU innovates with instantaneous grand date, day and moonphase indications. Built on the Manufacture’s thinnest self-winding calibre, the renowned calibre 240, it involves six patent-pending mechanisms, mostly to do with the energy management for the various displays and their simultaneous 18-milisecond jumps. Patek Philippe didn’t have to go this hard for a budding collection, but they did anyway and that is why they’re considered the best. Two automatic models with date and metal bracelets round out the collection, one in steel with an olive dial and the other in bi-colour steel and rose gold.
In total, the Cubitus design took four years to realise, with two additional years to develop the platinum model’s complicated movement. The name, however, came right away. “It’s quite funny. I had ‘Cubitus’ in mind — don’t ask me why — and I immediately said we were going to call the new collection that. Everybody was like, ‘Huh?’,” recalls a bemused Mr Stern. But years of experience have given the President the tremendous instincts to know which names work and which don’t, especially at a global, multilingual level. Cubitus, this sort of portmanteau of “cube” and “Nautilus”, apparently has the sauce.
A large part of the initial criticisms of the Cubitus involved its comparison to the Nautilus. Mr Stern remains unfazed. “I don’t mind. Why should I change [the design] just because people will say they look the same? So what? If it’s nice, just do it. That’s what I try to teach my designers and the people working on a product.” It’s refreshing to be in the presence of a man who knows his own mind. “Just because you have done it in the past doesn’t mean you should not redo something similar. You adapt it, change some of its codes. The Cubitus may look like the Nautilus, but it is not.”
“Just because you have done it in the past doesn’t mean you should not redo something similar. You adapt it, change some of its codes. The Cubitus may look like the Nautilus, but it is not.”
It makes sense, with the overwhelming demand for the Nautilus and even the Aquanaut, to have something with a similar aura and allure. The steel Cubitus is positioned at an entry level — mind you, this is still Patek Philippe we’re talking about, so don’t go expecting the entry prices of your average timepieces. Patek Philippe is never average. “The difference with Patek Philippe is that I try to make something that I would be happy with. We are watchmakers first, and we are passionate about what we do. We have pleasure and we have fun with our work. That is our pedigree.”
