Swatch Founded in 1983

by Nicholas Hayek

Swatch was originally intended to re-capture entry level market share lost by Swiss manufacturers during the quartz crisis and the subsequent growth of Japanese companies such as Seiko and Citizen in the 1960s and 1970s. It caused a decline of the Swiss watchmaking industry, which chose to remain focused on traditional mechanical watches, while the majority of world watch production shifted to Asian companies that embraced the new technology. SWATCH wanted to re-popularize analog watches at a time when digital watches had achieved wide popularity.

The launch of the Swatch brand in 1983 was marked by bold new styling, design and marketing.

The name "Swatch" is a contraction of "Second Watch" – coined because the new watch was introduced with a new concept of watches as casual, fun, and relatively disposable accessories. Because it didn’t cost a fortune, a customer’s second watch was soon followed by a third, a fourth... and the rest is history.

The first collection of twelve Swatch models was introduced on 1 March 1983 in Zürich, Switzerland.

It was all thanks to Franz Sprecher who transformed the brand into a trendy line of watches with a full brand identity and marketing concept—instead of developing just another watch collection, which could have soon been matched by its competition.

WHY IT DID WELL?

  • An aggressive marketing campaign
  • A very reasonable price for a Swiss-made watch (CHF 50.00)
  • Compared to conventional watches, a Swatch was 80% cheaper to produce by fully automating assembly and reducing the number of parts from the usual 91 or more to only 51 components.

Experimenting with different materials

Swatch has continued to push the limits of technology, introducing an astonishing range of materials from plastic, stainless steel and aluminium to synthetic fabrics, rubber and silicon

POP SWATCH

Some models, like the Pop Swatch, allowed wearers to attach Swatches directly to clothing.

I always want more

CORE COLLECTION

SPECIALS

Swatch club

swatch and art

Right from the start, Swatch connected with art. Like the pop art first seen in the 1960s, Swatch watches were inspired by popular culture, and Swatch itself soon became a canvas for world famous artists—painters, sculptors, musicians, filmmakers.

swatch and social media

The Club helps market Swatch through social networks and engages with its members and fans through web sites in different markets and languages. Swatch Club brings people together, 24 hours a day—fans who love art, follow sports and keep up with the latest trends in lifestyles and communications. They share the fun and the brand experience with fellow members all over the world, enjoying the Swatch experience online and at live events, where they meet athletes, artists and VIPs. They live the world of Swatch through Swatch.tv, special Swatch watches, insider news and exclusive previews of future launches.

Supremely inventive, exciting, and always provocative, Swatch today is at the heart of a world that thrives on creativity and constant change. And the man who has come to be identified as «Mr. Swatch» remains the driving force behind the brand. Never one to rest on his laurels, Nicolas G. Hayek has recently startled the market with yet another unpredictable move. Embracing the dark side of the James Bond myth, N.G. Hayek has launched the Swatch 007 Villain Collection – 22 new Swatch watches celebrating the villains Bond fans love to hate.

One of the biggest brand names in the world today, Swatch has produced more than 350 million Swiss Made «Second Watches» – colourful, exciting accessories in tune with the latest trends in the streets, sports and fashion.

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