You’ve got to hand it to Sir Jonathan Ive: Apple’s head of design knows how to scare the competition. Wearables at CES were a huge disappointment, and there was a palpable sense that everyone was just waiting for the Apple Watch to come out.
Even the Swiss watch industry is scared. After initially dismissing the Apple Watch as a design joke, TAG Heuer’s luxury watch guru is singing a new tune.
“It’s a fantastic product, an incredible achievement,” Jean-Claude Biver, head of the watch division at TAG’s parent company LVMH, told Bloomberg. “I’m not just living in the tradition and culture and the past, I also want to be connected to the future. The Apple Watch connects me to the future. My watch connects me to history, to eternity.”
That’s a 180-degree change of opinion from Biver’s initial reaction to the Apple Watch last September.
“This watch has no sex appeal,” he said at the time. “It’s too feminine and looks too much like the smartwatches already on the market… To be totally honest, it looks like it was designed by a student in their first trimester.”
Yesterday, Biver told Bloomberg that TAG Heuer is developing its own smartwatch to counter the Apple Watch. Unnamed Silicon Valley tech companies will provide the tech while TAG Heuer will design the look.
If the name TAG Heuer sounds familiar, it’s because Apple poached one of its executives before the Apple Watch was announced.
TAG’s upcoming smartwatch will also abandon the revered “Swiss Made” label, which requires at least 50 percent of the watch’s components to be made in Switzerland. The watch will have GPS and sensors for health monitoring, although TAG hasn’t revealed any specifics yet.
Biver said the Apple Watch mainly threatens watches under the $2,000 price point. Apple hasn’t revealed pricing beyond the base model’s $349, but it’s looking like Jony Ive was right when he said Swiss watchmakers are f**ked.
Alex Heath is a journalist who works for Tech Insider. He’s the former co-host of The CultCast. He has been quoted by the likes of the BBC, KRON 4 News, and books like “ICONIC: A Photographic Tribute to Apple Innovation.” He lives in Lexington, Kentucky. If you want to pitch a story, share a tip, or just get in touch, additional contact information is available on his personal site. Follow him on Twitter.
36 responses to “Jony Ive called it: ‘Swiss Made’ watches are in trouble”
Not until it’s water proof to a minimum of 50 meters. Until then, the iWatch stays on the dock.
…and has to continue to do that every day, while the “Swiss made” watches can run for years.
Holy smokes…You really don’t have a clue about Swiss made mechanicals. They’re notoriously delicate. Very few people I know swim with their $8000 Swiss watch on – even those made for diving such as a Submariner. That’s why I have a $50 Casio Quartz dive watch. Most of us don’t even shower with them on.
Good to know people like to take care of their expensive stuff.
“notoriously delicate”? Rolex became popular for it’s ruggedness and still sponsors yacht racing to polish that image. Same goes for Mercedes Benz although now days lots of non-lux products can meet the same specs. If you are unwilling to take your $7k, $15k, or $35k watch out on the boat, you bought it for the wrong reason.
The only people I know who wear any Swiss mechanical while swimming, diving, hiking, working on the car, or going to the beach are people for whom a few thousand dollars isn’t a big deal. They’re also the ones who send their watches back to the manufacturer every few years for refurbishment and new seals – a service that cost about $300-$500 on average. Any watch that needs a $300-$500 service every 3-5 years (assuming no major parts are replaced) simply can’t be considered rugged.
The watch forums are full of people like you who think that because they spent $6000 on a watch, that it should keep better time and be more rugged than some cheap Asian brand. It’s just not true. They break easily, need regular service and tell time FAR less accurately than a $50 Casio. If you bought one of these watches for the purpose of taking it out on a boat, you bought it for the wrong reason.
By the way, in 1950 when all watches were mechanical, Rolex was rugged. In 2015 when there are a slew of good quality, Quartz watches from Asia, not so much anymore by comparison.
Calm down! Re-read my comment.
We service our boats. We service our cars. We even service ourselves when we get a knee replaced. What was your point? Right, you didn’t have one.
Greg, I don’t know why you’re getting so offended over a simple discussion about what constitutes “rugged” in regard to watches. Good people can disagree without getting nasty about it.
My “point” was that a mechanical watch is inherently more delicate when compared to Quartz, digital and other solid state watches. The multitude of gears, levers and springs make that inescapable. From an engineering standpoint, there’s no way around it.
