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JeanRichard
it’s all
in the case
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Watch business paper – USA & Canada – VOL.50 N°1 FEBRUARY / MARCH 2014with index of all in-depth articles published online
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from the world’s finest watchmakers
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May 16-18, 2014
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editorial
uPierre M. Maillard
Editor-in-chief
Europa Star
The combination of computeraided design, high-precision
machining on increasingly
powerful multi-axis CNC machines, high-tech
materials science and… the ever thicker
wallets of the über rich is pushing high-end
watchmaking ever higher and ever further.
Which watches stood out during the
SIHH week? Without prompting, “observers” would cite the wrist planetarium
developed by Van Cleef & Arpels, the Poker
watch by Christophe Claret, the Perpetual
Calendar with Equation of time by Greubel
Forsey, the Dizzy Hands by Richard Mille,
the TerraLuna by A. Lange & Söhne or the
DB28 by De Bethune… All extraordinary
watches, it must be said, some of which
are superb, but the cheapest one costs
100,000 Swiss francs (excluding tax).
There seems to be no end to this upward
spiral, at the risk of one day breaking the
bank.
Journalists from around the world – most
of whom cannot even dream of one day
owning such a timepiece that costs the
same as a house with a swimming pool
– drool over these mechanical accomplishments worthy of being in a museum,
some of which have admirable levels of
complexity and sophistication. But they
forget that the bread and butter of the
watchmaking industry is not there. These
pieces enjoy media coverage that is not
commensurate with their real importance
to the world’s daily watch business. They
are literally talking pieces, whose main
objective is to attract media attention. Of
course, they bear witness to a high level of
horological research and development and
they generate an interest that should theoretically rub off on the rest of the industry.
But we must not forget that these über
T
watches represent a mere handful of the
1.2 billion timepieces produced each year.
We can claim, justifiably, that they are the
driving force behind all the others. But we
can also claim that by focusing most of the
media hype on them we create a disparity
between this hyper-exclusive top of the
range and everything else, which gets
neglected.
And this “everything else” includes many
accomplished products that are worthy of
greater interest.
Let’s take the example of the perpetual
calendar. Until now, it has been confined to
the elite among timepieces and you had to
spend at least several tens of thousands of
Swiss francs or euros to acquire an example
of the complication that is after all more
useful than a chronograph, which nobody
really uses in their daily life. Under the
leadership of Jérôme Lambert, Montblanc
has just launched a perpetual calendar for
10,000 euros (which is still a considerable
sum). And what did we hear in the plush
surroundings of the SIHH? “They are going
to kill the perpetual calendar,” exclaimed
some, concerned for their own geese that
lay the golden eggs. But isn’t this the ultimate goal of any technological development:
to manage to democratise it, to “share” it
as Montblanc says? Isn’t this essential if
high-end watchmaking wants to avoid living
solely in its own bubble, as sumptuous as it
may be, and avoid becoming disconnected
from general opinion? Because, beyond the
confines of the initiated, the most common
refrain from “normal” people, the silent majority, from all those who only think about
watches once or twice a year, was: “they
are crazy, these prices are insane, sickening”. We may laugh and we may mock,
but isn’t this a kind of warning? What if,
one day, fed up with all this excess, the
average consumer turned away… to buy a
smartwatch for example? Then it would be
goodbye to the bread and butter. p
www.watch-aficionado.com
Terrascope by JeanRichard
44mm case in polished and vertically satin-finished black DLC-coated stainless steel, matt
black dial with luminescent hour markers and hands. Powered by the JR60 self-winding
movement, which operates at 28,800 vibrations per hour and offers 38 hours of power
reserve. Matching black rubber strap with black PVD-coated stainless-steel folding buckle;
water resistant to 100 metres. www.jeanrichard.com
EDITORIAL
The Swiss watchmaking industry’s poker risk
COVER STORY
JeanRichard – it’s all in the case
SIHH 2014
Interview – Richemont to invest 300 million Swiss francs this year
Astronomical sums
The “Lambertisation” of Montblanc
A feminine offensive at Richard Mille
Practical complications for the discerning collector
Diver’s watch redux
Ladies’ watches – new crafts and old favourites
GENEVA SHOWS
In the grand hotels of Geneva
A horological and geographical journey
BASELWORLD 2014
Titoni, in China for over 50 years
Ressence, recapturing the essence of a watch
Pilo & Co., the journey of an independent brand
SERVICE, PLEASE!
Analysing customer behaviour
RETAILER PROFILE
Retailer limited editions
Dakota Watches – Making a success in shopping malls
WORLDWATCHWEB
The WorldWatchReport™ 2014 Haute Horlogerie Preview
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Read all articles on
www.watch-aficionado.com
SIHH – INTERVIEW
Richemont to invest 300 million
Swiss francs this year
The following interview with Richard Lepeu and Bernard Fornas, co-CEOs of Richemont, by Bastien Buss growth? There is no point. It is up to us to put
ourselves in the best possible position. What
was published in French in the Swiss newspaper Le Temps on 25th January 2014.
Bastien Buss: How did the SIHH go for
your brands? Are orders up?
Bernard Fornas: There were no surprises in
that we continue to see a lot of interest from
our customers, the retailers. They have the opportunity to admire, in the space of a few days,
all the explosive creativity of our maisons, to
meet the management of our brands and to
have their respective strategies explained or
re-explained. This level of proximity is unique
and gives them chance to cover a major part
of the watch industry.
Richard Lepeu: Add to this all the meetings
with the journalists. At 1,300, there were 10
per cent more of them this year. The SIHH
really is the unmissable annual event for the
brands present and all our customers, just
as BaselWorld is for the others. It’s the 24th
edition but we still feel the same energy and
the same enthusiasm.
by retailers. This applies less to the brands who
are more active with their own stores.
RL: It is above all important for high-end
watchmaking, especially for limited series production. More specifically, the general mood in
the sector is very positive, at least as far as our
maisons are concerned. Most macroeconomic
factors suggest that things will improve further
but we won’t be drawn into making any
specific forecasts.
Richard Lepeu
Bernard Fornas
What does the SIHH mean for the fourth
quarter of your 2013-2014 non-calendar
fiscal year and beyond?
