Reheated Leftovers - The Rebirth, Rise, and Fall of (Daniel) JEANRICHARD

I was having one of my semi-infrequent conversations with the sales director of a Swiss brand (no names!), and part of the conversation was about the recent trend towards (trying) to resurrect dormant (or dead) brands. His contention was that it was a great idea if you had an established brand and you brought in the dormant brand to offer more diverse options (such as those mapped out by Breitling's CEO) to cover more price points. I won't go into my feedback on this, and as I am not currently retained by his brand it doesn't really matter whether he follows my advice or not ; )

But it did get me thinking of one of the more unfortunate triumph-turned-failures of the last 15 years. Long story short - not all brand resurrections "stick". So as we get ready for the Geneva shows, I thought I'd reheat this cautionary tale...

JEANRICHARD IS BACK, BABY!!!

Courtesy of JEANRICHARD

After a quiet 5 year sleep, the dream is finally a reality - Sleeping Beauty has awoken and ready to take on the watch world again!

Of course if you've checked your calendar, you realize that while this is not The Onion, it's also not actual fact.

JEANRICHARD lives on as an example of how to build, and then wipe out goodwill in the press and the watch fan base in three short years.  

Shamelessly borrowed from the world-wide infoweb

Let's hop in the WABAC Machine to those thrilling days of yesteryear - 2012. Jean Richard, which would later change its name to JEANRICHARD had bobbed up on the surface of Watch Town's picturesque Lake Whatif.

I wrote a fairly (I thought) innocuous piece about it.
Curious to relate, I got a very warm and fuzzy email from the newly minted head of JEANRICHARD North America inviting me down to Los Angeles in January in a few weeks to view the new collection.

And thus began my personal obsession with all things JEANRICHARD. My interactions with the JR folks were an early lesson that relationships with watch brand folk are more frequently than not, transactional. Which in and of itself is not such a tragedy, but underscores the transitional nature of the reality of life working as a brand manager, sales manager or even CEO - you are more often than not simply a place holder waiting to receive your pink slip.

The marketing plan behind JEANRICHARD was, well, baffling. Brand partnerships included a (literal) tight rope walker, a B list actor, multiple rugby teams and players and the coup de grâce - Miss France herself back in 2016. A few curious facts about the arc of JEANRICHARD partnerships - they went from global (including the Arsenal Football Club), and petered out to almost exclusively French ones.

So what went wrong? Well, as early as 2014 brand loyalists were pointing fingers and those who hadn't already jumped ship were plotting their escape routes. In 2013 GP had made their triumphant return to BaselWorld and in an equally impressive booth right next-door was JR. The next year, the JR booth had shrunk to half its size. By 2015 pretty much everyone had departed, and the entire JR operation had been compressed into ONE room which looked like a storage closet had exploded inside of it, with a harried PR person (external) in tears as she handed visitors baseball hats, year-old catalogs and looked as if she was about to walk out herself.

And then JR was put to sleep, and Prince Charming still has not shown up to awaken her with a kiss (or massive cash injection).

But really, those are more the effects. Let's talk about the causes -

1. Cockiness
Interestingly, the brand management was very good at making quick friendships, but then forgetting that the watch business is a relationship business. Retail partners were frequently left screwed when the grey market would (not infrequently) be flooded with the same product that they had just purchased for their stores. This then trickled down to the customer, who felt like a total rube for paying full price 2 weeks prior only to find it on a grey market super-store website for 50% off. And finally, we members of the press. Those of us who were early supporters were jettisoned once more "attractive" outlets came into view. Curious to relate? Once those big outlets had sucked all the money they could out of JR, the moved on to the next warm body.

2. Short term tunnel vision
The brain trust at JR decided if they could sell 100 pieces, then surely they could sell 10,000 at an even higher price. Moreover, if people are happy with black, silver, blue, green and aubergine (I owned and loved that one), then let's have 500 different SKUs!

3. They felt the need to have the best looking date at the Prom
Step 1 - get a partner
Step 2 - get a better looking partner (and 86 the first partner)
Step 3 - get an even better looking partner (and 86 the second partner)
Step 4 - get dumped and go back to the first partner and act as if they were always their first choice. I spoke to several retail partners who felt that way - and I certainly felt that way as a member of the press.

4. Refusal to admit that mistakes were made, and refusal to adjust the plan
Watch brands make knuckle-headed decisions several times a day. The trick is to recognize when things are not going to right themselves, and GO BACK to the plan that was working.


Here's the irony - there are STILL a lot of people who even though they got burned, would likely embrace JEANRICHARD again. For my part, I would be the leery jilted partner in the Rom Com who would have to be won over again by the end of the movie.


JEANRICHARD could still be awakened, could still be something, but it will require a good, hard look at what went wrong, and a cautious, thoughtful approach. If my memory is correct, before he bought and reinvigorated Girard-Perregaux, Daniel Jean Richard was the first jewel in the Macaluso family crown. It deserved a better fate than the one it is currently enduring. Let's hope someone, somewhere is ready to salvage what truly could be an interesting brand.

