La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland (February 16, 2012) – Girard-Perregaux, iconic luxury Swiss watch brand, and JeanRichard are proud to announce the appointment of Michael Margolis to its team as the new President of America for the Sowind Group. Margolis will join Michele Sofisti, Sowind Group CEO, Stefano Macaluso, Girard-Perregaux Managing Director, and Massimo Macaluso, JeanRichard Managing Director, to oversee the U.S. expansion strategy. Born in the United States, Margolis graduated with a double major in Latin American Studies and Foreign Languages from the University of Connecticut. Proficient in English, Spanish, Portuguese and German, he began a sales career at Crest Reprographics and later on moved on to Nikon. His life in the watch industry came as a result of his passion for luxury timepieces, which he developed as TimeZone.com moderator from 1996 till 2007. It was at this time that Margolis began his professional career in the watch industry, when at the time Hublot CEO, Jean-Claude Biver, brought him into the team as Sales Director in the U.S.
“Mike is a remarkable individual, with true passion for the craft”, says Michele Sofisti, CEO of Sowind Group (Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard). “We are very glad to have him on board to lead the U.S. team into this new phase of the brand and are sure that together we will be very successful”.

Margolis will join the Sowind Group (Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard) as President of America starting March 1st, 2012, where he will use his long experience and success in the watch industry to help the brands achieve their ambitious goals in the U.S. market.

“I am very excited and honored to join iconic brands like Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard”, says Michael Margolis. “I have admired the brands and their heritage from afar for many years and greatly look forward to being a part of the team”.


About Girard-Perregaux
Girard-Perregaux is a Swiss high-end watch manufacturer tracing its origins back to 1791. The history of the brand is marked by legendary watches that combine sharp design with innovative technology such as the renowned Tourbillon with Three Gold Bridges presented by Constant Girard-Perregaux in 1889 at the Paris Universal exhibition where he was awarded a gold medal.
Devoted to the creation of state-of-the-art Haute Horlogerie, the Brand is one of the very few watchmakers to unite under the same roof all the skills to design and manufacture watches including the forging of their heart, the movement. With over 80 registered patents, Girard-Perregaux is fully committed to research and development to constantly fuse its unique heritage into modern watchmaking.

About Jeanrichard
Jeanrichard is a Swiss watchmaker that designs and creates high quality watches, combining traditional knowledge and skills with a truly innovative approach. Based in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, Jeanrichard enjoys extensive creative and technical independence, promoting in-house development of watches.

With roots going all way back to 1681 and links to the watchmaking genius Daniel Jeanrichard (famed as one of the founding fathers of the Swiss watchmaking industry), the brand was taken over by Sowind Group (Girard-Perregaux) in 1988. Jeanrichard has been successfully reinterpreting time ever since, injecting contemporary energy inspired by a tradition on pioneering spirit. Acquascope, Highlands… Each collection has an assertive identity and combines a high level of expertise with the curiosity for discovering new horizons.

Labels: Girard-Perregaux Mike Margolis Hublot Stefano Macaluso Massimo Macaluso Michele Sofisti