The ground floor of the Mandarin Oriental Residences, in the Jardinets de Gràcia, will soon have tenants. This is the first Patek Philippe boutique in Barcelona. Swiss Union, which has been selling the emblematic brand's watches since 1929, plans to open the new establishment at the end of the year. An architectural team is now working on the design of the boutique, which marks a turning point for the two historic brands.
The establishment, strategically located at number 111 Paseo de Gracia, next to Diagonal, has 460 square meters spread over two floors. The intention is to create a new space where we can offer a unique experience to customers. For this, this building has been chosen, which originally housed the headquarters of Deutsche Bank in Barcelona and which was completely remodeled by Carlos Ferrater (National Architecture Prize winner) to transform it into high-standing residences.
The commitment of Unión Switzerland, the historic family business founded in 1840 by the Vendrell family, is to turn this space into a reference point for watches and jewelry from the Swiss brand. In fact, both firms share history since the 1920s, when the grandfather of the current generation of Vendrells already worked with the grandfather of the current president of Patek Philippe, Thierry Stern. The relationship has continued to the present, with the brothers Lluís, Xavier, Cesar and David Vendrell at the head of the company and with the seventh generation already incorporated into the business.
Not far from what will be the first exclusive boutique in Barcelona, is the Unión Suisse store on Diagonal 482, which already has an exclusive space for the sale of Patek Philippe pieces. This corner is a sample of the parallel history of both firms. In fact, the origins of the two sagas date back to 1840, when Jaume Vendrell and Francisca Castellá established a jewelry business and workshop in Barcelona, just a year after Antoine Norbert de Patek and François Czapek founded Patek, Czapek in 1839.
The objective of Unión Suisse is to inaugurate the establishment at the end of this year, in which the spirit of two more than century-old firms with ambition for the future will be maintained. It will be on the ground floor of the building that was completed remodeled two years ago, after KKH bought the block in 2014 when it was still Deutsche Bank offices with the intention of converting it into what was to be the Four Seasons hotel and which has finally been the luxury residences managed by Mandarin Oriental.