The Vulcain Cricket I Would Make

Okay, Vulcain currently seems to be intent on making a zillion versions of the same models, just in different colors... meaning...

Lots of SKUs and several "highly collectible limited editions" are still unsold despite fairly modest limited edition numbers....

And I love my two Crickets, the Paajanen / Ditisheim -

And my date model -

But as I am doing the final edits on the Vulcain Cricket / US Presidents volume 2 edition, I am reminded of what President Johnson, and (at the time) Vice President Nixon mentioned about their Vulcain Crickets - that they depended upon them to act as their alarm clock around the world.

So rather than taking the same base model and slapping a new dial on it with a dubious limited edition claim to fame (next time, maybe reach out to the families before naming a model after their relative?) maybe try something a little bit different?

Now there is something in the not-too-distant past, the Cricket Aviator -

Shamelessly borrowed from the world-wide infoweb

And for my money, this would be one to re-heat. But I might propose a crown + pusher as opposed to the two crown + pusher format. This was done quite nicely by both Girard-Perregaux and Baume Mercier.

Shamelessly borrowed from the worldwide infoweb

At any rate, that is what I would do. But then again, nobody in Le Locle has asked for my opinion on the matter ; )

Waiting for the World to Change

This first ran in 2014 - just over 10 years ago. In re-reading it this morning, it is clear that not a whole lot has shifted in that time. Let's see if anyone in Watch Town is ready to pick up the gauntlet.

Waiting for the World to Change...

So...

Show of hands - how many of you out there bought a watch because Warren Beatty was given one as a freebie at a film event, or because Arsenal slapped their logo on the dial?  I think we all know the answer to that - if you had, both JEANRICHARD and Girard-Perregaux would be in much better fiscal shape than they are now.

Did you run out to buy an Hublot when Floyd (I show my love for the mother of my children in a physical way) Mayweather was presented a watch?

Did you buy an Audemars Piguet in joy and jubilation following a Serena Williams grand slam win? 

Did a burning desire to own a Maurice Lacroix overcome you when you read via Facebook that they were sponsoring cliff diving?  REALLY?!??!!!

Did you fly to the authorized retail partner to buy an Huatlence when Eric Cantona signed on?  Okay, bad example.  True confession, I would buy "King Eric's" old t-shirts and frame them - he's the shit that killed Elvis!  But to buy an Hautlence?  Gotta' draw the line somewhere, and I would rather have four walls and a roof than live in my car with an Hautlence on my wrist ; )  Should Hautlence ever deem to actually, I don't know, invite me to some of their "events" I might be willing to modify this opinion ; )


But ask yourself this question -

What (if any) return on investment do you think a watch brand receives when they plop hundreds of thousands (if not millions) on a promotional partnership?

Yachts?  Racing cars?  Super models?  And what REALLY drives these choices?  It is vanity, artifice and frankly a good flush of investor money straight down the toilet of waste to satisfy the ego of watch executives.  Does it drive sales?  Maybe not so much when one of your biggest "stars" rewards his team mates with a different company's watches... sorta' a kick in the dick seeing as you gave the guy like, a "Bajillion Dollars" to wear your watch and try to appear happy about it.  Just sayin' ...

I'm tired.  I'm tired of it, and I don't want to write about it any more.

And here's the irony - many of these brands actually do good, donate money, participate in charitable actions - but it's almost as if they are ashamed of having the world know about it.

Watch brands - if you do something GOOD, something FOR OTHER PEOPLE WHO NEED HELP - FU*&ING TALK ABOUT IT!  Stop burying your good deeds with more fodder about your latest ambassador from Taiwan, or how Jeremy Renner "chose" your watch for the "red carpet", or that some "long in the tooth" supermodel is your latest partner - nobody gives a shit anymore.  It costs a great deal of money and frankly you could do more with that money and get MORE POSITIVE publicity - which frankly is what you were trying to do in the first place, right?

What could you do?  Well thank you for asking, allow me to suggest:

Look to Rolex and Hermes and what their foundations do.  You could endow scholarships.

If you like football (soccer) as much as so many of you claim, you could donate some money NOT to a pro team that needs money like it needs a hole in the head - you could give the money to a really GOOD organization like Grass Roots Soccer.  Be involved in soccer, be involved in education and help to stop the spread of AIDS.  Seems like a pretty good deal, doesn't it?  Still want to have big-time soccer people involved?  No problem, they've got you covered:
Christen Press, Elton John, Freddie Ljungberg - I think any brand would be proud and frankly lucky to have these folks attached them.  And for the brave watch company that says - "YES, We want to be a part of this!"  I guarantee there will be football stars who will gladly join you.  As odd as it sounds, doing good can be good for business.  But I also realize that you've done it the same way for the past 20 years or so.  Change is hard, because it requires you to admit that maybe, just maybe the world has changed and you have not kept up with it.  

