Jeweller - April 2020

Apple Watches, 2015-2020
lasting value, while the other is
a technical marvel with cutting
edge and modern appeal, and a
significantly lower price.
In 2014, Jean-Claude Biver, CEO
of TAG Heuer and president of
Moët-Hennessy Louis Vuitton
SE (LVMH) Watchmaking Division,
said, “An Apple Watch – as
great it can be – will always be
the result of technological and
industrial production processes.
As such, in my opinion, it is
condemned to become obsolete.
Therefore, after a few years, or
less, its value will drop close
to zero… For the time being,
however, there is no comparison
with the designs of Swiss
watchmakers.
There is no interest in the Swiss
high-end and prestige-brand
companies to create, produce,
and sell watches whose values
will likely vastly decrease over a
short period of time, and which
one day will not be repairable.”
His comments proved prescient;
Apple quietly withdrew its
luxury 18-carat gold Apple
Watch – which reportedly cost
$US10,000 – $17,000 – in 2016,
after barely a year in the market.
The remaining Apple Watch
models have reportedly outsold
all Swiss watch brands combined
for the past four years. Yet, on
the basis of Strategy Analytics’
estimates, Apple’s revenue from
its smartwatches would total
$US6.1–15.3 billion ($AU9–23
billion) – significantly less than
the Swiss watch industry at
$AU37 billion.
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OS. By 2018, it had released more than
350 different ‘wearable’ models – both
smartwatches and hybrids – across its
eight brands.
The hybrid strategy may well pay dividends;
Juniper Research has predicted hybrid
watch shipments will increase by 460 per
cent between 2018 and 2022.
However, while smartwatches have
evidently sparked change in the fashion
and mid-range categories, it appears the
evolution goes both ways.
Increasingly, smartwatches are designed
to imitate traditional dive watches and
other tactical models.
An example is Garmin’s Marq Collection,
which bears some resemblance to
Citizen’s Land, Sea and Air ranges; its
Captain, Aviator and Adventurer models
include features such as ‘regatta timers’
and rotating bezels.
Meanwhile, some industry commentators
have identified the trend of ‘functionality
fatigue’ in consumers, who prefer simpler
products that are more ‘watch’ than ‘smart’.
Jay McGregor, senior consumer
technology contributor Forbes, wrote
in February, “Years of testing overly
functional wearables has taught me
two things: they don’t perform tasks as
well as your phone and they are, more
often than not, just a distraction.
“If a company slaps a $300 price tag on
device, it [had] better do a lot of things.
But how about, instead, it doesn’t?”
Besides price, traditional fashion watches
also have an aesthetic advantage over
smartwatches. The appearance of a
smartwatch largely depends on its
hardware; more functions require a
heftier case or a larger display.
Meanwhile, watch movements have
THE BASEL
ROLLERCOASTER
1991
Cartier, Baume &
Mercier, Gérald
Genta, Daniel
Roth and Piaget
leave Basel to
form their own
Geneva show
2007
Baselworld
welcomes
100,000
attendees for
2011
More than
2,000 exhibitors
are present at
Baselworld
2013
Hall 1 is opened,
space for
exhibitors
2018
Exhibitor
numbers fall to
less than 700;
Swatch Group
discontinues
involvement
2020
Show moved
to April, then
cancelled due to
pandemic
2021
Show moved to
January – will
it succeed?
enjoyed centuries of development into
ever-slimmer cases. The functionality of a
smartwatch is also dependent on software,
which can frustrate consumers and limit
choice; for example, an Apple Watch cannot
be paired with an Android phone.
Additionally, extra charges may be required
to use mobile functions, such as text
messages and social media notifications.
Perhaps most significantly, smartwatches
quickly become obsolete. In Fossil’s most
recent quarterly report, CEO Kartsotis said,
“We are disappointed to close the year with
a challenging fourth quarter, which primarily
reflects lower than expected performance in
our older generation connected products.”
Meanwhile, traditional watches can be
repaired and serviced, lasting for decades
and maintaining their timeless features.
However, even when customers choose a
smartwatch over a hybrid or fashion model,
retailers can benefit.
In 2014, Jean-Claude Biver, CEO of TAG
Heuer and president of Moët-Hennessy
Louis Vuitton SE (LVMH) Watchmaking
Division, said, “The Apple Watch is certainly
a promotion tool... Apple is preparing this
generation to make it easier, one day, to
wear a real watch.”
Additionally, jewellers have begun to create
custom metal smartwatch straps that mimic
jewellery, while Swarovski manufactures a
crystal-embellished Apple Watch case.
Whether they are classified as a real watch,
fancy toy, or disposable and expensive
distraction, smartwatches are yet to
conquer the traditional category entirely.
And it is the responsibility of retailers to
ensure consumers are aware of the benefits
of different products, and walk out of the
store – or check out of the e-shop – with
a timepiece that they love.
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