Blancpain has opened its second boutique in the Shanghai area, located in The Swatch Art Peace Hotel. This is the 275-year-old watchmaker’s 37th boutique worldwide.

Sitting at the intersection of the riverfront Bund and the Nanjing river, Shanghai’s Peace Hotel is one of the premier hotspots in the city. Since 1894, Shanghai’s most prestigious hotels have called this place home, and it remains the hub of the city’s social and political life.

Each boutique’s interior is inspired by Blancpain’s roots at the Vallee de Joux, and this new one is no different. The rich, wood-toned walls and the farmhouse style windows of the display cases are inspired by the watchmaker’s Le Brassus atelier, most notably the finishes on the workshops and work benches.

With this being the second boutique in Shanghai, Blancpain’s presence is further strengthened in China. The watchmaker received a tremendous honor from the Chinese government: Beijing’s Forbidden City Museum recently chose one modern timepiece to add to its highly distinguished collection of historic watches and clocks. The watch that was chosen: Blancpain’s Carrousel.

On display at the new boutique were two of Blancpain’s timepieces that were made with the flying one-minute carrousel: the Brauss Carrousel Répétition Minute — a grand new complication — and the Carrousel Saphir, which, true to its name, has its movement plates and bridges constructed out of sapphire.

-Affluent Page

[Blancpain]