Interview: Pierre Rainero, Guardian of Cartier’s Heritage
Having been at Cartier for almost four decades, Pierre Rainero is part of the institutional memory of a jeweller that was founded in 1847. He is the brand’s “Image, Style and Heritage” director, a post he has held since 2003 and one that also puts him in charge of the Cartier Collection, the brand’s own trove of historical timepieces, objects, and jewels that numbers over 1,500 items – the physical manifestation of the jeweller’s storied history. Mr Rainero’s title, along with his encyclopaedic knowledge of the house, means he determines whether something – anything really, ranging from watches and jewellery to marketing and strategy – is truly Cartier. We spoke with Mr Rainero during Watches & Wonders 2022 to unravel the process behind the development of new watches at Cartier. And he also tells us about the time Igor Stravinsky had a Cartier clock thrown at him. The interview was edited for clarity and length. SJX: Congratulations – it’s an impressive collection [launched at Watches & Wonders]. Pierre Rainero (PR): Thank you, thank you. SJX: The Crash is incredible of course. PR: Indeed, it’s just a step further [than we usually go]… It’s always difficult to rework the Crash because it’s such a statement in itself, so here was a certain finesse needed to take it further. In this case we capitalised on the original shape, but created something something else entirely because of the decoration, colours, and how it is perceived. The Crash Tigr...
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