The list is just out. These are the most valuable Swiss watch brands, for 2013/14.
The Nr 1 position is unchanged.
Rolex, worth CHF 5bn now, continues to make noise not only on the vintage auction market but also as a contemporary brand. Its power has never been stronger and brand equity never been higher. In second place comes Cartier, the Iconic brand that is the cash cow of the Richemont International group. In third place, Omega (the cash cow of the Swatch group), a brand that has made great strides in recent years sponsoring the Olympic games and being the official watch of James Bond (Omega’s website gets 40’ooo hits everyday).
Patek Philippe, the exclusive brand that is privately owned by the Stern family, is the only brand in the top 5 that managed to lose some value this year. The reasoning is weakness in their digital ‘touch point’ strategy. For the first time ‘digital brand value’ was used to calculate the rankings. The following factors played a role in digital touch points: Consistency of web-presence, Internet strategy and social media presence.
What is interesting to note in the rankings is the following.
Besides the Nr 1 company Rolex and Nr 4 ranked Patek, Nr 11 ranked Audemars and Nr 20 ranked Breitling- every single other brand is controlled by either Swatch group or by Richmont International group. Also notice the absence of strong watch brands Lange & Söhne and Glasshüte Original. Why are they missing?
You can argue they are also Swiss brands indirectly as they are controlled by Swiss parent company Richemont and Swatch group respectively, but they are regarded as Germany brands. Most of their components are assembled in Germany and thus both companies have ‘made in Germany’ on their dial.
In total, the Swiss watch brands on this list, are worth over CHF 21bn. The Swiss watch industry continues to grow driven by Asia, especially China, who value the complexity and highly technical expertise of the leading Swiss watchmakers. It is clear the world continues to pay a large premium for a mechanical watch that is made in Switzerland. Despite quartz watches being more accurate and the IPhone (and every other phone) carrying a time function, consumers are willing to pay big sums for fine Swiss watches. This list provides evidence of that.
If you’re wondering why Rolex is Nr 1, and how brand value in general is calculated, then see our Post for Part II .
(The list was created by brand consultants BV4 who own all the rights to this list)
