Swatch, punk, and the art of motorcycle jumping
In the late 1970s, the market share of Swiss watches, which are known for their lifetime value being passed on from generation to generation, were slashed in half because of competition from inexpensive quartz watches from Asia. World market share of Swiss watches then dropped from over 50 to 15 percent.
Enter Nicolas G. Hayek, whose revolutionary ideas gave birth to Swatch — the accessible luxury piece of well-crafted jewellery that allows people to say who they are and how they feel. And because the watch didn’t cost a fortune, customers were soon buying Swatch as their second, third, and fourth watch to suit their every mood — elegant, sporty, flirty, spontaneous, provocative — name it and Swatch has it.
The magic of Swatch was in creating a vast reindustrialization of the Swiss watch sector, where competitive prices could be guaranteed by the volume and productivity gains offered by more advanced technologies.
The success of Hayek’s radical innovation has made him one of the world’s richest men, with an estimated worth of $3.2 billion. More than 350 million Swatch watches have been made, and they are colorful, exciting, and always in tune with the latest trends on the streets, in sports, and fashion.
The Swatch Group includes Swatch, Breguet, Blancpain, Glashütte Original, Jaquet Droz, Léon Hatot, Omega, Tiffany & Co, Longines, Rado, Flik Flak, Union Glashütte, Tissot, CK Watch & Jewelry, Balmain, Certina, Mido, Hamilton, Endura and Tourbillon.
As a tribute to the man who has helped make the acrobatic performance art of motorcycle jumping a popular sport in Switzerland, Swatch has launched its Mat Rebeaud Special, which comes in its own special packaging: a gold-and-black dirt-rider helmet with a black facemask and gold visor.
Swatch’s latest collection features Mr. Punk, Be Punk, Punked’Up, Rock‘N’Tartan, and What Do You Want watches.
Together with the brand’s loyal and ever-growing customer base, Swatch celebrates its 25th year by gifting customers with a Swatch sling pouch for every P5,000 single-receipt purchase.
The colorful Swatch sling pouches are available at all Swatch stores and kiosks until Dec. 31.