Audemars Piguet's well-quoted slogan is: "To break the rules you must first master them".

I would do them one better: "To be relevant in the world you must first participate in it."

The brand that's ready to do that - I am ready to fly the flag for.

Casquette 2.0 - Electric Boogaloo!

nos·tal·gia

/näˈstaljə,nəˈstaljə/

Learn to pronounce

noun

1. a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations.

   "I was overcome with acute nostalgia for my days in college"

   courtesy of Oxford Languages 

As a tow headed Northern Youth my grandfather, in his wisdom, gave me a Texas Instruments digital watch. It easily weighed a pound, and died three times in less than 4 months before being dutifully consigned to the dustbin the week after Halloween. My July birthday present did not live to see Christmas. 

Courtesy of Girard-Perregaux

I don't claim to know how good or bad sales are for GP. I can say that apart from some pieces finding their way onto the wrists of a few journalists, you don't tend to see them "in the wild" on an even remotely regular basis. There are a lot of reasons for this, but chief among them is a fairly significant identity crisis. In fairness to the former managers / new owners, this is not a new development. Without consistent and comprehensive communication, it is quite hard to understand just what GP is trying to do or to be.

 With that said, I had to scratch my head when I clapped eyes on the newly released Casquette 2.0...

Courtesy of Girard-Perregaux

Like pretty much everyone else who writes about watches, I am nostalgic. I sincerely appreciate whimsy, and those who try to do something different.  With that said, $4,700 is a bit further and deeper than I am willing to go to scratch that particular itch. More to the point, it is yet another odd choice made by GP in recent times. 

Should you be aching to put on your leisure suit and splash on some Hai Karate and take a deep dive back to that simpler time, here are the pertinents, straight from the source -

LIMITED EDITION OF 820 TIMEPIECES

CASQUETTE 2.0

39800-32-001-32A

• WATCH
  • CASE
    • Case material :
      black ceramic and titanium, titanium pushers
    • Diameter :
      42.40 x 33.60 mm
    • Thickness :
      14.64 mm
    • Case-back :
      titanium, secured by 4 screws
    • Dial :
      Tubular LED display
    • Water resistance :
      50 m
  • STRAP
    • Strap material :
      ceramic with rubber interior
    • Buckle :
      titanium folding buckle
• MOVEMENT
  • CALIBRE
    • Number :
      GP3980-1474
    • Mechanism :
      quartz
    • Total Diameter :
      26.24 x 25.65 mm (-)
    • Height :
      6.40 mm
    • Frequency :
      32'768 Hz
    • Number of Parts :
      50
    • Number of Jewels :
      0
    • Oscillating weight :
      -
    • Power Reserve :
      -

GP's neighbors up the hill floated a similar idea at a past BaselWorld when Corum came out with an LED Bubble. How well or poorly that particular anomaly sold is a question only Corum will ever be able to answer. 

Now in fairness, for all I know all 820 pieces of the Casquette 2.0 have been sold. I am clearly not part of that demographic ; )

Nostalgia is a beguiling force. But ultimately, I will leave it with that other great commentator on the watch business, Anwan Glover as Slim Charles in The Wire -

Courtesy of HBO / The Wire

Girard-Perregaux and Ulysse Nardin Have New Owners

It would seem that Patrick Pruniaux has managed to round up some banks to back the somewhat drawn out management buyout of the two brands from parent company Kering.

For the original (in French) please direct yourself to the link below -

https://www.letemps.ch/economie/ulysse-nardin-girardperregaux-retrouvent-independance

See also some coverage from Reuters -

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/luxury-goods-group-kering-sell-girard-perregaux-ulysse-nardin-divisions-2022-01-24/

We'll be back later today with some commentary, so stay tuned!

What I've Learned - The 10th Anniversary Edition

So irony of ironies, the 10th Anniversary of Tempus Fugit arrived while I was busy writing grant proposals and ironing out budgeting issues at my day job! But I have had some time to think about this one, and as the odometer has officially flipped on ten years, here we go -

What I've Learned Covering the Watch Business:

The Real Meaning of Friend of the BRAND -
There really is no such thing. You might be a friend of a sales rep, you might be a friend of the marketing folks, but there is no relationship with the brand other than the one you ascribe in your own mind. Friend of the Brand gets bandied around by pr agency representatives as a palliative to make you not feel like such a loser while you are forced to wait beyond your appointment time in the reception area while someone from one of the bigger outlets is enjoying sushi with the CEO and head of PR in the big room. Don't get me wrong, I have made some very good friends in the business who I am still in touch with after they've moved on to other brands and even to other industries. But you will learn, in time, that the majority of relationships you have with brands are transactional. Keep that in mind, and you'll never be disappointed.

