Jerome Cavadini Defines The Brand's Sustainability Plans

Panerai Chief Operating Officer Jerome Cavadini defines the brand’s sustainability plans in terms of realism, and tells us how this plan took shape

- Ashok Soman

Those who consume watch-related content voraciously will recognise most of the names that get cited in various stories. Panerai CEO Jean-Marc Pontroue, for example, will be familiar to not only you, dear reader but also the Paneristi of course. He will also be quite well-known to Roger Dubuis collectors and probably Montblanc aficionados too. This is a phenomenon not limited to the C-suite, with some brands using the same product presenters year after year. So when Panerai offered us the chance to interview Chief Operating Office Jerome Cavadini, a man I have not personally met or interacted with, and whom we have never featured in WOW (in the last six years at least), we just had to say yes. One of the nice things about our Zoom era is that we get to meet all manner of people who were previously inaccessible.

As a 25-year veteran of the watch trade (11 of those years have been at Panerai), the fact that Cavadini had not taken the spotlight before was unusual. This is perhaps best explained by Panerai’s stance during Angelo Bonatti’s tenure as CEO when only he faced the press. I recall many a time that we wanted to feature someone at the brand, but there is only one CEO and many who crave an audience. There was a serious cult of personality around the man, which Cavadini explains with just a few words. All we know is that it was just as difficult to get 30 minutes with Bonatti as it was to get one’s hands on a Bronzo! Seriously though, it was all part of the mystique of Panerai - a military secret that had found a second life as a horological icon.