I for one am pretty confident that they do. Which is why I am frequently baffled by the approach taken by the majority of the watch industry when it comes to marketing, advertising and PR. The African American demographic is not exactly sought after by the majority of brands when it comes to partnerships, brand ambassadors, and advertising campaigns. Or maybe it is, and the majority of brands just can't figure out how to actually sign an ambassador who is, well, not white.
I thought it might be worth comparing a few well-known brands and their African American/ black ambassadors and let you the readers, draw your own conclusions. We'll do these two at a time.
Today:
Audemars Piguet -
Currently? Serena Williams. Oh! And a shit-ton of white golfers with one or two people of color thrown in, who are also golfers. It is very clear that Audemars Piguet likes golf ; )
In fairness, in the past Audemars Piguet did back Lebron James.
Now I want to be clear that I am depending upon the brand's current website as well as what can be uncovered with a quick Google search. There may, indeed, be others, but if there are, Audemars Piguet is not exactly pushing that news.
Omega -
Brace yourself - 0
Again, I am drawing this conclusion from Omega's website, their advertising, etc. Interesting to relate that Omega did a big campaign about famous people and their love of Omega's Speedmaster -
SPEEDMASTER FANS
I did a quick head count, and it is still early in the morning here in the metro Boston area, but I counted around 80 faces, and one of them, AJ Calloway, is African American.
I did a double check of the listed brand ambassadors - many I respect and admire (and a few who make me scratch my head). And you guessed it, nary a black person to be found. Now if the rumors are true, and Idris Elba becomes the next Bond, it might force the marketing department in Biel/Bienne to expand their palette ; )
Again, I want to be very clear - this is not a complex or scientific analysis. This is a very simple exercise based on what can be found either in print advertisements or a brand's website.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY - I am ready, willing, and able to have any brand point out any ambassador, partnership, etc. that I might have missed.
To be continued...
I thought it might be worth comparing a few well-known brands and their African American/ black ambassadors and let you the readers, draw your own conclusions. We'll do these two at a time.
Today:
Audemars Piguet -
Currently? Serena Williams. Oh! And a shit-ton of white golfers with one or two people of color thrown in, who are also golfers. It is very clear that Audemars Piguet likes golf ; )
In fairness, in the past Audemars Piguet did back Lebron James.
Now I want to be clear that I am depending upon the brand's current website as well as what can be uncovered with a quick Google search. There may, indeed, be others, but if there are, Audemars Piguet is not exactly pushing that news.
Omega -
Brace yourself - 0
Again, I am drawing this conclusion from Omega's website, their advertising, etc. Interesting to relate that Omega did a big campaign about famous people and their love of Omega's Speedmaster -
SPEEDMASTER FANS
I did a quick head count, and it is still early in the morning here in the metro Boston area, but I counted around 80 faces, and one of them, AJ Calloway, is African American.
I did a double check of the listed brand ambassadors - many I respect and admire (and a few who make me scratch my head). And you guessed it, nary a black person to be found. Now if the rumors are true, and Idris Elba becomes the next Bond, it might force the marketing department in Biel/Bienne to expand their palette ; )
Again, I want to be very clear - this is not a complex or scientific analysis. This is a very simple exercise based on what can be found either in print advertisements or a brand's website.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY - I am ready, willing, and able to have any brand point out any ambassador, partnership, etc. that I might have missed.
To be continued...
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