RL: We have just published sound results for
the third quarter, so we won’t go back over
those. Holding this exhibition in January is fundamental to our planning and organisation of
the year. [Editor’s note: it was previously held
at the same time as BaselWorld, in the spring].
BF: Moving the exhibition forward by four
months has forced our maisons to deliver
earlier in the year.
RL: Furthermore, the SIHH strengthens the
image of Geneva as the capital of high-end
watchmaking and, in the minds of foreign
visitors, as a key city for the country.
What is the commercial importance of
this exhibition for the Richemont Group?
BF: Since many of our brands have to deal
with demand that is higher than supply, the
exhibition gives them a better overview for
the year ahead. They can therefore adjust their
production plans based on the orders placed
4
Will 2014 be another record year for the
Swiss watchmaking industry as some
observers think?
RL: At the moment, specialists and economists
are saying that 2014 will be better than last
year. But how can we be sure? The world
economy remains very volatile and can react
to the slightest economic or political news.
BF: At Richemont we can only ever control half
of the reality, of the situation or, in short, of
the business. But we do this part very well. We
create new products, manage the marketing,
distribution and communication. But we have
no control over the macroeconomic situation.
Our role is to put ourselves in the best possible
position and to do better than the others.
How does the year ahead look for the
luxury industry and for Richemont in
particular?
RL: This will depend a lot on developments in
exchange rates, since they can have a significant impact on business. The dollar remains
the predominant currency in terms of demand,
like in the USA, China and Asia in general. So
its impact could be huge. A less strong Swiss
franc would also be welcome!
You sound very cautious. Are the years
of crazy growth in the luxury sector a
thing of the past?
BF: This caution is a necessity. I repeat, we do
not have control over all the elements in the
equation. Why talk of single or double-digit
we can see is the exceptional nature of the
products of our maisons, which are better than
ever. Based on this, we are in the best possible
position to capitalise on what might happen in
the global economy.
RL: What is the point of just making
predictions? We are more interested in the
substantive trends that will have a more longterm effect. Here, of course, the prospects are
good for the luxury industry and therefore for
Richemont. Several analyses have shown that
they are even better for “hard products”. And
since we are world leaders in this field...
Experts say that the jewellery sector,
which is your main business area and
generates half of your turnover, should
grow quicker than the watch business.
Do you agree with this?
BF: We share this view. There is less competition than in the watch industry, where it
is really exacerbated. There are not as many
jewellery brands. It is a widely held belief that
90 to 95 per cent of the jewellery market is
not in the hands of the big established brands
like Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels or Piaget.
Could China be a risk factor for
Richemont? What is the real impact on
your business of the anti-corruption
campaign, with its effect on gift-giving
and watches in particular?
BF: It has definitely had a negative impact,
but it is limited. But we often forget that the
middle class is booming and has more money
available to buy luxury products, regardless
of what people say. The blip you refer to is
therefore compensated for by new customers
entering the luxury market. And they are above
all compensated by Chinese tourists abroad.
Some 150 million Chinese will be travelling all
over the world in the next few years. Having
said that, the majority of purchases in China
are not linked to business gifts.
RL: I think this anti-corruption campaign is
probably a good thing. This custom could not
continue. Even if there is a short-term impact
on sales, the influence over the long term will
be positive. But the fundamental element is
the demographic factor and the confirmation
of the country’s more or less liberal approach
to private enterprise. So unless there is a big
upset the creation of value and wealth will
continue. GDP growth of 8 per cent, 7 per cent
or 6 per cent in China is still phenomenal. How
can you not be optimistic in these circumstances if they last for several years?!
So there is no cause for concern?
RL: There is still an appetite and desire for
luxury products designed and made in Europe.
And there will be for some time to come,
especially from tourism, just as there was
from the Japanese back in the day. The only
difference is that this time its impact is bigger
by a factor of ten.
Luxury does not yet have a real presence in Africa. Why is that?
RL: The continent is starting to enjoy explosive
economic growth and has the biggest shortterm potential. A lot is happening in this
region, which has a population of one billion
that will soon be two billion.
BF: This continent is starting to wake up and
we need to keep an eye on it. This does not
necessarily mean that we are going to open a
Cartier store tomorrow morning in Nigeria or
Angola. But the time when we will is not that
far away. There is always a risk for pioneers
like us, especially on new markets, but also a
bonus for the first to market.
What is your strategy for this Year of the
Horse in the Chinese horoscope? What
are your priorities?
BF: To continue to manage our maisons with
a perspective on eternity. In other words to
continue to build them up, develop them,
respect them and above all to keep innovating. So we will stay on the same track. It’s a
business model that we like and that has been
rather successful so far.
And?
BF: Distribution should reach a level of excellence, whether for our own stores or for our
retailers. They need to become closer partners
and help us to build up our brands and project
this image at the point of sale. I’m choosing
my words carefully when I say that we have
become a lot stricter with regard to the quality
of our partners.
So some are not yet at the right level?
BF: Yes, this is true.
RL: It’s an on-going process of adjustment.
Some retailers have stopped investing and we
need to correct this. Others, on the other hand,
are improving. But overall we are satisfied. As
proof, our network is very stable. In fact stability pervades the entire group, the management, the employees and the brands. It is this
stability that allows us to develop the family
feeling and the brand culture, which is why
each of our companies has become a maison.
BF: Furthermore, we tend to favour hiring and
promoting internally for our key positions, as
we have recently done at Jaeger-LeCoultre,
Van Cleef & Arpels and Montblanc.
Stability is fine but there have been a
lot of rumours over the past few weeks
that you may sell off some brands. What
is the situation?
RL: Our principal shareholder Johann Rupert
has been very clear about this. Richemont will
not be selling any of its brands. We have no
plans to do this.
BF: To be more specific, it’s true that some
brands that were not doing as well have been
reorganised and repositioned to give them a
boost.
And do you plan to acquire any new
brands?
RL: The management is paid to create value,
or goodwill. Why spend money to buy it
elsewhere? Why, for example, pay a price that
already includes a large share of goodwill for
a jewellery brand when we already have so
much expertise in-house at Cartier, Piaget or
Van Cleef & Arpels?
