A Rose by any other Name...

Okay, this one just in from the bureau of goofy partnerships -

AXL ROSE JOINS HYT FAMILY

Courtesy of HYT

Now to be completely honest, when I first saw this photo I thought that perhaps one of Mr. Rose's tattoos had become infected and this was some sort of public service announcement.  But fear not!  HYT is ready to "take you down to the Paradise City" with this (apparently) exciting partnership.

So as goofy and unlikely a partnership as it is, that goofiness is only surpassed by the bon mots of founder and board member Vincent Perriard -

"Axl and HYT share the same unconventional attitude. I can feel this partnership is going to be very Rock’n’roll!"

I have absolutely no idea what in the hell that's supposed to mean.

What is it about people who seem sane, rational and capable in their business lives absolutely lose their senses when an idol from their teenage years hoves into view?

Be that as it may, here's the release in full detail, you can read it for yourself and draw your own conclusions -

Axl Rose & HYT: Get Ready to Rock’n’roll

Courtesy of HYT

HYT is honored to count Axl Rose as a new "Friend of the Brand", partnering with the iconic singer and founder of legendary rock band Guns N' Roses, announced today. In honor of Rose joining the HYT family, a limited-edition watch will be created to celebrate this new friendship.

"Axl is a huge fan of watches in general but when he came across HYT he was really blown away! » explains Vincent Perriard (HYT Co-founder & Board Member). « Axl and HYT share the same unconventional attitude. I can feel this partnership is going to be very Rock’n’roll!".

Mehmet Korutürk, Co-Founder of Magnat Creative Agency adds : "We are really excited to be part of the collaboration between Mr. Axl Rose – a true rock icon – and HYT, one of the most cutting edge companies in Haute Horlogerie. "

This partnership will be based on the creation of a limited edition of one of HYT’s most iconic timepieces: the Skull. The watch will be presented at the next SIHH, in January 2017 in Geneva.

For touring information please check : www.gunsnroses.com and www.acdc.com.

Stop the Press! A Sneak Peek at HYT's "H2"

Well, at least the back ; )


Courtesy of HYT

 Vincent Perriard was kind enough to send this over, and now I share it with all of you!  The H2 in collaboration with Audemars Piguet (APRP), led by Master Watchmaker Giulio Papi.

All will be revealed soon enough - BaselWorld beckons!

www.hytwatches.com

A Few More Minutes with Vincent Perriard

Courtesy of HYT

James Henderson - So here you are now with HYT, but the last time we spoke you were leading TechnoMarine.  Can you share a bit of what has been happening between now and then?

Vincent Perriard - Well, that seems like really a long time ago for me now…  almost 2.5 years.  A lot has happened since then !  At TechnoMarine we had a different view on how to position the brand.  It is quite unfortunate since under my assignment, we had opened 200 points of sales and increased our turnover by +34%…  



JH - Where did the idea for HYT come from?

VP - In 2008 - at Concord - we had this idea to mix things which are not supposed to be together. Liquid is the enemy of mechanics.  And because of that, we created the C1 Quantum Gravity where you would see the Power Reserve indicated by sort of glass (filled with a great liquid) moving up and down, according to the Power Reserve.  This watch was unique and Concord had a tremendous amount of success with its series of unconventional pieces (including the Best Watch of the Year at the Grand Prix of Geneva in 2008).

In 2011, I met (via a mutual friend) Lucien Vouillamoz who is the inventor of the HYT technology.  He explained to me that he can bring my initial dream to a higher level with a real liquid system indicator.  The liquid is actually moving around the watch to display time… I fell in love with the idea, with the people involved and finally we decided to launch HYT (which stands for HYdro Technologies).  The sky is the limit since this technology can be multiplied and we could imagine a watch with the hour indication as well as a date indicator, a Power Reserve indicator, a count down indicator ...

JH - How have things been going for HYT so far?

VP - The best answer to that is to Google "HYT watches" to see how we have hit the web and the watch community!

Our business model is quite powerful : we have pre sold watches 3 months before BaselWorld 2012 with key partners who believed in the project, in the watch and in the people. Therefore, we can say that all 2013 watches are pre sold (sold in and sold out). So to get a H1 from HYT is becoming a difficult thing! 

JH - What's in store for this year?  Any surprises up your sleeve for BaselWorld?

VP - We are delivering the H1 while I speak and we are soon introducing the H2 which is a joint creative effort with Audemars Piguet (led by Giulio Papi).  This special piece will be presented at BaselWorld 2013 in April.