The REVOLUTION is, for the most part, over -
Ultimately, there is not a lot left to be discovered. Let me re-phrase that so I don't sound like such a "Henki-Raincloud". What I mean is that the days of wonder and amazement have probably gone the way of the rock-star CEO. There was only one Ludwig Oechslin, and without Rolf Schnyder to partner with him and coax out the Freak, or the Trilogy of Time he is the part owner of ochs und junior.  Nothing wrong with that, but while it would be wonderful to have him come back with another extreme complication, it does not seem highly likely. The Corum Bubble has not necessarily burst, but a lot of the air has been let out of it. The Big Bang has seen its day, and AP can only make so many reiterations of the Royal Oak.


A Cult of Personality might work in North Korea, but not so much in the watch business -
On the real side, Blancpain could not have been done by anyone other than Biver. And in fairness, Hublot went as far as he could carry it on his back. But even the sheer force of will that Biver brought to bear on Zenith could not really turn the tide. Inevitably, in the words of that other great commentator on watches, Chuck Yeager as played by Sam Shepard in The Right Stuff -
"Sometimes you get a pooch that can't be screwed, ya know?"

I guess my point is this - you don't really see Thierry Stern or Jean-Frederic Dufour mugging with "celebrity chums" at movie premieres and red velvet rope events. For a brand to really truly endure, it has to be more than just the face of the current boss. Patek and Rolex will continue to be here, continue to set the tone for everyone else. Zenith, among others, needs to resolve its revolving identity crisis, make a decision about who and what they are, and stick with it for more than 6 months at a time.

"My Friend" is still not so subtle code for "You Asshole" -
I still stand by this, and after more than 10 years my belief in this reality is stronger than ever.

Sincere gratitude is scarcer than a NIB vintage Daytona -
1. If you are writing for pay? Make sure you get paid.
2. If you are writing for personal pleasure and satisfaction? Then only you can provide that for yourself.
3. If you are writing with the hopes of praise and thanks? Refer back to points 1 and 2 or cease and desist.

Rich, famous, important people are a lot less interesting when you finally meet them -

Little known bit of Henki lore, my father was a country club manager. Translation? He worked so that the more well-heeled could play. I worked in the locker room of the club, my first job working as a shoe shine guy. Believe it or not, in the 70s and 80s, there was an actual industry based upon shining the shoes of rich people while they walked around a park-like environment, drinking beer and whacking small white balls. Rich people, famous people? They are people. George Steinbrenner was a titan of industry and master manipulator. I can tell you from personal experience, his shoes smelled just as awful as those worn by an orthodontist, dermatologist or mid-level auto executive's. The one thing all four of these guys had in common? They were shitty tippers.

I have met some of the big swinging dicks of the industry. It is all too often underwhelming.

When anyone tells you how amazing you are and how "just as soon as you take advertising, we're in!" this person should be taken with about as much seriousness as you would take the drunk person asking for $3 on the commuter train so that they can "buy a healthy snack" -
We all say a lot of highly dubious stuff when we've been drinking. That's why your wife/husband/partner learns over the years to apply the bullshit filter. Make sure you do the same, it will spare you a fair amount of frustration and disappointment.

When you have made it clear by your actions and writing that you are predisposed to write nice things about a brand, and said brand treats you with a fair amount of disdain? Take it on the heel and toe. Love needs to be reciprocal -

I find it ironic looking back that the first brand I ever wrote about here was NOMOS, and that last year they invited me on a press trip, assured me it was arranged, and then when I wrote to follow-up 3 weeks prior to the travel date, I was informed that I was "uninvited", no explanation, and some bullshit about the trip being "overbooked", which was false as at least one invitee had declined the invitation and I knew that they were scrambling to fill the space - apparently (and specifically) not with me ; )
Well then, NOMOS, fuck you very much.

Brands are made up of people. The brand does not exist without the people. If a brand has good people - I will do ALL that I can. If a brand has people that just don't care? Why should I care about them?

I get the odd comment - "I thought you were a fan of Brand A". Well, I have come to learn that brands are made of people. It's not as if the founders of Girard-Perregaux are going to make a special appearance in the physical world to tour me around the factory. The brand? The brand is the people who work there. So put it in another context - do you like spending time with people who treat you poorly? Of course you don't. Molly Ringwald's entire career was based on this notion. A watch is an inanimate object. It can't speak for itself. A brand is not simply products. A brand is the people who make those products, and share that message.

Brand ambassadors are about as worthwhile as what you wipe your backside with -

There is a reason why Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot are not mentioned as customers of Brand X.
Churchill, Napoleon, Lindbergh? All flawed, all now "ambassadors" from the great beyond. Well, they won, didn't they? They were all flawed, all had baggage. But they are a whole lot more palatable. Question - do you think that the Mario Batali Ernst Benz is a big seller right now?
Sorry, too soon?