BF: In all of Richemont’s maisons the potential
for growth is still very high, enormous even.
RL: A policy of paying inflated prices for acquisitions also runs counter to the interests of the
shareholders, unless there is a strategic interest.
By definition it involves a dilution of value.
Our priority is really to concentrate on organic
growth of our brands when you already have
such a high-quality portfolio as Richemont.
“Distribution should reach a level
of excellence, whether for our own
stores or for our retailers. They
need to become closer partners and
help us to build up our brands and
project this image at the point of
sale.” Bernard Fornas
Some of your maisons, like Lancel or Baume &
Mercier, seem to be still in the red. Is that really
the case?
BF: We do not communicate results by brand.
Last year you created 800 jobs in Switzerland. Do
you still need to recruit more and increase your
production capacity?
BF: It is always a positive signal.
RL: Our investments will continue, with 300 million
planned this year in Switzerland, in particular to increase
production capacity at each of our maisons and insource
new professions. A large number of projects are either
under way or have just been completed, like in Neuchâtel
for Panerai, Plan-les-Ouates for Vacheron Constantin and
Piaget, Meyrin for Stern and Van Cleef & Arpels and for
Cartier in Couvet and Le Locle.
And jobs?
RL: If we are building factories, then we will need people
to work in them! At the end of 2013 we had 8,252
employees in Switzerland, which represents 30 per cent of
our global workforce. This is huge for a Swiss-based multinational. So the added value is created in this country. To
give you an idea of the development, from 2009 to 2013
our workforce in Switzerland grew by 30 per cent.
BF: We have even strengthened our jewellery activities in
Switzerland, even though it is really the spiritual home of
watchmaking. Our project with Cartier in Le Locle, where
we have finally found suitable land, is proof of this.
What are you going to do with the mountain of
cash that the group has, which was 4.3 billion
euros at the end of 2013? A major share buyback?
BF: Isn’t it better to have a lot than none at all?
RL: This decision is up to the board and the shareholders. But we can say that the dividend was increased
considerably last year and that this policy will probably
continue given Richemont’s performance and its financial
stability. p
Discover more on Richemont at www.watch-aficionado.com
5
COVER STORY
JeanRichard – it’s all in the case
Bruno Grande is proud of what
he has achieved. Since JeanRichard
came under the control of the
Kering group (ex-PPR which includes Gucci
and the Sowind Group, in other words GirardPerregaux, its factory and the JeanRichard brand),
whose horological guru is Michele Sofisti, he
has, as COO of JeanRichard, overseen a radical overhaul of the brand, in a way bringing
it back to its origins and the spirit of Daniel
Jeanrichard.
But who was Daniel Jeanrichard? To be simple
and direct, Daniel Jeanrichard, who was born in
1665 in La Sagne and died in 1741 in Le Locle
(in the canton of Neuchâtel), is the man who
laid the foundations for the “factory” that triggered the industrialisation of the Swiss watchmaking industry. He was the first to understand
the logic of streamlining the organisation of all
the different professions that were involved
in the production of a watch. And by bringing
them together in a single place he created the
embryo of the first “manufacture”, this “meeting” in a single place of all the “hands” that
work on the production of the object.
Many others added to these foundations, building up step-by-step the vast fabric of the Swiss
watchmaking industry.
B
But going back to the origins of the brand also
means going back to the idea behind the rebirth of the JeanRichard name, which was at
the time under the control of Gino Macaluso
and his sons: watches with unbeatable value
for money and a strong heritage but aimed
mainly at a younger, cultivated, urbane customer who appreciates design, architecture
and mechanical art.
This positioning had been lost somewhat over
the years and a progressive move up range
had diluted the brand’s image. As Michele
Sofisti explained to Europa Star last year, when
the brand was relaunched at BaselWorld: “The
price positioning was quite high, at 7,000 to
10,000 Swiss francs for a manufacture watch.
It was difficult to achieve volume and build for
the long term.”
6
With the arrival of Michele Sofisti and Bruno
Grande, this entire strategy was revised in
order to focus on a customer base that Bruno
Grande considers “quite educated, looking for
a high-quality Swiss watch with a striking
design at the right price.”
“We do not claim to have revolutionised watchmaking,” he quickly adds. “But the product
that we have designed is innovative, mainly
because of the way the case is designed, since
it has a strong identity and is easily recognisable, highly contemporary and offers unbeatable value for money.”
An incredible versatility
Working with the renowned watch designer
Mijat (who was responsible for Hublot’s Big
Bang), JeanRichard developed a “basic chassis”
that is identical for the four different product
lines in the collection.
This “chassis”, or the case to be more precise,
consists of a container that holds the movement, a central case middle, two lateral inserts
and a screw-in case back. It is a complex case
that requires around 70 operations from stamping up to its final assembly, but it offers infinite
possibilities for combining different materials,
decoration, finishes and polishing. The result
is a product with an astonishing versatility.
Depending on the combination of materials
and treatments used, the watch can be anything from very muscular and sporty to formal
and elegant. Its shape, a harmonious mixture
of a slightly convex cushion shape and a round
bezel, gives it a noticeable identity.
Bruno Grande
Terrascope bi-colour with black dial: Night on
the Chic-Sporty Side
With a steel case illuminated by case sides in pink gold and a black dial, the
new Terrascope bi-colour re-interprets the night in a sportive yet elegant spirit.
The sophisticated construction of the case in multiple parts alternates “vertical
satin” surfaces with polished bevels to play with light. The matt black caseback makes the clean geometry of the dial stand out with its applied numerals
and big hands covered with pink gold and a luminescent coating. The black
alligator strap, with folding clasp, completes the harmony. The mechanical
movement with automatic winding ensures that the night-time and day-time
hours are told with unerring accuracy.
Terrascope with black DLC case: Night in the Open Air
The Terrascope – JeanRichard’s flagship model – shares the most beautiful
night-time hours for everyday explorers who wish to savour every moment of
the day in a new edition finished with a sleek black DLC coating. The alternating “vertical satin” finish on the flat surfaces and sandblasted finish on the
bevels subtly underline the watch’s original design, with its robust construction
in several parts and its combination of a cushion case with a round glass.
