Until a few years ago, the Internet was considered almost taboo by Swiss watchmakers. Today, brands, including the most prestigious ones such as Tissot T Race, have changed their minds: they have firmly started e-commerce to revive their business. In recent months, not a day or more has passed without watchmakers making announcements in the field of online sales. Whether on their own platform or through third party sites, Swiss watchmakers are now making this distribution channel a priority.
Some things to know about watchmaking in Switzerland
Although there are some watchmakers who remain completely immune to these developments, the overall findings are clear: selling luxury goods on the Web is no longer considered defamation when e-commerce explodes, especially in the United States and China. As a proof, even brands like Roger Dubuis, whose average price of parts oscillates between 60,000 and 80,000 francs, are currently considering implementing an online sales strategy. Because they want to foster the idea of exclusivity associated with their products, watchmakers keep repeating so far that the atmosphere, experience and services offered in official stores are very important to build the prestige of their products.
So, are we witnessing a small revolution in how to sell and distribute products that are the pride of the Swiss export industry?
As has happened with the arrival of connected watches, the Swatch GroupOutdoor link, the world’s largest watch group, has relocated “current media packaging” around the sale of online watches. This theme is not new at all. The Swatch brand has had its own e-commerce platform since 2001. They are pioneers in this field.
Omega, the brand that generates the largest turnover of the group – more than 2 billion francs per year – has produced a huge madness last year with sales on limited edition social networks. The Speedmaster model, then announced the launch of its own e-commerce store in the United States.
The second largest Swatch Group brand in terms of turnover, Longines has done the same in several countries, including China and the United States. The winged hourglass brand also comes with a variety of watches at the Hodinkee External link, the watchmaking media that is now important in the sale of watches on the Net across the Atlantic. Many other similar initiatives have been launched or will soon be launched by various brands.
While the RichemontOutdoor group – which has the Cartier brand, IWC or Jaeger-LeCoultre – created the “Chief Technology Officer” position earlier in the year, within the Swatch Group, each independent brand and decided on its own e-commerce strategy, the spokesman continued. Under certain conditions, authorized retailers and group brand franchisees also have the option to develop their own sales website. In Switzerland, this includes the Lucerne watch retailer, BuchererOutdoor, which is currently investing heavily in occupying the Internet until now rather neglected.
Formex
However, even if its fame does not exceed the initiated circle, Formex is an established institution. Founded in 1998, this brand is famous for fans of mechanical and extreme sports. But if Formex for some time aroused curiosity in the Swiss media, it was because of the announcement of radical repositioning in the digital world. They are the first and by far the only Swiss watch brand that has decided to sell only watches on the web. At first, they went on traditional sales. Then they switched to online direct selling and the decision was made possible by the elimination of intermediaries and, therefore, their margins.
Today, it seems that Swiss watches will dominate the online watch market…