Searching for Biver - Part 1

So we are almost at the new year.  2012 has been full of surprises and developments - comings and goings.  A few more "goings" are sure to be announced shortly.  But with all of the day to day noise, new products, anniversaries, break-through technologies... I am still waiting for the next great communicator out there.  I know she or he is out there somewhere.  I have said many times before, Jean-Claude Biver is perhaps the "most perfect creature" when it came to making a watch company into something from virtually nothing.  It was not just the message - but the messenger.  You can have great and interesting products, but you also need that evangelical zeal to get people excited about it.  You not only have to get people's attention, but you have to hold it.

So who will we hear big things from in the coming year?

I think certainly Vincent Perriard might actually fit the bill.  Now in fairness, HYT at the moment is very much a work in progress - but the progress so far has been impressive.

Courtesy of HYT and Chronopassion

I think that what is exciting about HYT is that Vincent Perriard is EXCITED ABOUT IT.  So I might be premature here, but I think 2013 could be the break-out comeback year for Vincent.  Now the bigger challenge will be to see where he can grow HYT from here.  Stay tuned!

HYT's First Delivery at Chronopassion

HYT delivering its first watches. Here at CHRONOPASSION in Paris, with Laurent Picciotto

What's Vincent working on?

Vincent Perriard was nice enough to forward this to me - a bit of a tease, but BaselWorld is approximately 2 months away, so consider this an "amuse bouche" -


http://www.hytwatches.com/

I will be on hand to give you the specifics following the reveal - stay tuned!

Once again - a few minutes with Vincent Perriard - CEO of TechnoMarine

I am new to this business of blogging.  But what I have learned in this very short period is that there are some people, and some subjects that just seem to be of really great interest.  So while I hate to be repetitive - I have to say that this is an interview I truly enjoyed, with one of the nicest people I've had the good fortune to have as an interview subject.




And now a few minutes with Vincent Perriard - CEO of TechnoMarine

JH - What was your first watch?  Was it a gift, is there a story behind it?

VP - As best I can remember… it was a Tissot. Then there was a Swatch.

In Switzerland, when you are around 15 years old, this is the typical gift you will receive. Before that age, I was wearing watches from my dad!

JH.  Tell me a bit about yourself please - while you have worked in the watch industry for some time, you also have a reputation as a brand builder.  Following Concord you could have done any number of things.  Why TechnoMarine?

VP.  As a brand, TechnoMarine was in very bad shape.  I love taking on challenges that no one else wants to put the time and energy into. 

I believe very strongly in the $300 – $3000 price segment, which has been virtually empty over the last 10 years.  It seems that everybody has been willing to increase their price and their prestige, but this is a very important segment. The $300 – $3000 segment is attractive again due to the tough economy and the shift of mentalities towards luxury.

Bringing the colors, the fun, the  "joie de vivre" into a brand like TechnoMarine will make a big difference. You will be able to judge my predictions in 2011… that is when TechnoMarine will reveal its new collection (the one developed over 18 months with the new team on board).

JH.  Will Technomarine remain only in retail (Brick and Mortar Stores), or is a TechnoMarine official online store in the future?

VP.  We will go online in 2011… without a doubt. We are working (right now) on the structure of this website.

JH.  When you were a boy - what did you want to be when you "grew up"?

VP.  I wanted to be an architect. I never thought about watches! My dream was to become an architect because I loved – at that time – to draw. Finally, I did my studies and started to build a new radio station in Switzerland. Radio was my passion for a few year which led me to “communications and marketing”… My number two passion.

JH.  Where did you go to school - what did you study?

VP.  I went to school in Neuchâtel and in Lausanne (Switzerland). Neuchâtel was for what we call Commercial School.  In Lausanne I took a Marketing degree.

JH.  Who else is making watches that excite you?

VP.  Audemars Piguet : my first  "love" with watches. My first job in the watch industry was with Audemars Piguet.  I am still very connected with friends and members of the board still working at AP. 

Apart from Audemars Pigeut, a lot of independent watch companies, such as Richard Mille, and Greubel Forsey come to mind. 

JH.  What would you be doing if you weren't the CEO of TechnoMarine?

VP.  My own company, of course. It will come one day.

JH.  What do you like to do in your "down-time"?

VP.  Taking care of my 3 little boys (4, 7 and 10 years-old). They are my ultimate passion, my “raison d’être”. Without them, nothing is worth it.

JH.  TechnoMarine seems to be like some of the basketball teams here in the states with the BIG THREE - what brought you and your two colleagues together?

VP.  We love challenges. We love watches. We love people. Every business is a new adventure. Without adventure and challenge, nothing is interesting. Therefore, we love the motto: “we will succeed BIG time or we will lose BIG time, nothing in between”. It puts a lot of pressure on our shoulders and this leads us to be smarter, to be more creative, to be more pro-active, etc… This is exactly what happened at Concord. Everybody was “shocked” to see me leading Concord. They said: “what the hell are you going to do there”… And 18 months later… Concord won the “GRAND PRIX DE GENEVE” with the best design Award for 2008!  I love re-shaping brands. This is my greatest passion.

