Girard-Perregaux was technically founded in 1791, but it did not gain its distinctive name until the 1850s when it was bought by Constant Girard and Marie Perregaux. This Swiss watchmaking company is known for timepieces that combine beautiful elegance with innovative technology.
The Girard-Perregaux logo reflects the company’s devotion to style, so it has been changed many times to reflect current trends. Keep reading to discover more of the rich tradition behind this historical luxury watchmaking-brand’s logo.
Girard-Perregaux Logo Design Elements
The Girard-Perregaux logo is essentially a large logotype. It contains three lines of text that are used to sum up the company’s brand identity. Each line of text is centered, creating a tidy and symmetrical appearance. The logo is normally written as black text on transparent or white background, but the colors can change occasionally.
At the top of the logo are the initials “GP” in a large font. The center of the logo says the full name, “Girard-Perregaux,” in slightly smaller text, and then the bottom says “Mechanics of Time since 1791” in much tinier text. All of the letters are capitalized, and they are written in a beautiful san-serif font that contains slanted curves and slightly curling serifs.
Changes and Evolution
1. Shape
It is no surprise that Girard-Perregaux has had several logos since they have been around for almost 250 years. At first, the logo was actually for Jean-Francois Bautte, the former owner of the company. For a while, they used variations of a circular font with heraldic symbols like eagles, anchors, and sea serpents. These logos referenced the company’s position as wristwatch producers for the navy.
Once they switched to text logos, Girard-Perregaux changed the text several times. For a while in the mid 1900s, it said “Fine Watches since 1791.” The inclusion of the large brand initials is the most recent major change, occurring just a couple of decades ago. The tagline in the logo has occasionally changed as well. Past mottos include “Watches for the Few Since 1791” and “Swiss Haute Horlogerie Since 1791.”
2. Color
Like many other watchmaking companies, Girard-Perregaux has made the smart decision to avoid limiting their brand to just one color. Though it frequently shows up as white text on a black background, the Girard-perregaux logo can technically be any color. It frequently shows up in tasteful neutrals, like black, grey, white, gold, silver, or brown, when it is on watches.
3. Font
The font for the basic “Girard-Perregaux” portion of the logo has changed many times along with the logo itself. For many years, an ornate script font was used to reference the impressive history of the brand. When it was updated, it became a somewhat gothic font. This was changed to an elongated san-serif font similar to the style that was popular in the 1960s and 1970s. After bouncing around between trendy fonts for a while, it seems that Girard-Perregaux has finally settled on a font they like. Their current font has remained the same for many recent logos.
Influences/Inspiration
Girard-Perregaux designed their logo with a few key goals in mind. They knew they needed something versatile, since the company likes to put elements from their logo on watches. Therefore, a combination of brand name and brand initials was chosen. The initials are small enough to fit on tiny watch components, while the brand name is long enough to arch around the face of a watch. Girard-Perregaux always includes a motto about their founding date because they know that consumers value tradition and history when they are shopping for luxury watches.
Trivia
- Girard-Perregaux’s logo has the honor of being on the first wristwatch that was ever commercially produced. They were made for German naval officers, and even Kaiser Wilhelm I wore one.
- The company gets its name from Constant Girard, who named it with his family name and his wife’s maiden name. At the time, it was quite unusual for a watch company to contain the name of a female.
- Though you can seen most of the logo on Girard-Perregaux watches, the motto is never included.
Conclusion
Though the Girard-Perregaux logo has changed several times, they always include a few key elements. A motto referencing their founding in 1791 helps to remind buyers of the brand’s proud history and tradition of excellence. The use of the brand initials makes the logo instantly recognizable while the inclusion of the full name of the brand further highlights that they are an important part of Swiss luxury watchmaking tradition.
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