A brand ambassador will not be there with you when they turn out the lights and escort you out of your now former office. A former brand that was "ALL IN" can attest to that.

Remember everyone you meet when times are good. You will see them again on your way back down -
It is inevitable to fail. The trick is not to make a habit of it. More importantly? Don't be a jackass when times are good. Sooner or later, it is likely you will fail. By and large, most of us want to help people and offer our support. That is, of course, presuming that person behaved, well, like a person when times were good ; )

Don't fake the funk -
Because in the immortal words of that other great commentator on the watch industry Daryl Dawkins:
“When everything is said and done there is nothing left to do or say.”

Who's Next?

Speaking with a brand owner the other day and the question he kept asking - who is next?

What did he mean by that? Well, up until the (if we're honest) late 90s / early oughts nobody really gave two tosses about who ran what watch brand. And designers were, by and large, only really recognized by a handful of people.

Now the funny part of all of this is that no single thing so dramatic happened to change the landscape inside of the industry. It was a lot of little things that all took place around the same time, and created a snow ball effect. More on this for a different post, but it's important to bear in mind that there was a time not so very long ago where we neither knew or cared about who designed our favorite watch, or who ran the brand.

Now back to the opening salvo - Who's next?

The watch industry is just that, an industry. But within every industry there are always glimmers of excitement, mavericks, people who chart their own course and in doing so offer something truly remarkable, that stands the test of time.

Names that were mentioned during this conversation included the obvious - Biver, Hayek and Schnyder. But some others came through - Silberstein, Genta and Richard Mille. And the question again was - "Who is next?" and the honest answer that I gave was pretty blunt - nobody.

Now before you beetle over to the comment button to leave your bon mots, allow me to elaborate. There are plenty of creative, talented people out there making some wonderful things -

Sarpaneva -

Shamelessly borrowed from the Sarpaneva Facebook page

Fiona Krüger -

Courtesy of Fiona Krüger

Patrik Sjögren -

Courtesy of GoS

But these folks have been at it for awhile, and in fairness, they are taking different approaches from the luminaries that preceded them. Because back in the day, you had to have a benefactor. The Royal Oak is a great watch, but (and I say this with all due respect), it would not have been anything more than an interesting idea without the weight of Audemars Piguet behind it. And even that, on it's own, was not enough, a certain amount of luck was involved and it is safe to say that it was lightning in a bottle. Think I'm full of it? Well let's see... there is the Nautilus. It was backed by a tiny, insignificant little Swiss firm... Patek Philippe.

And yet there were other really dope designs such as the Overseas and the Laureato. But neither one has really enjoyed the same level of "thingness" that the Royal Oak or the Nautilus have.

So who or what is next remains really hard to know, and here's
why - fear. I am a risk averse fellow myself, but fear is what drives the majority of decisions made in the larger brands. Fear of failure, fear of embarrassment, fear of looking bad. And now that Vacheron, GP, Blancpain and others are part of larger groups that are answerable to investors, etc.? That fear is on steroids.

What many of us are waiting for is to see brands develop and grow talent IN HOUSE. Talent that will be encouraged to take some risks, and make watches that are out of the norm and challenge the status quo. Now it would be easy to say that there is nothing new in watches. Well, I wouldn't necessarily buy that, but I would say that at the rate we are going we will never know if the big brands don't start letting the next generation take their turn at the wheel.

In this day and age, you don't necessarily need a benefactor, but more and more it becomes impossible for the independent creator to do more than merely create. It can be the most beautiful, technically advanced, cutting edge watch out there. But if nobody knows about it, nobody buys it.

We are ready to find out who's next. So big brands? The ball's in your court. And I hope that the independents maintain their independence. If the big dogs aren't willing or able to take some chances? Let them labor on in mediocrity.

Pre-Thanksgiving Leftovers

This piece first ran back in January.  I have had a bit of time to reflect on it, on the way the industry is moving and the continued pursuit of ideas that simply don't work.  I go on a few press junkets per year.  As I have a day job making the world safe for students to go to college, I am not on the "full-time circuit" that many of my more pampered colleagues travel.  I despise horse racing owing to the high number of horse casualties each year, so I am not weeping about not being on the Longines "go-to-guest-list".  I also work for a growing number of brands as a consultant and therefore appreciate time, effort and expense that a brand goes through to set such things up.  It is not a simple endeavor.  Long hours, too much hand-holding, little to no personal time, and you are always "on".

Press junkets can be fun, and by and large they give you a unique opportunity to bond with brand insiders and get a better understanding as to what makes them tick.  And when you are traveling together with other journalists, retailers and North American staff, you are somewhat trapped in a mobile "summer camp" of sorts.  And you get to see the good, the bad and the... well, not so attractive side of things.  But what continues to fascinate me is the obsessive need to follow shiny objects.  By that I mean the unfailingly understanding that if "influencer X" tells you that they are the "Dog's testicles", by golly you'll believe it!