JH.  So let's talk a bit about Concord.  What was that experience like?

VP.  Working at Concord was a great experience!   It was a dream experience because I was always dreaming about a brand that was almost gone that I could help bring back to life… Concord was the ONE!  Everybody was laughing at Concord before we brought the brand a new energy, a new vision, a new path - a new life . By concentrating everything on one design (one model, the C1) and stretching the C1 with creative and innovative ideas made a big difference - it made THE difference.

JH.  Why did you leave?

VP.  I met with Christian Viros, the former President of LVMH horlogerie (TAG Heuer, Zenith, Dior, Louis Vuitton).  He wanted me to help  in the re-activation of TechnoMarine. After 3 years at Concord, I now had a second chance to re-energize a brand that was slowly disappearing from the market. I was happy at Concord. But discussing our vision of the watch making industry with Christian, I realized that we shared the same view, the same vision. Christian Viros is one of the top entrepreneurs in the world of watches. He re-invented TAG Heuer. He is a visionary of a different order - like only a few people in our industry.

JH.  Any regrets?

VP.  I would have loved to stay another 2 years at Concord but the TechnoMarine challenge was too good to pass up. So, no. No regrets.

JH.  What do you view as your greatest achievement so far?

VP.  The most obvious was the rebirth of Concord. But with my colleagues, back in the late 90’s, I was in charge of the Marketing of Audemars Piguet and with the leadership of Georges-Henry Meylan, we  repositioned Audemars Piguet as one of the most luxurious, prestigious and respected brands ever. This was a great achievement by reinventing every level of the marketing within AP at that time, along with the birth of the best seller Royal Oak Offshore in 1995.

JH.  Very often things don't go right, can you remember an instance where things did not go well?  How did you handle this?

VP.  Many times!  Through my work in the watch industry so far, the projects (as a whole) were successful. But in the details, we face daily challenges!  One of the most important parts of my job is to communicate.  Not only to the outside (like now) but internally; to share the vision; to convince the people; to unify them. This is where sometimes, things are not going right.  You have to understand that it is really challenging sometime to share what you have in mind, what you feel in your guts…it is clear to you - but you have to share that vision, and help others not only to see it, but to share it with you.

JH.  So what advice do you have for the next new wave of watch executives?

VP.  Enjoy the ride! Don’t lead your company with fear. Believe in what you do!

Fifteen Days with TechnoMarine

Okay - day one was really a great introduction to this fun watch!  Very quick first impressions - large but not too large.  A good weight/heft ratio.

Very legible - and what I really like are the blue contrasting sub dials and accents on the dial and inner bezel.

Very comfortable strap.

TechnoMarine Cruise Sport CHOCOLATE

TechnoMarine is pleased to introduce a new color to the Cruise Sport range of watches—chocolate brown accented with rose gold PVD. Water resistant up to 200m and available in a chronograph or 3-hand style, the Cruise Sport excels on a diving expedition or aboard a speedboat, but, thanks to its sleek profile, can just as smoothly blend with boardroom attire. Available for the first time in brown, this new, warmer look brings some heat to the crisp fall months.

A feature of all Cruise Sports, the soft silicone straps and case-covers are removable and can be interchanged with different colors.

Cruise Sport Chocolate 40mm 3-hands US$425; 40mm chronograph US$525. An additional strap (white) is included.

www.technomarine.com

A Few Minutes with Vincent Perriard

                    
And now a few minutes with Vincent Perriard - CEO of TechnoMarine

JH - What was your first watch?  Was it a gift, is there a story behind it?

VP - As best I can remember… it was a Tissot. Then there was a Swatch.

In Switzerland, when you are around 15 years old, this is the typical gift you will receive. Before that age, I was wearing watches from my dad!

JH.  Tell me a bit about yourself please - while you have worked in the watch industry for some time, you also have a reputation as a brand builder.  Following Concord you could have done any number of things.  Why TechnoMarine?

VP.  As a brand, TechnoMarine was in very bad shape.  I love taking on challenges that no one else wants to put the time and energy into. 

I believe very strongly in the $300 – $3000 price segment, which has been virtually empty over the last 10 years.  It seems that everybody has been willing to increase their price and their prestige, but this is a very important segment. The $300 – $3000 segment is attractive again due to the tough economy and the shift of mentalities towards luxury.

