It took a few minutes for Patrick Pruniaux to decide to buy Girard-Perregaux and Ulysse Nardin. The two Swiss luxury watch brands had been part of the French luxury conglomerate Kering until earlier this year, which had acquired them in 2011 and 2014 respectively.
Sometimes it can be a pain in neck making decisions but there is a theory where some of the more complicated decisions can be made quite quickly because you feel it, he candidly recalled.
Pruniaux, who was first employed by Kering as CEO of Uysse Nardin in 2017, was surprised by the fact that the Kering Group wanted to sell the brands, but when they informed me it was obvious for me that I had to give it a try, said Pruniaux who was appointed CEO of Girard-Perregaux the following year.
Pruniaux, who had previously held senior positions at TAG Heuer and within LVMH, then galvanised a group of private investors and bought the 100 per cent stake that Kering was relinquishing.
Pruniaux, who found himself a newly-minted entrepreneur, is going from one dream job to another. The 49-year-old is the President and CEO of Sowind Group, which now owns both Girard-Perregaux and Ulysse Nardin.
Kering s announcement of the sale took place in January this year, and it appears that both brands have come full circle once more independent, both now independent.