Girard-Perregaux welcomed Nile Rodgers, multiple Grammy Award winning musician, producer, co-founder of the band CHIC and founder and chairman of the We Are Family Foundation for a special visit to its’ manufacturing ateliers in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Rodgers, who has produced some of the greatest hits in pop music history, met with some of Girard-Perregaux’s watch masters to see the encompassing process of the creation of a timepiece. Additionally, Rodgers was invited to sit at the work bench and discover the art of watchmaking by assembling a few parts of a watch mechanism himself.

The visit of the ateliers ended with a cocktail event celebrating the partnership between Girard-Perregaux and Rodgers’ We Are Family Foundation and featured a jam session with the young watchmakers who cultivate the passion of music.

During the cocktail event, the CEO of Girard-Perregaux and Sowind Group, Michele Sofisti, presented Rodgers with a limited edition version of the Shadow Hawk watch that bears the heart of the We Are Family Foundation’s logo on the dial and a dedicated engraving on the back of the case. The all black zirconium ceramic Shadow Hawk timepiece is a contemporary and bold statement with its sleek, stealth, dark look. Deep black, and yet perfectly functional, the elements of the case blend into one another, while keeping their individual strengths to end up accentuating the watch’s architecture. Visible through the case’s sapphire back, the caliber GP03300, a mechanical, self-winding chronograph movement, drives this very high performance piece.

The relationship between Girard-Perregaux and the We Are Family Foundation started in September 2013 with the “Changing Watch” event in New York City, during which the brand honored the Foundation’s mission to nurture and amplify today’s young visionaries who will inhabit the world of tomorrow. “We were honored to have Nile visit our ateliers and witness the creative process that is at the core of watchmaking”, says Michele Sofisti. “In addition there is a great connection between Girard-Perregaux and the We Are Family Foundation. We both nurture young talents who will be the keepers of tradition in the future.”

"Visiting GP's manufacture and discovering the creative process behind each and every single watch, makes me appreciate these timepieces even more. Also I had the chance to witness  how these young watch masters at work bring the tradition of watchmaking into the future."

About We Are Family Foundation:

The We Are Family Foundation (WAFF) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the vision of a global family by creating and supporting programs that inspire and educate the next generation about respect, understanding and appreciation of cultural diversity – while striving to solve some of our biggest global problems at the same time. Since its inception in 2002, WAFF, founded by Grammy Award winning legendary musician Nile Rodgers, has created Three Dot Dash, a Global Teen Leader initiative that has empowered exceptional teens from 40 countries on six continents working together to alleviate issues related to basic human needs; produced TEDxTeen, an annual conference that gives extraordinary teens a platform to share their work, tell their stories and inspire others via their TEDxTeen Talks; created and distributed the award-winning PSA and early childhood educational DVD program, “We Are Family: A Musical Message for All,” to more than 60,000 schools and youth programs internationally; built 17 new schools, providing an education to more than 3,500 boys and girls in Mali and Malawi, Africa, Nepal and Nicaragua. To date, WAFF has made a positive impact on 15 million+ people worldwide. www.wearefamilyfoundation.org