New Precision Watches Flagship Elevates PA Shopping Destination (AZA / Alexander Zilberman AI

PHILADELPHIA - Nov. 20, 2023 - PRLog -- The luxury retail architect and designer AZA has been tapped to conceive a new, freestanding specialty center for the world's best watches and timepieces in Lower Gwynedd Township, Pennsylvania.

Clad in intricate Roman brickwork and limestone, the 9,000-square-foot new building is currently under construction on a very prominent, wedge-shaped site.

Located in a desirable shopping area about 20 miles from Philadelphia, the new headquarters and showrooms — to include mini-boutiques for world-leading watch brands — represents a departure for the watchmaker PRECISION WATCHES, founded in 1955. Formerly anchoring the nearby Willow Grove Mall, Precision Watches showcases prestigious, high-end brands with intricate movements, and is led by president Roman Murat, a third-generation watchmaker.

"This new building embodies an important new phase for our organization, establishing our own presence and architectural identity reflecting our brand partners' needs as well as our own legacy of expertise in luxury timepieces," says Murat. "It has been valuable working with architect Alex Zilberman, who can foresee challenges in the luxury retail market, and, ultimately, translate brand identity into a memorable, magnetic architecture."

With broad experience in ultra-luxury retail, Alexander Zilberman Architecture (AZA) designed the new two-story commercial structure, with a large mezzanine level for offices, as a watch enthusiast's destination. Large window openings are chiseled from the classic masonry facades, with lintels and zipper-stone patterns recalling a watchband. Built with custom Roman brick masonry over a base of split-face limestone — recalling the area's flagstone favored on Quaker cottages — all under a champagne-hued, standing-seam metal roof.

Inside, the welcoming interiors offer four large boutique showplaces for top brands as well as an open, airy showroom with comfortable furnishings and bright, well-appointed spaces for consultations and repairs. Bars and a café offer refreshments for customers, along with full facilities for those wishing to extend their time at the stores.

A destination celebrating the world of high-end horology, AZA's interiors combine modern technology and time-tested finishes including marble, limestone, and artisan plaster with an experiential layout. A double-height atrium with a reception console of marble welcomes customers through to the gallery and circulation zone leading to product displays and cases for general sales, as well as four first-floor boutique pavilions for four renowned watchmakers. Enclosed in wood paneling, metal mesh or bronze, the pavilions are bespoke settings designed and fitted by those watchmakers.

Precision Watches' headquarters and multi-retailer showroom by https://azarchdesign.com/ is expected to open in March 2024.