180 YEARS OF
180 YEARS OF
180 YEARS OF
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INTERVIEW | Nayla Hayek<br />
34 | WatchTime LONGINES SPECIAL<br />
AND TOP<br />
INTERVIEWED BY RÜDIGER BUCHER<br />
PERFORMANCE<br />
WatchTime spoke to NAYLA HAYEK, Chair<br />
of the Board of Directors for Swatch Group.<br />
L<br />
ongines has been extremely successful for many years<br />
now. Currently the brand is selling more than a million<br />
watches per year. What, in your opinion, are the reasons<br />
for this level of success?<br />
Longines is attractive to women who place great value in<br />
elegance and to men who are interested in sports, and<br />
vice versa. is is a high-quality product. And the company,<br />
which is both very traditional and modern, exudes<br />
a great deal of charisma and carries this message<br />
throughout the entire world. But most importantly, the<br />
company’s success is due to the wonderful work performed<br />
by Longines employees worldwide.<br />
How is the success of Longines distributed geographically<br />
on dierent international markets?<br />
Swatch Group watch brands are all active worldwide. I cannot<br />
reveal how they perform in specic markets, however.<br />
Among other things, you’ve been responsible in the past<br />
for the markets in India and the Middle East. What developments<br />
do you see in the watch markets there, both<br />
now and in the future?<br />
My involvement in the Middle East is ongoing. Both<br />
markets are currently performing very well and all indications<br />
suggest that this will continue.<br />
Longines is also very successful in China. To what do<br />
you attribute this particular success?<br />
Longines has been active on the Chinese market for quite<br />
some time. e preparatory ground work there is now<br />
beginning to bear fruit. Chinese customers purchase<br />
Longines watches for the same reasons as those in other<br />
markets – they want a high-quality elegant or sporty<br />
Swiss watch with a unique air. And the Chinese market,<br />
with its population of 1.3 billion, is currently the largest<br />
market in the world and is in no way fully developed yet!<br />
Which markets could be better developed for the brand?<br />
e American market, for example, still has potential for<br />
Longines.<br />
What strategic role does Longines play within the brand<br />
portfolios of Swatch Group?<br />
All of our watch companies play a strategic role, but it is<br />
the interplay of all the brands that is most signicant<br />
from a strategic point of view.<br />
What is your personal view of Longines? How would<br />
you describe the Longines image?<br />
All Swatch Group watch brands have a specic message,<br />
not just an image. And the message of Longines is elegance,<br />
linked with tradition and top performance. e<br />
brand conveys these qualities very specically and, as<br />
we’re happy to report, quite successfully.<br />
Longines has enjoyed a long history in timing sporting<br />
events and is now involved in a wide range of sports such<br />
as skiing, tennis, gymnastics and equestrian sports. Are<br />
there other sports besides these that would be a good<br />
match with Longines?<br />
Athletic elegance is the common feature that links all the<br />
dierent Longines sport disciplines. Currently the<br />
Longines sports calendar is very full – but that doesn’t<br />
mean that in the future other sports won’t play a role.<br />
ere are no plans in the regard at the moment, however.<br />
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