We may service our boats, cars and ourselves, but 99% of people have never had their watch serviced (beyond simple battery changes) because they don’t have watches that need service. Swiss mechanicals need regular service, while a Casio Quartz does not (or at least much less frequently).
Now I’m more than happy to continue a civil discussion about this but getting belligerent doesn’t make for very useful converstion.
I ignore your personal attack (“full of people like you”) and tell you review my comment because you clearly didn’t understand, and I’m being belligerent? Meanwhile, you are chasing all over this place like Barney Fife telling us what watches we should wear, when, and that spending money is a sin. It’s a wonder why we can’t have nice things without being hassled by people like you… because we leave the gates open.
Okaaaay…I guess rational discussion is now closed. Have a good evening.
For Geeks.
Lesson learned by the watch industry and pretty much every industry going forward: never bet against Apple.
Social media industry could happily bet against Apple. Not to mention the miserable way Apple neglected its advantage in cloud services when decided to stop MobileMe development (which was previous to Dropbox and alike) and axed it in favour of Apple’s most blatant example of underachievement in recent times, iCloud.
Umm…no. Jony, those “Swiss made” watches are classic/timeless masterpieces, which is completely in another category.
It’s doom and gloom for all watch makers before Apples even releases the iwatch. Rolex, Garmin etc should sell off there assets…
The iwatch that doesn’t even have GPS.
Anybody who thinks the Apple watch is a threat to Swiss made watches simply doesn’t understand watch culture. The people who buy Swiss mechanicals aren’t going to suddenly get the Apple Watch instead because it’s not a watch – it’s a mini computer that you wear on your wrist. There’s a huge difference and the markets for the two aren’t remotely similar. I have a watch that I inherited from my grandfather. I have another one from my dad. I’ve got a few that I’ll pass on to my son. Watch culture is about timelessness. Smart watches will have lifespans measured in years. Mechanical watches last many, many decades. Inexpensive Quartz watches will likely be impacted, but not the high end Swiss mechanical market. Tag isn’t worried about hanging on to its current market – they simply see an opportunity to expand into a new market unrelated to their current lines.
Having said that, I’ll be the first to buy an Apple Watch. It definitely has its place. But it won’t be in lieu of a high quality Swiss mechanical. Apple Watch appeals to the tech guy in me – not the watch geek.
People really need to take some time to understand watch culture before they declare it dead to some electronic gizmo. That’s just laughable to us watch geeks that make up the majority of the Swiss watch market.
And how many watches do you wear at any given time?
Assuming that the Apple Watch become a very useful piece of technology (and I think it will at some point in the near future), it will not directly compete against luxury Swiss watches, but it will compete for your wrist. The result is more or less the same.
Once again, that’s a misunderstanding of watch culture. I have about 6 watches that I wear based on my activity or mood. The only thing that prevents me from having more is that my wife would divorce me if she caught me spending a few thousand dollars on another watch. My wrist isn’t the limiting factor to how many watches I own – my wallet is. But $350 isn’t a big deal. $3500 is. These are just simply not the same markets.
Most watch geeks have far more watches than I do and may change them a couple of times per day. Some of the more prized watches are rarely worn at all. That’s who makes up the Swiss mechanical market. Since the introduction of Quartz watches in the 1970s, the only people who still buy Swiss mechanicals are us die hards. Everyone else buys Timex, Casios, Seikos, Citizens and the like. Those companies ARE likely to feel the pinch. Those are the people who might purchase an Apple Watch in lieu of a classic style watch. Switzerland doesn’t make those watches though (or at least very few).
The people who think Swiss mechanicals are in trouble are the people who either don’t wear a watch (and would therefore not purchase a high end Swiss watch anyway) or people who wouldn’t dream of spending more than a few hundred dollars on a watch (and would therefore never buy one anyway).
” that I wear based on my activity or mood. ”
But if you consider that at some point the Apple Watch (or any smart watch) could become so useful that you want to always wear it, then you will have to make a choice because your wrist will be the limiting factor then.
No, I don’t think so. “Watch people” like him and me will not wear an Apple watch to say an awards dinner (yes, I go to some). or a wedding. At least not me. For formal events, a formal watch. For sporting, a watch that can handle water and/or shock.
I too will get an Apple Watch, but it won’t be on my wrist always. No way.
