Cartier Roadster 18kt White Gold Diamond Ladies Watch WE5002X2

The historic building houses the Cartier boutique, Cartier Tradition restoration workshop and "Poinçon de Geneve" workshops in a single prestigious location. For the past four decades, the Maison Cartier has occupied Number 35 on Geneva's most prestigious avenue.
The 1960s structure featuring a fully-glazed historic facade has been redesigned by Bruno Moinard, the architect and interior designer behind the new-look Cartier boutiques across the globe.
As the largest boutique in Europe after Moscow, with 1000 m2 of floor space, the project was an ambitious one. The result is a truly cosmopolitan destination, which cultivates the Maison's identity as jeweller through the touches of a unique, welcoming interior. The ennobling presence of the "Poinçon de Geneve" workshops on site makes for a venue where fine watchmaking comes into its own. The boutique equally devotes to preserving the Maison's heritage through the Cartier Tradition restoration workshop.
Historic facade
The building designed by Swiss architect Pierre Braillard between 1961 and 1969 has been home to Cartier since 1970. Nestled at the heart of Geneva's exclusive luxury shopping district, the glass cube with honeycombed windows has become an architectural staple of the cityscape. The only visible structural change made by Bruno Moinard has been to bring the entrance in line with the facade.
Red, the iconic shade of the Maison
The grand entrance hall is paved with carved stone bordered with red cabochons in Languedoc marble. A spiral staircase swathed in Cartier red ascends to the two upper floors of the Maison. This striking work of art, accentuated by a bronze railing, is intersected by an enormous chandelier, and the floor openings have been decorated by artist Pierre Bonnefille. Designed to be viewed from below, the delicately corrugated underside of the staircase has been carved to a miniscule scale to produce a guillochage effect.
Adjoining salons: a joy to peruse
The curved walls of the jewellery showroom give way to the tan leather upholstered world of men's watchmaking. The layout recalls an 18th-century curiosity shop, and the visitor is drawn in by the welcoming decor throughout, with comfortable seating arranged as in a private apartment.
The boutique's bridal offerings are enswathed in the subdued hues of a bejewelled boudoir. The high jewellery salon presents pieces in curved blown-glass display cases. Selected timepieces are displayed in glass wall cases or carefully laid out in specially designed drawers like an entomologist's butterfly collection. These exclusive furnishings are designed to reflect the refined ambience of the boutique.
Cartier Tradition restoration workshop
The Geneva-based Cartier Tradition department handles commercial activity for Cartier items produced before 1970, offering an exclusive service to clientele seeking to purchase or sell a Cartier piece. Since Cartier is the only true guarantor of the authenticity, quality and condition of its creations, every Cartier Tradition piece comes with a certificate of authenticity, having been carefully identified and restored in accordance with indications from the Maison archives. These collectors' items are restored by Cartier craftsmen at 35 rue du Rhône. Clientele may be admitted to the boutique's first-floor restoration workshop through a remote-controlled sliding door.
"Poinçon de Geneve" workshops
"Poinçon de Geneve" workshops are also located at 35 rue du Rhône in keeping with the 18th-century Genevese tradition of cabinotiers, or watchmaking workers who would ply their trade in a workshop above the boutique, often on view to the public.
The workshop here assembles timepieces in the Cartier fine watchmaking collection that bear the "Poinçon de Geneve" seal, such as the Ballon Bleu de Cartier, flying tourbillon and Rotonde de Cartier double tourbillon mystery watches.The "Poinçon de Geneve" is a prestigious seal of quality, awarded on compliance with requirements relating to aesthetics, technique (design of the movements), and chronometry (level of precision). To be eligible the watch must be assembled and regulated within the Canton of Geneva.
These timepieces are produced by master watchmakers whose craft demands the experience and savoir-faire acquired through many years of training.