The indexes and hands are clearly distinguishable on a matt black dial, with
cut-outs that make them stand out and a white luminescent coating. The sporty
touch is completed by a black rubber strap with a folding clasp. The mechanical
movement with automatic winding ensures accuracy and reliability twenty-four
hours a day.
1681 with black DLC case: Night in the City
A homage to the very first watch created by Daniel Jeanrichard at the end of
the 17th century, the 1681 reinvents tradition in a new, highly original colour of
the night and a dynamic, refined and urban look. The steel cushion case is decorated with a black DLC coating with a matt, powder-coat surface. Its entirely
micro beaded finish adds strength to the modern but discreet style. Only essential
references, the leaf-shaped hour and minute hands and the date, stand out
against the black dial, thanks to a luminescent beige coating. Within this case
beats a JR1000 automatic winding movement, made in-house, with a black
rotor which has an exclusive décor visible through the transparent case-back.
COVER STORY
Four collections
These different facets of the same case are
seen across four collections: Terrascope, which
is robust and sporty; Aquascope, which as its
name indicates is dedicated to the marine environment; Aeroscope, with a technical look
and the 1681, which is urbane, elegant, classic
and equipped with a manufacture movement.
The minor “miracle” is that even with this
DNA common to all the JeanRichard watches,
each product has its own strong character but,
when the watches are put side by side there is
a clear coherence to the brand’s image.
“This coherence was also one of our main objectives,” explains Bruno Grande, “because it
allows us to increase our notoriety, to improve
the visibility of the brand and increase global
awareness of the brand but at the same time
allows us to position very precisely and very
subtly each of the 50 references that we find
across the four lines. Beyond this key aspect,
this fully modular base also offers us a high
degree of industrial flexibility. Thanks to this
flexibility we can constantly adjust our range
to the specific demands of the market but still
keep prices under control.”
8
I NEw Aquascope timepiece, to celebrate 150 years of
Swiss-Japanese diplomatic relations
This new timepiece was conceived to celebrate the 150 years of Swiss-Japanese relations
in 2014. Its special dial design is derived from a well-known Japanese woodblock print by
renowned artist Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849). “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” is
amongst his best known works from “The Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji”.
Polished and vertically satin-finished stainless steel 44.00 mm case. Circular satin-finished
stainless steel unidirectional rotating bezel. Antireflective sapphire crystal. Case-back,
screwed-down, engraved. Screwed-down crown. Water-resistant to 300 m. Movement JR60,
self-winding. Frequency: 28,800 vibrations/hour (4 Hz). Power reserve: minimum 38 hours.
White, grey, blue or black “Hokusai” style engraved dial. Applied rhodium-coated indexes
and hands with luminescent material. Blue or black rubber strap or stainless steel bracelet.
Stainless steel folding or butterfly buckle.
is nevertheless 44mm in diameter but which,
thanks to its small lugs, easily fits even the
smallest wrists (all the straps in the collection
are interchangeable!).
Thanks to this streamlining, the core collection falls in a price range between 2,500 and
4,000 Swiss francs. As just one example, an
Aeroscope chronograph model with a DuboisDépraz movement, in polished grade 5 titanium,
is offered at 4,200 francs! A steal at this level
of quality and functionality.
Industrial streamlining
From an industrial point of view, this modular case
system allows a very high degree of finishing on
the watch for the lowest cost. Specifically, the different components can, for example, “easily” be
polished in different ways, in order to create sophisticated interplays between light and different
materials, which would be impossible if the same
shape had been created from a single piece.
This approach to production also allows
JeanRichard to offer watches with a price that
seems to be below the level of the quality offered, in terms of both the case and the dials,
which have a meticulous finish, or the remarkable comfort of the watch on the wrist, which
Rethink everything
“The support of the Kering group has been instrumental in this reflection and this development,” Bruno Grande stresses. “All the different
aspects of a brand have been reworked entirely,
above and beyond the products themselves. The
brand’s territory has been redefined, its communication has been completely rethought, as has its
physical presence at the retailer, its corners, its
presentation material, its boxes. For each line,
an ambassador has been named, ‘Sailor of the
Year 2012’, Franck Cammas for the Aquascope;
Captain Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger, famous as
the man who landed his Airbus A320 on the
O “208 Seconds”
river Hudson in 2009, for the Aeroscope collection, and the famous wildlife photographer Nick
Brandt for the Terrascope collection. Recently an
agreement was signed with the English Premier
League football club Arsenal.”
Kering also played an essential role as a facilitator in the commercial redeployment that is
under way at the brand. In one year, 150 points
of sale have been opened, mainly in the USA –
“a market that is developing very well,” says
Bruno Grande – the UK and Mexico, with 25
points of sale, or Hong Kong, with 14 points of
sale. “We can feel that the radical changes have
considerably increased the brand’s potential,”
adds Bruno Grande. “But we need to continue
and strengthen these efforts, to make ourselves
known and understood by retailers. JeanRichard
is no longer the ‘little sister of Girard-Perregaux’.
It is now an autonomous brand.”
This autonomy is nevertheless based on a
pooling of certain resources at Sowind, which
comprises both brands, such as general services, human resources, information technology,
accounting and production.
The Sowind factory thus deals with the assembly, quality control and production of some of
the cases, but for the remaining components
(dials, hands and cases), JeanRichard works
with various suppliers from the Jura region.
JeanRichard also developed its own in-house
movement with the Sowind factory in 2004,
the JR 1000 calibre. Having proven its reliability,
this three-hand movement with date and small
seconds is used exclusively in the classic 1681
collection. Because the price of a manufacture
movement is necessarily higher, it is reserved for
the more expensive pieces, which are nevertheless reasonably priced, like the 1681 watch in
rose gold for 18,400 Swiss francs.
Aeroscope
208 seconds made
Captain Chesley “Sully”
Sullenberger a hero, when
on January 15, 2009,
he “landed” his Airbus
A320 on the Hudson river,
saving 155 people. “In
situations such as those
on January 15, 2009, one
can only rely upon your
training, preparedness
and the knowledge that
you are serving a cause
greater than yourself,”
said Captain Sullenberger.
