To believe that the image of a brand is not affected by introducing something that is completely aside of its competency is like walking through life with blinders. But hey, we also easily buy electricity from nuclear plants although we don't like the radioactive waste they produce.
David,
This is a crazy analogy. Equating the introduction of an optional watch strap add on to nuclear power waste is pure hyperbole. I think your blinders are getting in the way.
OK, Alan. Never mind the comparison - I only wanted to demonstrate that it HAS a tremendous influence on what you do as a brand. Think about Ferrari producing a diesel-driven city car, produced not in Italy, but in Shanghai. Maybe this is the better example.
Or Porsche producing an SUV.
Oh, wait, that saved the brand from bankruptcy and is now their most successful model line (they offer diesels and hybrids, too). And, hey, aren't BMWs and Benzes made in Alabama and Georgia now?
If you want to go through life wearing blinders, and in doing so throw the baby out with the bathwater so be it. All I can say is thank god IWC isn't run by similarly narrow-minded purists, or they would've gone out of business a long time ago.
Regards,
Adam
I chose my example with Ferrari and the low-cost car from Shanghai on purpose. But you could also think of Patek Philippe producing a digital watch in Taiwan for 9 USD, if this makes thinks clearer.
Cars/electrical items that produced in China are actually not bad, the retail prices are cheap only because there's a need in the market somewhere in the world, as those people can only afford cheap stuff. I remember many years ago, 70% of the Made in China cheap Nokia cellphone were sold to Europe.
And now the Chinese are taking over the watch market with their cheap production parts(movements)which they now install in supposedly made in Switzerland watches that the Chinese now own. Bah! Humbug.
Which is the fault of the Swiss for charging tens of thousands of dollars for tourbillons that the Chinese can make for a couple thousand.
But we digress...
Apple is no threat. The Swiss watch companies do not need to chase after the smart-watch technology. Whether or not it cheapens their brands we will see.
i vote lets wait and see what it is and how it impacts anything on the brand.
Also an observation there is a good deal of Breitling bashing when it comes to technology and pure mechanical watches, my view is some of the tech enhanced watches have a good deal of useful function and dont damage the brand...slightly biased as i have an emergency amongst other watches and think the tech is pretty impressive (my travel watch)
Totally agree, China produce cheap stuff and export to whatever country that has the market, and on the other hand became the largest luxury good consumption group in the world. What a satire.
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