Girard-Perregaux has a funny habit of being the brand everyone respects but nobody talks about enough. The Laureato has been doing the luxury steel sports watch thing since 1975, a full year before the Nautilus showed up, and yet it still gets treated like a redheaded stepchild in a category it helped create.
This new Laureato Chronograph 42mm won’t change that overnight. But it might be the prettiest argument GP has made for itself in years.
The watch is a two-tone piece in 904L steel and rose gold, and it’s limited to just 50 examples worldwide. The rose gold accents hit the octagonal bezel, the crown and the chronograph pushers, all sitting against the steel tonneau-shaped case.
It’s a nod to the two-tone watches that were everywhere in the 1970s, the decade the Laureato was born, but done with enough restraint that it reads as warm and considered rather than bling.
A Dial That Earns Its Keep
The brown dial is the real star here. It carries a Clou de Paris hobnail pattern across the entire surface, a texture that shifts and catches light depending on the angle. Rose gold applied indices and hands keep the whole composition speaking one tonal language.
At 42mm across with a case that sits 11.9mm thick, it wears well without feeling like a dinner plate on the wrist. And rather than the usual steel bracelet, GP has gone with a rubber strap stamped with the same Clou de Paris hobnail pattern from the dial. It’s a smart call for a chronograph that’s meant to be worn daily, not locked in a safe.
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The Movement That Justifies The Price
Flip it over and you’re looking at the Calibre GP03300 through a sapphire caseback. This is GP’s in-house automatic chronograph, and the finishing is where the brand quietly punches well above what most people expect.
Circular graining, Côtes de Genève, bevelling, mirror polishing, sunburst finishing, snailing. It’s a 63-jewel movement running at 4Hz with a 46-hour power reserve. None of that is revolutionary on paper, but the execution is the point.
At $46,300 AUD, this is not cheap. But context matters. The standard steel Laureato Chronograph retails around $30,800 AUD, so you’re paying a premium for the rose gold touches and the exclusivity of a 50-piece run. For reference, an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph in steel will set you back well north of $60,000 AUD at retail, assuming you can get one.
The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Chronograph is in a similar ballpark.
DMARGE’s Two Seconds
The Laureato has always been the connoisseur’s pick in the luxury steel sports watch category. This two-tone chronograph, limited to 50 pieces with a fully in-house movement and that brown Clou de Paris dial, is the kind of watch that makes you wonder why more people aren’t paying attention.
At $46,300 AUD, it’s serious money. But it’s also serious watchmaking.
Specifications
| Reference | 81020-56-3578-1CX |
| Movement | Calibre GP03300, in-house automatic chronograph |
| Frequency | 4Hz |
| Power Reserve | 46 hours |
| Jewels | 63 |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, small seconds, chronograph with 30-minute and 12-hour counters, date |
| Case | 42mm, 904L steel with rose gold bezel, crown and pushers |
| Case Thickness | 11.90mm |
| Dial | Brown with Clou de Paris motif |
| Crystal | Sapphire (front and back) |
| Water Resistance | 100 metres |
| Strap | Rubber with Clou de Paris hobnail pattern |
| Limited Edition | 50 pieces |
| Price | $46,300 AUD / $55,400 NZD |