“The “208 Seconds”
Aeroscope I was able to
design with JeanRichard
also symbolizes the values
of personal responsibility
and I am grateful for their
support of my philanthropic
work.” Available on a
black Barenia® calfskin
strap, the JeanRichard
“208 Seconds” Aeroscope,
with its polished and vertically satin-finished titanium
cushion-shaped case, is a
re-interpretation of the old
aviators’ watches. The 208
seconds are represented
by a subtle marked white
and red timeline on the
timepiece’s black dial.
Movement JR66, self-winding. Limited and numbered
edition: 208 pieces.
BaselWorld, this year, will bring further surprises
that show off the exceptional “transformism”
of the JeanRichard case. We saw a sneak peek
of an astonishing watch that looks like it has
been cast in bronze, as well as some other
unusual materials, but we are also promised a
“phenomenal talking piece”. Discover it at the
show (or in one of our future issues). p
Discover more on JeanRichard at www.watch-aficionado.com
9
SIHH – 2014
D i v e r ’ s wat c h r e d u x
Fans of divers watches
were well-served at
this year’s SIHH. In addition to the classic styling of
Cartier’s first ever diver’s watch
(see Europa Star 06/2013),
brands with a strong heritage
in this field used their latest
models to vie for the attention
of aqua sport aficionados.
F
IWC’s Aquatimer collection, which dates back
to 1967, resurfaced in a new guise at the show,
in a collection that ranges from the humble selfwinding three-hander to the brand’s first haute horlogerie complication in a diver’s watch,
including all the stops in between – all fitted
with the brand’s new quick-change system
for swapping between straps. A new model in
bronze – a first for IWC – is dedicated to the
Charles Darwin Foundation, a charity that aims
to preserve the unique environment of the
Galapagos islands, and two Aquatimer chronographs pay tribute to the Galapagos islands
themselves - the “Galapagos Islands” and “50
years science for Galapagos” (a limited edition
of 500), both with a black rubber-coated stainless-steel case with IWC’s “SafeDive” rotating
bezel and, like their bronze counterpart, the inhouse calibre 89365 self-winding movement,
which offers a power reserve of 68 hours.
Like Darwin, the renowned French marine explorer Jacques Cousteau also took an interest
in the Galapagos habitat, following the prehistoric marine creatures native to the island
from aboard his ship Calypso. This year, IWC
dedicates its 6th special edition to the explorer,
with part of the proceeds from sales of the
Aquatimer Expedition Jacques-Yves Cousteau
watch being donated to the Cousteau Society,
which the explorer set up to help protect
marine environments and which IWC has been
supporting for ten years.
IWC also presented two models to appeal to
avid divers. The Aquatimer Deep Three is, as
its name suggests, the third diver’s watch to
be offered by IWC that features a mechanical
10
I Aquatimer
“Expedition Charles
Darwin” by IWC
Powered by the IWC
in-house calibre 89365
self-winding chronograph
movement, which operates
at 28,800 vibrations per
hour and offers 68 hours
of power reserve. Case in
bronze. Water resistant to
30 bar, or 300 metres.
U Left to right:
Aquatimer Deep
Three by IWC
46mm titanium case with
black dial and black rubber
strap, mechanical depth
gauge with split indicator
showing maximum depth
to 50 metres. Powered by
the IWC calibre 30120
self-winding movement
with 42-hour power reserve
and water resistant to 10
bar/100 metres.
Aquatimer Automatic
2000 by IWC
46mm titanium case with
black dial and black rubber
strap. Powered by the IWC
calibre 80110 self-winding
movement with 44-hour
power reserve and water
resistant to 200 bar/
2,000 metres.
depth gauge as a back-up to a dive computer. A
special crown at 9 o’clock incorporates a membrane that reacts to changes in water pressure,
translating this into indications on the dial
using a lever system: blue for the current depth
and red for the maximum depth reached (up
to a maximum of 50 metres). Divers can thus
calculate their decompression stops and monitor their ascent speed simply by looking at their
Aquatimer Deep Three.
The new Aquatimer Automatic 2000 harks back
to an era in IWC’s history, over 30 years ago,
when Porsche design featured in the collection. Ferdinand A. Porsche, the man behind the
iconic Porsche 911, designed diver’s watches
that IWC had been commissioned to produce
for commando frogmen and mine clearance
divers. He subsequently designed the Ocean
2000, the first diver’s watch to be produced in
titanium (IWC was the only company capable
of machining titanium at the time). The 2,000
in the name refers to the watch’s impressive
water resistance of 2,000 metres, which should
be more than enough to satisfy the needs of
professional and amateur divers alike.
A DIFFERENT EVOLUTION
Just like IWC, Officine Panerai also has a history
of supplying navy divers. But with the exception of the Luminor Submersible models, you
will not find any rotating bezels in the Officine
Panerai collection, since it has evolved over the
GENEVA SHOWS 2014
In the
grand hotels
o f G e n e va …
U Radiomir 1940 Chronograph
by Officine Panerai
This limited edition uses the exclusive Panerai OP XXV
hand-wound calibre, which operates at 18,000 vibrations
per hour and offers 55 hours of power reserve, is visible
through a transparent sapphire crystal case back.
years to epitomise classic style, with plain bezels and dials coupled with some of the finest
leather straps found on any watch. The signature crown-locking mechanism of the Luminor
collection, housed in its oversized protector on
the side of the case, is the only consistent recollection of Panerai’s deep-sea connections.
But the collection of three new limited-edition
chronographs presented in precious metals at
the 2014 SIHH proves that the brand’s history
still has an important role to play. The vintage
look of these models is not just confined to
the railway-style scales around the dial: the
dial itself is housed behind a Plexiglas® crystal, just like the original Radiomir models from
the 1940s. Panerai also appropriately uses an
historical movement for this mini-series (50
in platinum, 100 each in red and white gold),
since its Opus XXV hand-wound column-wheel
chronograph is based on the Minerva 13-22
calibre, the original design of which dates
back to 1923, when Minerva was already a
T Luminor 1950 Chrono Monopulsante
Left-Handed 8 Days by Officine Panerai
A limited edition of 300, this model has a 47mm case
in brushed titanium with a polished titanium bezel and
a brown dial with luminous Arabic numerals and hour
markers. It is powered by the Panerai P.2004/9 calibre,
which beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and has three
mainspring barrels that offer a power reserve of eight days.