I love mechanical watches. No matter how much of an Apple-phile or techie I am, it’s difficult to imagine abandoning my mechanicals on a regular basis no matter how useful the Apple Watch is.
Remember, if us watch geeks were driven by practicality, none of us would own a Swiss watch in the first place. Practicality and usefulness are already secondary considerations to us.
I have a dress watch, a diving watch, and a beater Casio watch. I’ll be happy to buy an Apple watch when they come out but it’s certainly not going to replace any of my other watches that serve a very specific function.
The way I (humbly) see it, the wrist-wear will diversify and change. We tend to identify wrist-wear to watches, which was correct for decades but probably not anymore. Several categories of wrist-wear will be available but not necessarily all comparable products.
As it is quite evident today, smartphones are not just phones and don’t really compete with just phones (whatever they are called today, if they even exist). Smartwatches and watches will be two different wrist-wear products, as long watches continue delivering genuine attributes that couldn’t be found in smartwatches.
Today, smartwatches don’t deliver the amount of exclusivity, representation, history & tradition that is highly desired by some users. As long as smartwatches will not deliver those attributes, higher end watches are in a different space out of reach of Apple’s smartwatches.
Sub 2.000 USD watches will be quite defenceless and under serious attack.
Sub 2000 is a bit of a stretch. The Swiss guy in this post is right when he says that the Apple Watch looks a little feminine, especially when you put it next to an Armani Chrono or Tourbillion, and some of the cheaper units come as low as $200.
As you said, the Apple watch doesn’t compete with watches… That’s like comparing a google glass with sunglasses: one provides more utility, the other is inherently about style and pedigree and will always have a place in the market long after it’s primary function becomes irrelevant… And in case you forgot the phones in our pockets long made watches functionally pretty pointless.
I’m a huge Apple person. Almost a fanperson.
However, at this point I’m planning to stick with my Timex.
This is just like the iPhone — remember when it came out in 2007, and now there’s no such thing as a desk phone.
It’s kind of strange to talk about watches as screwed with the Apple Watch. The truth is an entire generation considers their iPhone as their ‘Apple Watch’. They’ve already stopped wearing watches, and that includes Fandroids too!
Old school watches only serve one purpose at this point: jewelry. What screws the Swiss Watch industry is that you can get perfectly nice watches for a fraction of their fancier prices. And sometimes with better quality.
I had my eye on a Raymond Weil watch. The thing was breathtaking. But not showy with a thousand knobs and dials. Just class. Amazon had a steal me price around $600 and I decided to go for it. It turned out there was no way to make the wristband lock as intended. Yes, it would clasp shut, but twitch the right way and suddenly the $600 was about to fall off. Presuming it was defective, I returned and replaced. Same thing. Brought it to a watch guy and he shrugged his shoulders and said, “It’s just bad design.”
Can you imagine? Does this company even have quality control. And to prove it wasn’t me, I googled that watch and found others complaining on the web.
I found a Fossil watch designed for women… but it’s really unisex. Comes in fun colors. I got a more sedate one. For $78. Looks almost as good. And the clasp works. ;-)
I consider the Apple watch ugly. That will change over time.
What you’re describing is true but has been the case since the 1970s when inexpensive Quartz watches became popular. The Swiss watch market struggled for a while after that and now focuses on people who are true watch aficionados. You are not their market and haven’t been for decades. If you want a great watch that’s rugged, inexpensive and super precise, I’d never recommend a Swiss watch. Nobody buys them for their practicality.
If you want a watch that’s timeless and is as much art as it is engineering, there are very few choices OTHER than Swiss mechanicals. It’s like drinking good beer or good wine – it takes a little while to appreciate the differences and it doesn’t appeal to everybody.
I have a classic Rolex, I don’t normally wear it in the shower but I have forgotten to take it off several times and regularly wash with it on but I have never had a problem whatsoever. It is the kind of quality you can put on and forget. It will never let you down.
Ive fails to understand that Swiss mechanical watches are not really watches but jewelry for men. The Apple watch will have no impact on their sales.