Bringing the colors, the fun, the  "joie de vivre" into a brand like TechnoMarine will make a big difference. You will be able to judge my predictions in 2011… that is when TechnoMarine will reveal its new collection (the one developed over 18 months with the new team on board).

JH.  Will Technomarine remain only in retail (Brick and Mortar Stores), or is a TechnoMarine official online store in the future?

VP.  We will go online in 2011… without a doubt. We are working (right now) on the structure of this website.

JH.  When you were a boy - what did you want to be when you "grew up"?

VP.  I wanted to be an architect. I never thought about watches! My dream was to become an architect because I loved – at that time – to draw. Finally, I did my studies and started to build a new radio station in Switzerland. Radio was my passion for a few year which led me to “communications and marketing”… My number two passion.

JH.  Where did you go to school - what did you study?

VP.  I went to school in Neuchâtel and in Lausanne (Switzerland). Neuchâtel was for what we call Commercial School.  In Lausanne I took a Marketing degree.

JH.  Who else is making watches that excite you?

VP.  Audemars Piguet : my first  "love" with watches. My first job in the watch industry was with Audemars Piguet.  I am still very connected with friends and members of the board still working at AP. 

Apart from Audemars Pigeut, a lot of independent watch companies, such as Richard Mille, and Greubel Forsey come to mind. 

JH.  What would you be doing if you weren't the CEO of TechnoMarine?

VP.  My own company, of course. It will come one day.

JH.  What do you like to do in your "down-time"?

VP.  Taking care of my 3 little boys (4, 7 and 10 years-old). They are my ultimate passion, my “raison d’être”. Without them, nothing is worth it.

JH.  TechnoMarine seems to be like some of the basketball teams here in the states with the BIG THREE - what brought you and your two colleagues together?

VP.  We love challenges. We love watches. We love people. Every business is a new adventure. Without adventure and challenge, nothing is interesting. Therefore, we love the motto: “we will succeed BIG time or we will lose BIG time, nothing in between”. It puts a lot of pressure on our shoulders and this leads us to be smarter, to be more creative, to be more pro-active, etc… This is exactly what happened at Concord. Everybody was “shocked” to see me leading Concord. They said: “what the hell are you going to do there”… And 18 months later… Concord won the “GRAND PRIX DE GENEVE” with the best design Award for 2008!  I love re-shaping brands. This is my greatest passion.

JH.  So let's talk a bit about Concord.  What was that experience like?

VP.  Working at Concord was a great experience!   It was a dream experience because I was always dreaming about a brand that was almost gone that I could help bring back to life… Concord was the ONE!  Everybody was laughing at Concord before we brought the brand a new energy, a new vision, a new path - a new life . By concentrating everything on one design (one model, the C1) and stretching the C1 with creative and innovative ideas made a big difference - it made THE difference.

JH.  Why did you leave?

VP.  I met with Christian Viros, the former President of LVMH horlogerie (TAG Heuer, Zenith, Dior, Louis Vuitton).  He wanted me to help  in the re-activation of TechnoMarine. After 3 years at Concord, I now had a second chance to re-energize a brand that was slowly disappearing from the market. I was happy at Concord. But discussing our vision of the watch making industry with Christian, I realized that we shared the same view, the same vision. Christian Viros is one of the top entrepreneurs in the world of watches. He re-invented TAG Heuer. He is a visionary of a different order - like only a few people in our industry.

JH.  Any regrets?

VP.  I would have loved to stay another 2 years at Concord but the TechnoMarine challenge was too good to pass up. So, no. No regrets.

JH.  What do you view as your greatest achievement so far?

VP.  The most obvious was the rebirth of Concord. But with my colleagues, back in the late 90’s, I was in charge of the Marketing of Audemars Piguet and with the leadership of Georges-Henry Meylan, we  repositioned Audemars Piguet as one of the most luxurious, prestigious and respected brands ever. This was a great achievement by reinventing every level of the marketing within AP at that time, along with the birth of the best seller Royal Oak Offshore in 1995.

JH.  Very often things don't go right, can you remember an instance where things did not go well?  How did you handle this?

VP.  Many times!  Through my work in the watch industry so far, the projects (as a whole) were successful. But in the details, we face daily challenges!  One of the most important parts of my job is to communicate.  Not only to the outside (like now) but internally; to share the vision; to convince the people; to unify them. This is where sometimes, things are not going right.  You have to understand that it is really challenging sometime to share what you have in mind, what you feel in your guts…it is clear to you - but you have to share that vision, and help others not only to see it, but to share it with you.

JH.  So what advice do you have for the next new wave of watch executives?

VP.  Enjoy the ride! Don’t lead your company with fear. Believe in what you do!

You can check out TechnoMarine at:

www.technomarine.com