While the great mass of high-end
watchmaking was being held at the
SIHH, not far from Geneva airport,
you had to wander around the grand hotels
along the shores of the lake or the nearby
factories to complete this seasonal harvest.
Despite the cancellation of the GTE (read our
editorial in Europa Star 6/13), a number of
brands had come to Geneva to take advantage of the presence of around 1,300 journalists and several thousand people from the
trade (agents, distributors and retailers who
were more or less “captive”). An overview.
W
supplier to the Florentine brand. (The Fabrique
d’Horlogerie Minerva SA has since become the
Montblanc manufacture after its acquisition
by the Richemont Group in 2006.)
This crop of new chronographs is completed
by the Luminor 1950 Chrono Monopulsante
in a left-handed configuration with eight days
of power reserve. On this 47mm model with a
brushed titanium case, the crown is found at 9
o’clock in recollection of the early divers’ habit
of wearing their watches on the right wrist, since
their left wrist was already occupied by their dive
compass. This limited edition of 300 uses the
manually wound Panerai P.2004/9 calibre column-wheel chronograph movement which has
a single pusher at 2 o’clock for starting, stopping
and resetting the chronograph. (…)
Read on at
www.watch-aficionado.com
De Bethune
at the summit
One of the most brilliant demonstrations of a combined horological and aesthetic excellence can be found at De Bethune. The
association between the horological expert and great Italian aesthete David Zanetta and watchmaker Denis Flageollet produces
an unparalleled approach, timepiece after timepiece. “Tradition
and innovation” is one of the most-heard mantras among brands,
to the point where it has become just banal common ground. But
at De Bethune this tension between the heritage of great traditional watchmaking from the 18th century and an innovation that
is both formal and technical is taking on the shape of a veritable
manifesto for the watchmaking of the 21st century.
Take for example the new DB28 Digitale. The creative inspiration
comes straight from the beautiful French Directory clocks of the
end of the 18th century, but the setting for the indications makes
the watch ultra-contemporary and sumptuously pure in its lines.
What immediately stands out is the beauty and finesse of the
silvered dial with its circular “barleycorn” guillochage, a handcrafted technique that was historically reserved for case backs.
At the centre of this guilloché dial is a spherical moon surrounded
by a blue disc set with a few small stars. This spherical moon, of
which one hemisphere is in mirror-polished palladium and the
other in blued steel, is extremely precise: one lunar day in 1,112
years. Above it is a large window for the jumping hours and a
minute disc that appears in a peripheral opening that is itself
overlooked by a blue night sky. That is all – and it is all simply
magnificent.
To power this DB28 Digitale, Denis Flageollet chose a movement
that he himself calls “simple”. Nevertheless, this “simple” mo11
GENEVA SHOWS 2014
I DB28 Digitale
by De Bethune
U Big Bang POP ART
vement, which can be seen through the case
back, incorporates no less than seven patented
innovations by the brand, in particular for the
self-regulating double barrels, the circular balance in silicon and white gold, the triple “parechute” shock absorber, the flat terminal curve
on the spring, the spherical moon and the floating lugs that allow this lightweight timepiece
(case in mirror-polished titanium) to be adjusted on the wrist with millimetre precision. (…)
F.-P. Journe
breaks
the taboo of
quartz
He said he would do it and now he has done it.
François-Paul Journe, one of the watchmakers
who has made the biggest contribution to the
renaissance in fine mechanical watchmaking,
with his hyper-traditional pieces inspired by
the watches of the Louis XIV era, breaks one
of the taboos of fine watchmaking by using a
quartz movement.
He has taken this step – which has caused
an outcry among the guardians of the temple of watchmaking – for his first collection
dedicated exclusively to ladies, which is called
“élégante”.
12
by Hublot
T élégante
by F.-P. Journe
As he himself says, “I wanted to make a nice
feminine watch that was pleasant to wear and
easy to use. So it made sense to use quartz.
But not just any old quartz, a luxury quartz,
both in terms of its technology and its finishing.
It wasn’t as easy as you might think: it took
eight years of research to perfect this watch.
The movement has been developed entirely by
us, using a very specific quartz module developed in Switzerland and everything is assembled here. The élégante actually has the only
electromechanical movement that has been
designed and produced for a luxury watch,
with a true vision of luxury.”
So what is so special about this movement?
Through a small aperture at 5 o’clock on the
dial, you can see small mechanical sensor that
detects the movements of the wearer. Thanks
to this sensor, the watch will stop after 30
minutes when it is not worn. But during this
hibernation, when everything stops moving
inside the watch, the microprocessor continues to record the time. Therefore, as soon as
the watch is put back on the wrist, its hands
immediately return to the correct time by the
shortest route – clockwise or anti-clockwise
– irrespective of whether it has been “asleep”
for a few hours or several years. This, together
with a large-size battery, gives the élégante a
power reserve of ten years, or even up to 18
years in standby mode! (…)
Hublot, the
luxury Swatch
Hublot, which took over almost an entire floor
at the Kempinski hotel in Geneva, remains a
hive of activity. Collections move continuously
between groups of buyers, retailers and journalists who are jostling for position.
We’ve lost count of the number of different
variations on the Big Bang theme, which show
season after season – or week after week
given the rhythm at which the new products
are launched – the incredible versatility of this
watch that takes any treatments you care to
throw at it, to the point where it has become a
kind of luxury Swatch (40,000 watches sold in
2013, we are told, of which astonishingly 400
were tourbillons).
