2023-08-25 12:07:55
High-end watchmaker Rolex is taking over watch and jewelery retailer Bucherer. This transaction, the financial details of which have not been disclosed, constitutes a significant change in strategy on the part of the world’s largest luxury watch brand.
“This news is an earthquake for the watch industry and will have major long-term consequences for manufacturers and retailers of timepieces,” said analyst Jean-Philippe Bertschy of Vontobel.
In the absence of a direct heir, Jörg Bucherer, the owner of the world’s number one watch retailer, decided to put his group up for sale, and the Genevan Rolex acquired it. The Bucherer name will be maintained and will continue to operate independently, Rolex said in a statement.
Approval expected from Comco
The Lucerne distributor, founded in 1888, has been selling Rolex watches in its branches since 1924. Currently, this is the case in 53 Bucherer stores, while 48 of them also sell Tudor products, another brand of the Geneva watchmaking group. Bucherer also acts as the official service center for both brands.
The retailer is present in Switzerland, the United States, Great Britain, France, Denmark and Austria. Rolex is convinced that the operation is the best solution for its own brands and for the entire range of watches and jewelery of other partner brands, as well as for all employees of the Lucerne group.
The transaction must still receive the approval of the Competition Commission (Comco).
Operation between two giants
This acquisition brings together two giants of the Swiss watch industry. Morgan Stanley Bank estimates Rolex’s turnover in 2022 at 9.3 billion francs, far ahead of number two Cartier (2.7 billion) and Omega (2.4 billion francs).
Bank Vontobel, for its part, estimates that Bucherer’s revenue should approach 2 billion francs and values the company at approximately 4 billion francs, once morest 2.3 billion for its competitor, the British retailer Watches of Switzerland.
The latter collapsed on the London Stock Exchange following this announcement. The firm fell 22.5% at 11:45 a.m. to 540 pence, with investors worried regarding the possible consequences of the takeover on Watches of Switzerland, which generates around 55% of its revenue from Rolex and Tudor watches, according to the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC ).
>> Read also: Rolex will buy land in Bulle (FR) for more than 31 million
Not a strategic move
The acquisition “does not represent a strategic move by Rolex to enter the watch retail business,” a statement from Watches of Switzerland said on Friday. “There will be no change in the distribution of products” between the different retailers, says the group.
Alongside the Geneva watchmaker Patek Philippe, Rolex was one of the few major manufacturers not to have developed in the direct sale of its timepieces to its end customers, preferring until now to concentrate on their manufacture.
ats/hkr
1692966567
#Rolex #buys #watch #jewelry #retailer #Bucherer #rts.ch