While I am by no means a "lifer" in the watch game, I do feel that I can honestly say I have been to the city and I have seen the rodeo.  And there are a handful of people who are the real deal in terms of communication, knowledge, belief and appreciation.

Mike Pearson - Brand Evangelist Extraordinaire.  This guy could probably go to the Middle East and solve the crisis in an afternoon.  He is that friendly, that engaging, that engaged, and that passionate.  Any brand with any sense should be picking up the phone and trying to hire him.

Another Mike - Mike Margolis.  A man who proved that passion and commitment actually do count for something.

Manon Vauthier - A true loss to the watch world, she flew the flag for Eterna and Porsche Design, often single handed. The watch world's loss is the real world's gain.  Since leaving the world of horological communication she is doing amazing things by all accounts.

Xavier Markl - Someone who actually took the time to listen to everyone - from the small to the mighty.  GP would be a lot better off if he were still there, but sometimes companies have to learn the hard way.

Dan Lewis - Of all the people I have met in the industry, I have to say that Dan is someone I always look forward to seeing.  Honest, kind, patient, and someone I am truly proud to call my friend.

In many ways, these folks are the old guard.  Which seems weird because many of them came up at the same time as me.  Many have moved on to other things, a few are still there and in many ways demonstrating what can be right about the watch business.  

I guess I've gone on about the good, now let's re-heat the "not-so-good".

Happy Thanksgiving!

Influencer

This continues to be a hot topic, and it will continue to be so long as brand CEOs, managers and marketing folks keep dipping into the till to pay off popular boys and girls in the hopes of being relevant to the Millennial demographic. 

It has now seeped so far into the public awareness that various sources beyond the Urban Dictionary are defining it.

noun

1A person or thing that influences another.

‘he was a champion of the arts and a huge influencer of taste’

‘genetic factors are key influencers of your metabolic rate’

‘Frank's been a teacher and cultural influencer for years’

1.1Marketing A person with the ability to influence potential buyers of a product or service by promoting or recommending the items on social media.

‘influencers can add serious credibility to your brand’

Ultimately, brands will push the envelope as far as they can until the FTC or the public at large gets tired of the never-ending game of Manchurian Candidate Kabuki theater that is the "influencer trade".  It is false, it is deceptive and it is manipulative.  And I would like to think that the powers that be could be a little less disingenuous (lacking in frankness, candor, or sincerity; falsely or hypocritically ingenuous; insincere: Her excuse was rather disingenuous.).

But I'd like to propose that the guys and gals writing the checks at HQ consider a different way to go about this whole influencer thing.  Now back at the turn of the century, there were a few people out there who were influencers before such a thing existed.  And they did it in a way that was honest, forthright, and understandable.

While it is very true that Hublot became a sensation through the tireless work of Jean-Claude Biver, there was another guy who made Hublot and its story his passion, which then became his career.  While Mr. Biver can be thought of as the father of Hublot, in many ways Mr. Margolis is the American uncle.  This did not simply happen because Mr. Margolis demanded several thousand dollars to feature Hublot in his communication.  It happened because Mike was passionate about Hublot, and his passion was contagious.  And here is the key thing - YES - he became an employee of Hublot - but that did not make his passion any less real, or his communication any less honest.  In many ways it did just the opposite.  It was a way of saying - yes, I work for these folks but I'm also a fan.  And I am going to go to every event, pour coffee, shake hands and kiss babies to spread the word because I believe in it.  

It is safe to say that in many ways Mike was the prototypical brand evangelist for the watch industry.   And I think that is the way many watch buyers and fans would like to see things evolve.  

An instafamous influencer is a gun for hire.  While they may appear in a brand's SIHH video with other instafamous influencers, they will then turn around and cash the check for yet another brand to feature them in their social media feeds.  So if you bought brand X based on the desire to be like them, you will then not be like them in next week's instagram feed ; )

Guy Kawasaki became Apple's evangelist.  And in his way he did as much (and in some cases more) than Steve Jobs in spreading the good word.

At a time where things are in flux, the industry does not need more bullshit.  It needs more transparency.  And it needs some sincere people who are truly passionate about what they are promoting, not merely bottom feeding for the next instafamous check.

Bring back the evangelists!

Because it's Easy to Run 2 Brands!

As I sit and write this morning, I am reflecting on a conversation I had with Wendy last night.  Over the course of the past week, three brands repeated classic mistakes that they (and others) have made before, and yet continue to make them because they convince themselves that somehow, this time will be different!

The announcement has seeped out to Salem's Witchcraft Heights and finally over to Tempus Fugit HQ - 
the shot-callers at Kering have decided that the current head of Ulysse Nardin should now also take over Girard-Perregaux.  Now this is not really news.  And in fairness, I have held off on comment.  But the more people that I spoke with, the more I thought about it, the more I have come to believe that we are seeing the same sort of reactive (i.e. not proactive) thinking that (particularly) the Swiss industry has been stumbling around with for the recent past.