This season the Big Bang goes Andy Warhol
with highly colourful Pop Art models, rock with
Depeche Mode models, casual with denim
models such as the new Big Bang Dark Jeans
Ceramic 44mm, sombrely powerful with the
Big Bang Unico “All Black” or even tonneaushaped with the “Spirit of Big Bang”. (…)
Read the full article on
www.watch-aficionado.com
RETAILER PROFILE
Dakota Watches - Making a success
in shopping malls
Dakota Watch Company started business in 1945, when
Al Cooper leased counter
space in department stores after World
War II for servicing watches and other
products. This morphed into a fix-it business and kiosk concept in the middle
of enclosed shopping malls in the late
1960s. When sons Martin and David
Cooper took over the fifteen “Cooper’s
Fixery” stores in the early 1970s, they
decided to concentrate on the sale and
service of watches, and to make that
the focus business – and the stores
were renamed “Cooper’s Watch Works.”
Today, the stores are called “Dakota
Watch Company,” and there are more
than 115 spread across the USA.
I caught up with Martin Cooper in his
Cincinnati, Ohio offices.
This led to a monthly organizing system and
talking alarm clock called the MedCenter
System. In addition to helping my father and
many people with medication regimen, it also
created a nice side business that fit right into
our design and manufacturing expertise.
D
Europa Star: How’s business?
Martin Cooper: We’ve been improving
every year since the 2008 recession. We’re
expanding again and looking for other
partnering opportunities.
What do you like about watches?
MC: Everything. Watches are about design
and function and they’re an extension of the
wearer’s personality. Wearing a watch really
is a personal statement.
How has your business changed in
recent years?
MC: Smartphones and the Internet have had
an effect on all business, but not so much the
service business. Since the recession, it has
been more about how the mall business has
changed. The malls and surrounding retail
were overbuilt in the 1990s and 2000s and
the recession brought about a weeding out of
the weaker malls which affected all retailers.
What is the secret of your success?
MC: Location, service and friendly, well-trai-
What don’t you like?
MC: Getting asked if people still wear watches!
Any advice for other retailers?
MC: Build strong relationships with your
employees to make customer service a
common goal for everyone’s success, whether
in the retail stores or the home office.
ned associates offering a unique product that
sets itself apart from the mainstream watch
manufacturers and retailers. The service and
these unique products help to make our
stores a destination.
What is your relationship like with
other retailers?
MC: Because of our service and individuality
we have an excellent relationship with other
watch retailers and jewellers in and around
the malls. Plus, we now design and produce exclusive timepieces for other national
retailers and catalogue houses.
What makes Dakota Watch special?
MC: Being a smaller, fast-moving design
group with our own retail testing grounds,
we can turn ideas into product and place
them into stores much quicker and more
efficiently than the big guys.
What do you like about your job?
MC: Being the head of a design group and
watching trends to ensure consumer needs
are met at the retail level is what I like the
most. I love the outdoors (fishing and jogging) and I’m always thinking of watch designs and new product to fit various activities.
Five years ago my father was having trouble
organizing and taking his medication on time.
What is the biggest challenge facing
your stores right now?
MC: Keeping good benefits for our
employees and keeping up with the new
opportunities for expansion.
Martin Cooper
Facts and
Figures
How long:
Established in 1945
Number of
stores: 115+
Employees: 500
to 550
Size of stores:
144 square foot
average
Range of price:
$30 to $300
Best-selling
watch: Dakota
Spider and Angler
Watches
Brands: Dakota,
Moxie, Marc Ecko,
Obaku, Casio,
Suunto, Luminox
What is the biggest challenge facing
the watch industry right now?
MC: Keeping watch designs fresh and fun
while keeping the technology relevant.
How do you market your store?
MC: Strong visibility in the malls since
millions of shoppers walk past our stores, we
maintain a continuous flow of new product
and promote it with dynamic signage. The
customers recognize the Dakota name and
are greeted by our professional employees
who provide a positive experience. Our reputation helps establish loyal customers, so in
the end a significant part of our marketing is
our customers, through word of mouth.
Have you tried to distribute Dakota
watches in other retail outlets? Was it
successful?
MC: We market our watches and other
products we design on our Dakota website
and MedCenter Systems website and on
Amazon.com.
13
WORLDWATCHREPORT 2014
RETAILER PROFILE
Are you open to working with other
watch companies to sell their watches
in your stores?
MC: Yes. We think it’s the right time to
partner with other interesting brands that are
not represented properly in the malls. There
are many Swiss, Indian and American brands
that would benefit greatly from the exposure
of our mall-based stores.
I am surprised that there are so few European
or Asian fashion watch manufacturers serious
about building their brands in the US malls. Our
kiosk store concept is a perfect way to promote
new ideas, service, and to build a brand. It’s a
“shop in shop” in the middle of the malls, all
where thousands of customers walk by each
day. These brands must feel that the only way
to penetrate the US mall market is through the
department and jewellery stores, which now
seem dominated by all the Fossil brands.
Casio (one of the hottest watches in the world)
seems to only get a few feet of counter space
in most department stores, while Timex might
have one or two on-counter displays, and
Swatch is only in the hottest tourist malls.
We are also looking forward to supporting
one or two of the “smart” watch manufactures in the future – they will also need to be
represented with a good information/sales
and service representatives in the malls.
Is there a certain kind of watch in a particular price point that would work best?
MC: We carry all styles but pricing may have
a limit. It depends on the demographics and
quality of the mall, but I believe a kiosk operation may be limited to watches that retail
for under $1,000.
Have you considered taking your operation international?
MC: Yes, but for now there are still too many
opportunities in the US and really no need to
go overseas at this time.
Who is your customer?
MC: We have something for anyone who
shops the regional malls or visits our website.
Our watches fall into a wide range of price
points, for men, women, kids, outdoor, health,
fun, novelty, dress, accessories and more.
14
How important is customer service?
MC: Customer service is everything in retail.
How you greet and treat your customer is
always the most important task. So, training
our people to be experts in service and sales
is our number one job.
Do you do repairs at your store? If not,
how do you handle repairs?
MC: All battery replacement, pressure
testing, bands and adjusting, are done on
premises. Major repairs are sent to our trained watch repair team in Cincinnati.
How do you do training?
MC: We have an excellent training staff in
place in the field and at our home office.
Most is done on-site with our Area and
Regional Management and followed up in
Cincinnati with higher levels of training.
How important is security?
MC: Most malls are very secure and we have
had only a handful of incidents over the past
forty years. We have effective alarm and
camera systems throughout our organization.