Still happy with my pebble battery lifetime
I spent a day filming in a watch factory in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Suisse and instantly became a watch aficionado. Watching a single time piece being built by hand, a process that can take weeks, makes you realize what an art watchmaking can be. Today, I own a Rolex, a Cartier and a Franck Muller among others. These great watches are not just timepieces…they’re as defining of my moods as a great suit or an expensive pair of hand made boots. The Apple Watch cannot compete with these watches; even the gold one, which would be a silly buy, knowing it would be obsolete in a few years, whereas my great great grandson will be wearing my Rolex. Will I get an Apple Watch? Probably a nice steel one for a few hundred. I love gadgets. But I’ll never think of it as a fashion statement.
I have been indebted to Apple for decades. If not for the Mac SE/30 and Mac OS 5.0, I would be one of those that couldn’t even set an alarm clock. With that said, the iwatch just doesn’t do it for me. As Dr. Dre puts it “I’m not feeling it”. I agree this is a different category from a heirloom time piece.
I disagree, since the two different watches serve a different purpose and the marktspace they are pointing on is not the same.
Lots of great points in the comments. It’s 2015 and most of us still drive gas powered vehicles. There are full electric cars and hybrid cars, both which have many benefits over fully gas powered vehicles, but they have less than 10% marketshare at the moment. In fact, most of the cars we aspire to own are the dumbest ones to own, and it’s the same with watches. People aren’t wearing their swiss watches because they need to tell time, you can check the time on your phone. It’s a status thing, and more and more people are wearing high end watches. Swiss watch imports into the US have been steadily growing and will continue to grow.
Do swiss watch manufacturers have something to worry about? Maybe… Maybe the ones making watches that in the same price range as smart watches will be affected a lot. Will Rolex, AP, PP, VC, even Cartier & Breitling be affected? No. People buying a high end swiss watch are buying something of value to pass down (or with plans of passing down) to their children. Smart watches will always go down in value and will never appreciate. Many people who buy a high end automatic will also buy a smart watch, but prefer to wear their automatic because they have more appreciation for it.
Smart watches are cool, but to me it’s just an extension of my phone. If I need to know what my text message says, I can pull out my phone… I really don’t want to read emails on my watch, I don’t want to talk to my watch, I also don’t want to have to charge my watch daily… Will it catch on? For sure… Lots of people will swear by them and wear one from the day they find the one they like until the day they die. The watches are going to improve a lot and be more practical with time.
I think the swiss manufacturers need to get creative and make bluetooth quartz watch and automatic/quartz watches that have an “e-mails” subdial which will show a red flag or a number indicating a new e-mail has arrived. Also maybe a Twitter bird that appears when you have a notification and so on. But it shouldn’t be a digital feature, it will be like a date window with a color or icon. I don’t think the big four would do it, but I could see Hublot doing it and it catching on.
Hmm, let’s see what happens in a few years…
Lots of great points in the comments. It’s 2015 and most of us still drive gas powered vehicles. There are full electric cars and hybrid cars, both of which have many benefits over fully gas powered vehicles, but they have less than 10% marketshare at the moment. In fact, most of the cars we aspire to own are the dumbest ones to own, and it’s the same with watches. People aren’t wearing their swiss watches because they need to tell time, you can check the time on your phone. It’s a status thing, and more and more people are wearing high end watches. Swiss watch imports into the US have been steadily growing and will continue to grow.
Do swiss watch manufacturers have something to worry about? Maybe… Maybe the ones making watches that in the same price range as smart watches will be affected a lot. Will Rolex, AP, PP, VC, even Cartier & Breitling be affected? No. People buying a high end swiss watch are buying something of value to pass down (or with plans of passing down) to their children. Smart watches will always go down in value and will never appreciate. Many people who buy a high end automatic will also buy a smart watch, but prefer to wear their automatic because they have more appreciation for it.
Smart watches are cool, but to me it’s just an extension of my phone. If I need to know what my text message says, I can pull out my phone… I really don’t want to read emails on my watch, I don’t want to talk to my watch, I also don’t want to have to charge my watch daily… Will it catch on? For sure… Lots of people will swear by them and wear one from the day they find the one they like until the day they die. The watches are going to improve a lot and be more practical with time.
I think the swiss manufacturers need to get creative and make bluetooth quartz watch and automatic/quartz watches that have an “e-mails” subdial which will show a red flag or a number indicating a new e-mail has arrived. Also maybe a Twitter bird that appears when you have a notification and so on. But it shouldn’t be a digital feature, it will be like a date window with a color or icon. I don’t think the big four would do it, but I could see Hublot doing it and it catching on.
Hmm, let’s see what happens in a few years…