I am now firmly to the point where I don't know if these "double CEOs" are the result of careful decision making, or knee-jerk reaction.  It also sheds some very serious light on the real health of the watch industry.  If everything is as rosy as the export numbers would have us believe, then Kering wouldn't feel the need to bootstrap their executive functions in the watch industry.

But I've also noticed another shift, the business now is becoming less and less about the "personalities" running the brands.  On the one hand, this is good because it focuses us back more firmly on the viability of the product itself.  

On the other hand?  It lays bare the industry's refusal to evolve.  It is clear that many of the structures, decision making paradigms and, yes, attitudes are straight from the late 70s.  And we all know where that led us.

But back to the man of the hour, courtesy of Kering's announcement -

Kering has appointed Patrick Pruniaux, current Chief Executive Officer of Ulysse Nardin, as the new CEO of Girard-Perregaux. From today, he will manage the Group’s Swiss luxury watchmaking Maisons, within the Watches & Jewelry Activities. Patrick Pruniaux will report, as previously, to Albert Bensoussan, Chief Executive Officer of the Watches & Jewelry Activities of Kering.

 

Today’s luxury watchmaking sector is known for its accelerating product cycles, the increasingly global nature of its customers and the transformation of their expectations, both in terms of e-commerce and digital interactions. Patrick Pruniaux’s role will be to devise a coherent strategy for accelerating the development of the two Maisons in international markets, while at the same time maintaining their unique characteristics, their ability to innovate, and the excellence of their know-how.

 

Patrick Pruniaux has spent more than 20 years in the FMCG and Luxury industries, and in the watchmaking sector in particular. He spent nine years at TAG Heuer and several years at Apple, where he worked on the launch of the Apple watch before becoming MD of Apple in the UK and Ireland.

 

 

Albert Bensoussan, Chief Executive Officer of the Watches & Jewelry Activities of Kering, said: “I am delighted to give Patrick Pruniaux the mission of increasing the awareness and accelerating the growth of the Kering Group’s two iconic Swiss watchmaking Maisons. The dynamism he has shown over the past year as head of Ulysse Nardin convinced me that he was the best person to develop these two brands, and to capitalize on their respective identities, heritages and technological know-how.”

It is clear that Mr. Pruniaux didn't just fall off the turnip truck, and it is also evident that with his experience at Apple, he is prepared to "think different" (sorry, couldn't resist).  And if GP and UN continue to fester, in fairness?  I wouldn't hang the blame on him.  
We are (at least some of us) starting to realize that even during the last massive downturn, we were living in a gilded age.  Ultimately the brands will have to figure out what made them tick, and see if the magic can be recaptured.  But for the brands that were so dependent upon a cult of personality to drive them (and I say this with respect, not disdain), they will have to discover ways to make their watches attractive to actual customers without the help of celebrity CEOs and watch makers.  For UN the dynamic duo of  Ludwig Oechslin and Rolf Schnyder have left the building, and for GP the last connection to the romantic past of the family Macaluso is now living the life of a romantic poet/traveler/rally car driver.  

So some new magic will need to be found, because as that other great commentator on the watch industry, Slim Charles, would remind us:

 

Fall of the House of Macaluso

Word has trickled out over the past few days that the last remaining active family connection to to the man that pretty much willed Girard Perregaux back from the dead, has had his last day, and is moving on.  Per various social media postings, it appears that Stefano Macaluso has opted to leave the party.

For many of us, the sight of Antonio Calce's rapidly disappearing backside was a sign that things might improve.  And me personally?  I had hoped that maybe, just maybe Mr. Macaluso the younger would step forward to take a more active role.  And if I am completely honest?  I don't know that he would have necessarily done any better than the fellow who recently received his walking papers from his superiors at Kering HQ.  GP is a company that has made its bones mostly on sentiment, passion, emotion - the sort of things that can't really be explained or accounted for in a ledger.

I can only draw one conclusion.  Girard-Perregaux seems to be cursed.  There is no other way to look at it.  It is not a money issue, because there have been several rounds of cash coming in.  It is not for want of creativity, because they have plenty of that.  It is not for want of technical know-how, because it is clear that they have that in abundance.  And in some ways it is not for passion, because there have been some passionate people (at least with Mr. Sofisti, and the Macaluso family).  But sometimes, you can have everything going for you, and God, the Universe, your financial backers, fate itself decides that it just isn't going to be your year, or your decade.

But in my opinion, curses are meant to be lifted.  If the Cubs can win the World Series, if LeBron James can carry an entire city (Hell, an entire state) on his back and bring a championship that nobody ever felt or dreamed they would live to see? 

So what's next for GP?  I am not having daily phone exchanges with the Pinaults.  But at least insofar as their watch divisions go, maybe we should be, because they (or at least the people they are entrusting these watch making entities to) are making some monumentally bad decisions.  To the extent that I have to go back to the idea of a curse.  But maybe they could try something simple:

1.  Identify someone with experience who is not simply looking for their next CEO pay-grade job.  Find someone who gets it.