Are you optimistic about the future?
MC: We are very optimistic about the future.
The wrist will always be a showplace for fashion
and the most convenient way for people to tell
time and receive important acknowledgments
from their phone or even about their health. We
think the connection of the watch and phone
will be a huge part of our business in the future.
What will the watch industry look like
five or ten years from now?
MC: Check back with me, but I’m sure Keith
Strandberg will have climbed Mt. Everest
wearing a Dakota Watch!
What does time mean to you?
MC: Time moves much too fast for me, we
need to work on a watch to slow it down!
What is your favourite watch?
MC: My favourite has to be the Dakota
Classic Chrono with an International Time
crocodile band, but I also love most of the
designs from Swatch, IWC and Titan. p
Th e
WorldWatchReportTM
Hau t e
Ho r l o g e r i e
P r ev i ew
The preview of the Haute Horlogerie
section of the WorldWatchReportTM
2014, which was presented by
Europa Star’s Digital Partner, Digital Luxury
Group, at this year’s SIHH and covers 18
brands, confirms that interest in high-end
watchmaking remains healthy, with 12 per
cent growth in the online interest for highend watch brands, continued strong interest
in China (despite decreasing sales) and signs
of recovery in the US and UK.
D
Patek Philippe consolidates its leadership in the segment, while
Glashütte Original and Vacheron Constantin showed the biggest
year-on-year improvements, with Richard Mille failing to capitalise on its astonishing 61 per cent growth last year.
Haute Horlogerie brands continue to grow
rapidly (+12 per cent).
Interest in Haute Horlogerie is here to stay. The highest-end
category of luxury watches experienced double-digit growth in
global interest. “This marks the fourth year in a row that we’ve
observed the category increasing in the WorldWatchReportTM,
showing the continued strength of Haute Horlogerie within the
overall market.” Comments David Sadigh, Founder & CEO at
Digital Luxury Group.
1
Despite decreasing sales in the mainland, interest
for luxury watches still booming in China.
Chinese consumers showed the strongest global interest for
Haute Horlogerie with a 57.9 per cent increase versus last year,
accounting for over 30 per cent of total interest in the segment. According to David Sadigh, Founder & CEO at Digital
Luxury Group: “Despite lower reported sales in the mainland,
Chinese consumers’ interest for Haute Horlogerie watches
continues to grow. This love story is not ready to end anytime
soon and will continue to drive a substantial amount of sales
outside of China.”
2
+DXWH+RUO
The most popular haute horlogerie brands in
2013
+DXWH+RUORJHULH6HDUFK0DUNHW6KDUH
p Patek Philippe leads the Haute Horlogerie segment,
by a landslide with over ¼ market share.
Š—ȱȮȱ˜ŸȱŘŖŗř
Š—ȱȮȱ˜ŸȱŘŖŗř
© Digital Luxury Group, DLG SA, 2014
US and UK showing signs of
recovery.
The second and third biggest players in the segment showed signs of rebound since last year’s
decreases. The United Kingdom had the strongest increase in Europe, posting a healthy +7.7
per cent evolution (vs. -8.5 per cent last year),
whilst the US market stabilised at -1.5 per cent
(vs. -11.6 per cent last year).
3
Patek Philippe consolidates
4 leadership of the Haute
Horlogerie segment.
Patek Philippe remains by far the leading Haute
Horlogerie watch brand with 28.1 per cent of
brand interest share, growing an impressive
21.4 per cent since last year. Not to be dismissed, Vacheron Constantin in 2nd place this
year and Audemars Piguet in 3rd position. It’s
a tight race at the top - both brands having
very close market shares (13.4 per cent and
13.0 per cent respectively).
Interest in last year’s rising star
5 Richard Mille slows down (-2%
vs. +61% the previous year).
Last year’s fastest-growing Haute Horlogerie
brand, Richard Mille, which saw an impressive
61 per cent growth at the time, sees signs of
a slowdown in interest experiencing a 2.7 per
cent decrease. Swatch Group brand Glashütte
Original was the fastest-growing in the category this year, with +40.2 per cent. Amongst the
bigger brands, Vacheron Constantin displayed
solid growth increasing by 33.9 per cent.
Glashütte Original and Vacheron
Constantin, which had strongest
year-to-year evolution, also showed the
strongest rise in interest in forums.
Among the Top 10 most popular Haute Horlogerie
brands on selected watch forums (PuristSPro,
TimeZone and iWatch365),Vacheron Constantin
showed the strongest increase in interest, up
53.4 per cent in total number of views, followed by Glashütte Original (+48.7 per cent).
6
Haute Horlogerie brands tracked in
the preview report:
A. Lange & Söhne, Audemars Piguet, Blancpain,
Bovet, Breguet, De Bethune, Franck Muller,
Girard-Perregaux, Glashütte Original, Greubel
Forsey, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Jaquet Droz, Parmigiani,
Patek Philippe, Richard Mille, Roger Dubuis,
Ulysse Nardin, Vacheron Constantin. Brands
which belong to other categories, exhibiting at
the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie
(such as Cartier, IWC, Panerai, and Piaget)
have not been analysed in this year’s Haute
Horlogerie preview research but are included
in the full WorldWatchReportTM 2014, results
of which will be released in March at the time
of BaselWorld.
Markets analysed:
Brazil, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong,
India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi
Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand,
Taiwan, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates,
and the United States.
The full edition of the WorldWatchReportTM 2014,
covering 60+ brands in 20 markets worldwide,
will be available in March at BaselWorld. p
www.watch-aficionado.com is brought to you by
Europa Star HBM SA, 25 route des Acacias, 1227 Carouge,
Geneva Switzerland, contact@ europastar.com.
For full information on Europa Star
click on www.europastar.com ABOUT US and CONTACT US
pa n e r a i . c o m
Mediterranean Sea.
“Gamma” men in training.
The diver emerging from the water
is wearing a Panerai compass on his wrist.
history a n d heroes.
luminor submersible 1950
3 days automatic titanio (ref. 305)
available in titanium and ceramic
Exclusively at Panerai boutiques and select authorized watch specialists.