Welcome to our series highlighting the exceptional watches available through Perpetual, Phillips’ boutique service offering immediate access to the world’s rarest and most desirable timepieces. You can view all currently available watches by stopping by our London headquarters at 30 Berkeley Square or by visiting Phillips Perpetual online. Our new "Buy Now" button makes acquiring the watch of your dreams easier than ever.
– By Logan Baker
No, it's not a Johnnie Walker collaboration; F.P. Journe’s so-called “Black Label” series of watches began as a way for the brand to reward longtime clients with an even more exclusive watch.
Available solely through the brand’s boutique network, “Black Label” watches feature a platinum case and a dial coated in inky black lacquer. Outside of those elements, Black Label releases can take the form of pretty much any watch in the F.P. Journe catalogue.
Black Label watches are offered only to existing F.P. Journe clients and customers, and it’s said that each F.P. Journe boutique receives no more than a single Black Label watch each month for its best customers. The result is a series that sits slightly in the shadows of the broader Journe catalog. Those who know, know.
F.P. Journe has made watches with black dials in other case metals – such as stainless steel and 18k pink gold – but only platinum-cased watches qualify for the “Black Label” moniker. Additionally, although a Black Label F.P. Journe will always be a “Boutique Edition,” not every Boutique Edition is a Black Label.
The trio offered recently through Phillips Perpetual reveals just how compelling the idea can be.
Three of the brand’s most recognizable watches appear in Black Label form: the Chronomètre Souverain, the Octa Lune, and the Centigraphe Souverain.
Each captures a different dimension of François-Paul Journe’s watchmaking philosophy, unified by that striking combination of platinum and inky black lacquer.
Let's start with the Chronomètre Souverain, perhaps the purest expression of Journe’s approach to chronometry. Inspired by the precision of 19th-century marine chronometers, the design is restrained yet instantly recognizable. The hours and minutes sit slightly off-center, balanced by the small seconds at seven o’clock and a power-reserve indicator at three.
In Black Label guise, the glossy dial amplifies the graphic layout while the platinum case adds a quiet sense of weight and presence. It remains one of the most elegant daily-wearing watches in all of independent watchmaking.
Then there is the Octa Lune, a watch that reflects Journe’s practical side.
Introduced in 2003 as part of the Octa automatic family, it pairs a large moon-phase display with a generous power reserve and everyday usability. The moon-phase aperture itself is charmingly unconventional, shaped like a crescent and rotated horizontally, a subtle nod to the historical design of pocket watches. The present Black Label example is especially notable for its rarity, with only six believed to have been produced.
Finally, the Centigraphe Souverain stands as one of the most inventive chronographs of the 21st century.
Rather than measuring minutes and hours in the traditional manner, the Centigraphe tracks time from 100ths of a second to 10 minutes across three rapidly moving registers. The chronograph is controlled not by pushers but by a rocker at two o’clock, a tactile and distinctly Journe solution.
Inside, the 18k pink-gold calibre isolates the chronograph from the timekeeping train, so activating it doesn’t affect the watch’s amplitude. It’s a technical tour de force hiding behind an unconventional display.
Seen together, these three watches illustrate why the Black Label series has become so desirable.
The formula is minimal: platinum, black lacquer, and extreme exclusivity. Yet within that framework, Journe’s entire universe unfolds, from classical chronometry to experimental mechanics. For collectors already captivated by François-Paul Journe’s work, Black Label watches occupy a special place.
They are not louder or more complicated than their standard counterparts. If anything, they are quieter.
And that is precisely the point.
You can learn more about the above featured watches and view all the currently in-stock watches online at Phillips PERPETUAL.
Phillips PERPETUAL offers a boutique experience to clients for both the sale and purchase of fine and rare watches, in London’s Berkeley Square, Hong Kong's Pedder Arcade, and the Gstaad Palace, in Switzerland.
About Logan Baker
Logan has spent the past ten years covering the watch industry from every angle. He joined Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo in early 2023 as Senior Editorial Manager, after previous roles at Hodinkee and WatchTime. Originally from Texas, he spent a decade in New York and now calls Geneva home.
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