2.  Stop all of the bullshit.  GP IS NOT Patek.  Sorry, but it's time to put on the big boy pants and start facing realities.  Start making collections that have decent design, decent technical detail, and that will actually be purchased by actual customers.  Stop trying to solve all of your problems with a ridiculously expensive, esoteric watch that may win an award presented once a year by a panel of "experts", experts who are never going to buy one of your watches, but who will certainly be there for you so long as the "bar is open".

3.  Punch your weight.  There is an emerging middle place where GP could not only exist, but thrive.  But that will only happen if calmer heads start to prevail.

And most important?  For the love of God and all that's holy - get f'ing passionate about what you are doing!  This is a brand that people love, but GP has become about as exciting as a greyhound bus trip from Cleveland to Pittsburgh.  Why?  Because if the people running the thing aren't passionate about the watches they make and sell, why in f's sake should we be?

It's hard not to be romantic about watches, it's harder still to watch a good brand continue to trip over itself like a drunken octopus.  

The Laureato Flying Tourbillon Skeleton

From Girard-Perregaux -

Courtesy of Girard-Perregaux

The Laureato is growing on me.  This is the latest iteration, a flying tourbillon.

Courtesy of Girard-Perregaux

As the old saying often goes, a picture (or in this case, 2 pictures) can be worth a thousand words.  The Laureato is a wonderful model family, and this is without a doubt, a very grand flourish.

Here are the pertinents -

Laureato Flying Tourbillon Skeleton

Technical specifications

Case

Material: 18K pink or white gold

Diameter: 42,00 mm

Thickness: 10,76 mm

Glass: glare proofed sapphire anti-reflective

Case-back: sapphire crystal

Dial: ring displaying suspended gold indexes with luminescent material

Hands: “baton” type enhanced with luminescent material

Water resistance: 30 meters (3ATM)

Movement

Reference: GP 09520-0001, mechanical with automatic winding

Diameter: 32.50 mm (14 ^½ ‘’’)

Thickness: 6.20 mm

Frequency: 21,600 Vib/h – (3 Hz)

Number of components: 262

Jewels: 28

Power reserve: min. 50 hours

Functions: flying tourbillon, hours, minutes

Bracelet

Material: white gold or pink gold, alternating mat and polished surfaces

References

White gold :          99110-53-001-53A

Pink gold:     99110-52-000-52A

What If? BaselWorld Press Day Update!

I always used to avoid Press Day at BaselWorld - well not anymore!

Today Glycine, A. Favre & Fils, Tiret and  DuBois et fils joined our ever growing band of brothers and sisters uniting to help the brave men and women fighting poaching on the front lines!

Thank you Glycine!

Thank you A. Favre & Fils!

Thank you Tiret!

Thank you Dubois et fils!

So let's see, that makes:

Girard Perregaux, JEANRICHARD, A. Manzoni & Fils, Kobold, Aquadive, ISOfrane, Xetum, Jardur, Gavox, the Oberlin Pen Company, SAVOY, Ressence, Marvin, the Chinese Timekeeper, Tigerlily Skye, GoS Watches, Catherine Jones of Cambridge, Glycine, A. Favre & Fils, Tiret and DuBois et fils!

And because, as always, I could do this ALL DAY -

What if?

Dear watch companies,

What if?

What if each one of you could take even $5,000 from your annual budgets and donate it to a common cause?  What if the mighty SWATCH, Richemont, LVMH, ROLEX, Sowind, Audemars Piguet, Patek Phillipe, Ulysse Nardin… what if you all came together with a reasonable contribution with the sole goal of trying to fix an "unfixable" problem?

What if 100 watch companies in the world each contributed $5,000 - or more - to fund rangers to protect elephants and rhinos from poachers?  What if based on that, we could then go to people with even more money?  What if your KINDNESS and willingness to do something that was totally selfless then triggered people like Phil Knight of Nike, or Oprah Winfrey, or Bill Gates - I mean, let's aim high here!  What if that all got so much money - and so much attention, that it would be better financially for a father to become a ranger, rather than to become a poacher?  

And what if that action, created a groundswell in China and Vietnam to help people understand that maybe, just maybe the preservation of a species is more valuable than a dubious aphrodisiac?

So, let's name some names - Biver, Hayek, Hoffmann, Sofisti (THANK YOU!), Stern, Marini, Raffi, Stas and all the rest of you -

Are you really interested in doing something great - or is it just talk and PR?  

What am I asking for?  $5,000 if you have it - for some of you big brands, that is WAY less than you spend on a month of advertising.  And as the saying goes, if you can't afford $5,000, give what you can!

Do you really want to make a mark in the world and not just talk about it?  Here is a chance to do it!

Who is in?