Panerai chief executive Jean-Marc Pontroué has just revealed he’s stepping down in a post on his personal Instagram account. He took up the job almost exactly seven years ago, after six years as chief executive of Roger Dubuis and over a decade at Montblanc, where most notably he led the brand’s high-end watchmaking efforts (that were dialled back under subsequent managers).

Mr Pontroué’s successor, effective April 1, will be Emmanuel Perrin, currently head of Specialist Watchmakers (SWM), essentially the watch division of Richemont, the Swiss luxury group that also owns Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels. According to insiders, SWM will continue to exist, but at a regional level, rather than the group-level entity it is now.

Emmanuel Perrin

Mr Pontroué landed at Panerai with big shoes to fill: his predecessor, Angelo Bonati, led the brand for over two decades, taking it from essentially nothing to one of the hottest brands in the 2000s. Panerai’s impressive momentum had begun to slow towards the end of Mr Bonati’s tenure, and despite his best efforts Mr Pontroué never managed to recapture the magic.

Amongst the initiatives launched by Mr Pontroué at Panerai was sustainability in watchmaking materials and packaging, as well as a renewed engagement with Paneristi, the community of dedicated Panerai fans – underlined by historically inspired new launches coming in 2024.

The brand’s direction will now be determined by Mr Perrin. During his spell leading SWM, Mr Perrin ruffled a lot of feathers amongst watch retailers as he closed third-party retailers in favour of in-house boutiques.

Mr Pontroué’s replacement by Mr Perrin can be seen as a natural consequence of the elevation of Nicolas Bos to the Richemont chief executive role in mid 2024. Mr Bos’ promotion to the group’s top job led to a demise of SWM as he gained oversight of the group’s wide variety of brands. Interestingly, a senior Richemont manager commented to me in mid November 2024 that SWM was no longer something they needed to “worry about”.

Addition March 19, 2025: Confirmation that Emmanuel Perrin is the incoming chief executive of Panerai.